Su Libro
by Patricia L. Garcia
designing a home for physical, mental and emotional wellness
Wellness by Design: A Room-by-Room Guide to Optimizing Your Home for Health, Fitness + Happiness, by Jamie Gold. Tiller Press/Simon & Schuster, hardcover, $21.99
Innovative new materials make outdoor entertaining easier and healthier.
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S U C A S A A U T U M N 2020
Textured laminate can be a stylish and healthy option for low-maintenance cabinetry.
If there’s anything to be learned from the coronavirus, aside from general cleanliness, it’s that home is incredibly important. We spend most of our time at home, and more so in the last year. Home is now doubling as the place where we go to complete work, where we go to get away from work and where we are partially homeschooling our kids — having the right space means you can effectively do the things that need to be done efficiently and effectively. Having the right space is important because it can also have a positive effect on your physical and mental health. “Our living spaces have a tremendous impact on our physical and emotional well-being, from how they’re constructed to how they’re organized and decorated,” writes Jamie Gold in her new book, Wellness By Design: A Room-to-Room Guide to Optimizing Your Home for Health, Fitness + Happiness. “This book explores the many ways they can support or sabotage us, room by room, and shares suggestions for making them healthier, safer, and more functional as we strive to live our best lives.” Gold wrote the book after going through a health transformation. After facing some difficulties in her late 50s, she decided to lose weight. Losing 100 pounds prompted her to compete in obstacle course races that challenged her physically and mentally. As an interior designer and competitor, Gold found a way to translate her lifestyle changes to home design. She has always concentrated on wellness in the home, mostly focusing on designing for accessibility, so this was a natural fit for her. So, what does wellness at home mean? It means a home that will be accessible for all stages of life, and for people with disabilities. It means a home that is made safe through security systems, as well as professionally installed water, electrical, plumbing or lighting systems. It also refers to a home’s functionality — after all, a home that is easier to maintain makes life easier. And let’s not forget décor. While it doesn’t seem especially important to wellness, décor is an instant mood booster, such as family photos that make you happy, or a plush and stylish rug that’s both pleasing to look at and to the feet. The book also mentions nature connections, such as indoor plants and natural light or using non-toxic building materials for
GEOLUXE OUTDOOR: Photo Courtesy COSAJ SCG CERAMICS PUBLIC COMPANY LIMITED/GEOLUXE // Wellness by Design, Tiller Press, © Jamie Gold. Laminate cabinets: Photo Courtesy Poggenpohl. Designer: Jennifer Kelly, ASID//Wellness by Design, Tiller Press, © Jamie Gold.
home is where the wellness is