Michael Graves and Pottery Barn unite for new adaptive furniture
Because the right furniture works for everyone
Credit:
Pottery Barn / Michael Graves Design
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Accessible products have become popular in recent years, from clothing to toys to cars. Now we can add accessible furniture to the list. Pottery Barn teamed up with Michael Graves Design to create a first-of-its-kind line of accessible home furnishings, and we have all the details from those who designed it.
“We've always believed safety and style are not mutually exclusive and that the two should be blended. You should be able to get furniture for your home that fits your taste, [and] that works for everybody,” says Rob Van Varick, the Chief Design Officer at Michael Graves Design. This is something he and his colleagues have been working on for years since the founder of Michael Graves Design, Michael Graves, was paralyzed from the waist down.
The features the brand offers make life easier, whether you have a disability or not. They picked the three bestselling Pottery Barn furniture collections and integrated functionality, such as wheelchair access and easy-to-open drawers, for people who may have limited movement. So, if you own the Sausalito bed but you haven't yet gotten a dresser, now you can buy the accessible version.
When buying furniture, you expect you are going to live with that furniture for a long time. That makes purchasing furniture that is functional and appealing to the eye a win-win scenario.
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Dressers
Concealed grab bars and purposefully designed wheelchair clearance help make this adaptive dresser shine.
The Pottery Barn-Michael Graves dressers have a grab rail that goes around the front and sides. “We went through a lot of iterations to simplify it and get to a solution that looked so integrated you don't even realize it's there,” says Van Varick. Wheelchair users can get up close to the dresser without risking banging their feet.
All the drawers also use hardware that can be opened with a single hand. And the dresser has 9 inches of clearance for somebody who's not in a wheelchair, which translates to less bending. These are all subtle tweaks with the potential to have a huge impact.
This dresser has a concealed grab bar and can be easily opened with just one hand.
Nightstands
Whether you're storing a CPAP machine or an iPhone, this specialized dresser has all the extra compartments you need.
The nightstands offer a large drawer for CPAP storage as well as pass-through, raised edges to prevent items from rolling off, ADA-compliant hardware, a height of 26.5 inches for accessibility, and an integrated power strip in the drawer. “Looking at a CPAP machine on your bedside nightstand every day isn't really the reminder we all want,” explains Van Varick. So storing the machine away when it’s not in use provides an added avenue for comfort.
The nightstands are also great for anybody who charges devices at night. “How many of us charge our phone or plug in a clock or a speaker or anything on a nightstand? Now you have these great little cord pass throughs that make it super easy and convenient,” explains Van Varick.
The Farmhouse Nightstand has an integrated power strip and cord pass throughs to conceal necessary devices.
Bradford Armchair
This chair is high and features extra handholds, making it easy to get in and stay comfortable.
Typically, lounge seating is lower to the ground. But the adaptive design of the Bradford Armchair is a bit higher than what you’ll find on the rest of the market. The density of the foam, the depth of the seat, and the armrests are designed to stick out a little bit past the chair itself to give people extra touchpoints to get in and out. They also added an extra 1.5 inches to the feet so, depending on your need, you can set it even higher or lower.
This armchair features extra touchpoints as well as easy entry and exit.
Bedding
Unabotrusive side grips facilitate sitting up in this beautifully designed bed.
The Pottery Barn-Michael Graves beds were designed with features such as pull-and-roll side grips for easier repositioning, integrated armrests for support, footrest perches for safe seating, and integrated storage to enhance functionality. A big focal point for this collection is fall prevention.
“Falls are one of the most universally dangerous accidents that can happen to an older adult, and it's going to affect their ability to live independently,” explains Van Varick. “We all get injuries. We all sometimes have situational disabilities, whether your arms are full because you're carrying something, or it's nighttime and it's dark, and you can't see. These are all things that we don't really think about on a daily basis but [at Michael Graves Design], we do.”
Overall, the goal of the new product line is to remember to invest in yourself. We all need to make our lives easier, and we don’t know what the future may hold. “If you lift a heavy box and pull your back tomorrow, you're going to love yourself for having bought this bed,” says Van Varick.
The Cayman Bed has side grips and foot perches to make positioning and dressing easier than ever.
The full collection launches August 1, 2024, and is available on Pottery Barn’s Michael Graves Shop.
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