Are you taking on a design project in your home and want to incorporate some child-friendly elements? We’re not talking bumpers on sharp corners or locks on doors and drawers. Rather, we will let you in on a few “trade secrets” as to how you can incorporate safe and accessible design for children without it affecting the overall look! Actually, most of the time we automatically already incorporate these design elements and began realizing that making our spaces both adult and child-friendly is simple and easy to do! Want to know how? Take a look at our trade-secrets below!

Consider Corners

Larger radius corner on countertops is not only child-friendly but friendly for all. Adding a simple radius will avoid the bumps and bruises from accidentally running into the corners. We think everyone can benefit from rounded corners. It’s a subtle and simple way to keep you and your children safe!

Countertop Material

Consider the countertop material. One of the best options for maintenance and quality is quartz! Quartz is non-porous, which means it won’t absorb any spills and other bacteria, which keep your countertops safe. Plus, when you choose quartz countertops, there is no need for sealing. This saves you from exposing toxic fumes inside your home. Today, we utilize quartz to about half of our projects (if not more). It’s become very popular and has many options when it comes to colors, and mimicking natural stone, such as marble. Quartz is a safe and popular option for your home!

Soft close door/drawer

Something we incorporate to every single project (unless requested not to) are soft-close drawers. Once you have the soft-close feature, you will never go back! It’s one of those small luxuries which prevents slamming of drawers (watch those fingers!) and provides a delicate touch to your space. This is a wonderful feature to have in your kitchen and we could only imagine that we’ve saved many fingers from being slammed over the years! 🙂

Microwave Drawer

Let’s start with saying that microwave drawers not only free up space on your counters but also allow children access and utilize on their own (if taught and demonstrated how to properly use, obviously). Microwave drawers also have no handles, which prevents pulling and potentially damaging the unit. This is a wonderful item to incorporate into your kitchen whether you’re planning for your children or planning for accessible design!

Beverage Fridge

A popular element we include quite often is a beverage fridge. A beverage fridge is a smaller unit than a full-size fridge and is housed under the countertop allowing accessibility for big and small! For the adults, a beverage unit may be designated for the beers, but if making it child-friendly, it could be designated for those Capri-suns and snacks. Oh, to be a kid again!

Want to learn more trade-secrets? Check out our Kitchen Design Secrets blog!