Touch of a lady

Storage haven: When a woman designs a house, it is more likely to be family friendly.

My friend and I went to a gated community in which there was a house for rent and we were given a tour of one of the maisonettes. The ladies were very impressed with the thought and detail that went into nearly every section of the house. So when the broker mentioned to us that the landlord was indeed a lady and that she designed the plan, it came as no surprise to us.

Family friendly
It may sound rather segregative, but I have found that houses designed or planned by women are more family friendly.
For one, it is common knowledge that storage is a big issue in property but the question is not only about how much storage there is but also where it is located that makes it more functional. As we walked through the house, it was evident that there was storage planned for plates, cups, suitcases but also available was storage for miscellaneous stuff in strategic places and without being told we seemed to figure it out.

Securing your property
For those of you who own rented property you have been through the experience of having a tenant move out and they not only leave with their belongings but also with some of yours...things like curtain rods, rings, sockets...well, the landlady in this situation came up with what I thought was brilliant. The curtain rod system was custom made in such a way that once drilled into the wall there is no way the rods were coming off for whatever reason. Each rod had a good number of curtain rings permanently placed on them and then wielded together! So the idea of lifting the rods perishes as soon as you set eyes on them.
Each room had dressing mirrors screwed onto the wall and extra shelving in the wardrobes removing the need to buy a dressing table thus reducing the amount of floating items that would ordinarily be placed in the room.
Two steps away from an outside shed, was a clothes hanging line pole with five wires attached immediately solving the problem of if you had more laundry than usual, you would still be accommodated comfortably.
On the overall the house (to mostly the women) felt like one needed not bring in so much or do so much to get settled in!

Extra spaces
Right at the back, exiting through the kitchen, a simple metal roof shed had been constructed to act as both storage for those families that buy a sack of charcoal for their charcoal stoves and an out door kitchen as well.

-Gloria Kawuma is an interior designer