How to Design a Lefty-Friendly Home in a Right-Handed World
In honor of Left Handers Day on Aug. 13, here are a few ways to make your favorite lefty’s life easier
‘Lefties’ World Works Backwards’
What’s perfectly natural for the right-handed majority can be awkward and uncomfortable for lefties. “Right-handed people don’t realize how lucky they are to have everything just meant for them.… Let’s start by pointing out that all door knobs turn to the right side,” says Andrea De los Monteros, a lefty and the director of merchandise for several shops at San Francisco’s Pier 39, including Lefty’s the Left Hand Store. “Understand that lefties’ world works backwards.”
Standard scissors and can openers, De los Monteros says, are some of the trickiest everyday tools lefties have trouble with, as they’re specifically designed to be powered by right hands.
What’s perfectly natural for the right-handed majority can be awkward and uncomfortable for lefties. “Right-handed people don’t realize how lucky they are to have everything just meant for them.… Let’s start by pointing out that all door knobs turn to the right side,” says Andrea De los Monteros, a lefty and the director of merchandise for several shops at San Francisco’s Pier 39, including Lefty’s the Left Hand Store. “Understand that lefties’ world works backwards.”
Standard scissors and can openers, De los Monteros says, are some of the trickiest everyday tools lefties have trouble with, as they’re specifically designed to be powered by right hands.
But there are plenty of other home features like appliance knobs and hinges configured so a left-handed person needs to reach across their body or turn their body an unnatural way to access them. Of course, this doesn’t have to be the case. Things like refrigerator hinges and cabinet pulls can be moved to an opposite, more comfortable side relatively easily, experts say.
And if you or someone you live with is left-handed and you’re considering remodeling, thinking through natural logistics before you place furniture and appliances can also make a big difference. A dishwasher, for instance, might feel more natural for a lefty if it’s placed to the left of the sink, such as the one shown here. (Of course, it’s worth mentioning that since 90 percent of the population is right-handed, these kinds of more permanent choices might make resale a little more difficult, unless you’re planning to sell exclusively to lefties.)
Install Your Kitchen Sink for How You Like to Cook and Clean
Install Your Kitchen Sink for How You Like to Cook and Clean
Specially Made for Southpaws
There are some resources out there for lefties looking for everyday home items that allow them to use their dominant hand, and some say the number of such items seems to be growing, albeit slowly. Though the products can be pricier because there’s not as high a demand for them, they can also make someone’s life noticeably easier. Lefty’s — the San Francisco shop devoted to left-handed tools, supplies and lefty-pride apparel — offers everything from left-handed corkscrews and knives to left-handed notebooks, oven mitts and garden pruners in the store and on their site.
“We always love hearing about (or seeing it ourselves at our San Francisco store) lefty kids using — for the first time — products designed specifically for lefties,” Lefty’s Bridget McCarthy says. “Parents are literally brought to tears seeing their kids’ enthusiasm and aptitude shine through as they ‘come home’ to using their naturally dominant hand for everyday school tasks, creativity and recreation. It can be truly life-changing.”
There are some resources out there for lefties looking for everyday home items that allow them to use their dominant hand, and some say the number of such items seems to be growing, albeit slowly. Though the products can be pricier because there’s not as high a demand for them, they can also make someone’s life noticeably easier. Lefty’s — the San Francisco shop devoted to left-handed tools, supplies and lefty-pride apparel — offers everything from left-handed corkscrews and knives to left-handed notebooks, oven mitts and garden pruners in the store and on their site.
“We always love hearing about (or seeing it ourselves at our San Francisco store) lefty kids using — for the first time — products designed specifically for lefties,” Lefty’s Bridget McCarthy says. “Parents are literally brought to tears seeing their kids’ enthusiasm and aptitude shine through as they ‘come home’ to using their naturally dominant hand for everyday school tasks, creativity and recreation. It can be truly life-changing.”
Whatever Works
Even if a new configuration of a tool or piece of furniture feels more natural for some lefties, it may not be that way for everyone. Because everyone is different, and left-dominant people often learn to adapt to our right-dominant world by using their right hand in some situations, experts say people should go through their own natural motions for different situations to see which hand they prefer before making any big changes. Some left-handed people, for instance, prefer to have side tables on their left side while others like being able to set things down on the right so their dominant hand has more room.
Which hand you use when you reach for silverware or cereal bowls may determine the best way to organize and open your cabinets. In bathrooms with double vanities, it may make the most sense for lefties to claim the sink on the right so they have more open space to reach for things on the left. Light switches and outlets may be most convenient on one side of the doorway for some people and the other side for others. Figuring out what works for you makes all the difference.
Tell us: Lefties, how do you navigate your right-hand-oriented home? What changes have you made to make things easier? Share your stories in the Comments.
More
Design Details: Make the Most of Your Cabinet Pulls
Breaking Out of the Kitchen Work Triangle
Even if a new configuration of a tool or piece of furniture feels more natural for some lefties, it may not be that way for everyone. Because everyone is different, and left-dominant people often learn to adapt to our right-dominant world by using their right hand in some situations, experts say people should go through their own natural motions for different situations to see which hand they prefer before making any big changes. Some left-handed people, for instance, prefer to have side tables on their left side while others like being able to set things down on the right so their dominant hand has more room.
Which hand you use when you reach for silverware or cereal bowls may determine the best way to organize and open your cabinets. In bathrooms with double vanities, it may make the most sense for lefties to claim the sink on the right so they have more open space to reach for things on the left. Light switches and outlets may be most convenient on one side of the doorway for some people and the other side for others. Figuring out what works for you makes all the difference.
Tell us: Lefties, how do you navigate your right-hand-oriented home? What changes have you made to make things easier? Share your stories in the Comments.
More
Design Details: Make the Most of Your Cabinet Pulls
Breaking Out of the Kitchen Work Triangle
In honor of this year’s holiday, it seemed a good time to adjust our default right-centric mindset when it comes to home design. Here is a (left) handful of ways to get lefty-friendly design right, along with some insight from those working to make life easier, no matter which hand we favor.