HGTV misconceptions

"I watch HGTV, I know what I'm doing"

A lot of people think that the HGTV shows portray real experiences of how it works to renovate or remodel, when in actaulity it is incorrect. The shows on HGTV have given people an unrealstic idea of what it is like to go through a major renovation. The tv network shows that the work gets done faster than it actually does in real life (for example- the show will say that it only took 7 to complete the project, but really it took a lot more time that that). The designs may look good on the camera but they may not be so impressive in real life.

A lot of the renovations that HGTV claims as "cheap" projects are not so cheap. People need to realize tat you need to include factors such as the cost the of designer, the cost of the materials/fabrics/accessories, and the work crews' time. These factors can tend to rack up in price rather qucikly.

Universal Design

    I love to travel and have noticed some things from the places that I have been that just don't seem accessible to everyone. For instance, when I traveled China this year, I noticed that in some of the restrooms, in the hotel room and in the public restrooms, they were not accessible to someone in a wheel chair. That raised the question to me, do places outside the U.S. have the same universal design needs as the U.S. does?

   What is Universal Design? Universal design refers to broad-spectrum ideas meant to produce buildings, products and environments that are inherently accessible to both people without disabilities and people with disabilites.

  According to Sheila King, coordinator of Australia For All Alliance Inc., at the end of 2008, accessible tourism was the fastest growing segment in the tourism industry. Even so, the demand for more accessible accommodations and tourism venues still far outweighs the current options. With disability on the increase, other countries are having to increase accomodations of universal design and accesibility.