4 Great Home Design Innovations For Writers (And Others)

I was dreading returning to a condo that’s been under renovation for the last five months. For one, my room/office was not renovated.

So, you guessed it: Every single moveable item from the other rooms was crammed into my tiny writing space.

My workspace is still cluttered after days of sorting, cleaning and repositioning stuff. I initially thought about posting a photo of the clutter, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.  Not a good environment for writing at all!

Great Innovations

So, instead of sitting down to write, I set out to discover some upside to the chaos and mess of a renovation. I found four delightful innovations. Maybe, everyone already has these installed in their homes, and I, as usual, am a total latecomer to the interior design scene.

None of them have improved any part of my writing space, but they are just four small features that are going to make life easier and breezier– and so more conducive to churning out all those new words.

Big-Ass Sink

That’s a Kraus Kore Workstation (above) with accessories. I’m not sure I like what the word “workstation” connotes. Sounds too much like standing on an assembly line. But I can see all the uses to which one could put this 32-inch monster: From bathing a newborn (–or even a small two-year old) to soaking your biggest, dirtiest (Thanksgiving) roasting pan, and you’d still have room to spare.

Best of all, I love those accessories — the cutting board and the roll-up trivet — that fit right into the sink. You can chop up vegetables and fruits and just sweep the remains straight off the board into the garbage disposal, or drain your glasses and dishes right over the sink.

Hidden- Storage Gizmo

I won’t be wasting time, running to the store, every couple of days, either. This hidden- storage gizmo lets me buy and store extra supplies of soap, detergent, toilet paper, or whatever. Just need to pull out the first set of shelving.

Then, slide it to the right to reveal the second set of shelving from inside a cabinet that was previously inaccessible.

A really innovative space booster when a space is too small to install a lazy susan. Again, this is probably something that’s been around as a kitchen storage option for the last decade, but please humor me; interior design is not my forte!

Toto is Totally Too Much

I know I’m just going to absolutely love my Toto as soon as I figure out how to use it. In case you’ve never heard of all the advantages of a Toto, it’s a toilet that pre-mists to clean the bowl as soon as you sit down. And, when you’re done, it sprays you clean and dries you, front and back — at speeds and pressures which you select by remote control. Then, it deodorizes the room.

Apparently, more than half the civilized world has been using this type of toilet for a while. This, in spite of the possible peril associated with placing your nether regions in a place where electric and water meet. Maybe, that’s what the big warning plastered inside of the seat cover tells you, though the print is too small for me to read. Not to worry, I’m on page 23 of the 54-page instruction booklet that comes with the Toto. I’ll have it all figured out, soon.

World’s Best Shower

Many writers say they get their best ideas in the shower. In which case, look for some world-busting creativity from me in the next few months. I just discovered the world’s best rain shower. It’s a Moen Velocity with two speeds (rain pattern and massage.) Business Insider rated it Best RainShower Head of 2019.

I know that rain shower heads have been around forever, but honestly, I never understood the hype about them — until I stepped under this one.

No better way to start — or end– the day.