With wireless Internet, your home office can be wherever you choose to sit. That’s fine if you live in a paperless world and can concentrate amidst the chaos of daily life, but it’s a bit easier to keep track of household finances and meet important deadlines if you have a dedicated workspace. Combining your home office with a den or lounge allows you to create a dual-purpose space whether you are on or off the clock, but making a multifunctional room both relaxing to hang out in and conducive to business activities requires clever solutions to keep your work/life balance in check. A sunny palette and flexible furniture solutions turned this run-down room into a fashionable home headquarters.
To make your work area inspiring, place the desk in front of a window. The view will keep you alert, and you won’t have to get up out of your chair to daydream. I’ve always thought that gazing at the sky was more conducive to innovative thinking than staring at a blank wall. If your home office is part den like this one, make sure to create a look that works together in harmony and orient the room so you aren’t staring at your “office” while trying to relax and unwind or watch TV.
It’s nice to think you could just set up your laptop on a table and call it an office, but the reality is that a desk needs drawers to work for most of us. Without a number of drawers to tuck away papers and necessities, your desk surface will likely become overrun with papers, which will likely become distracting (and, if you are anything like me, may lead to procrastination while you tidy up). You’ll have to find the model that’s right for you, but a smaller desk with lots of drawer space may prove to be a better investment than a big one with less storage.
For a small investment, you can rid yourself of the tangle and trip hazard of cords. Your printer, fax, and any other wireless devices can be hidden behind closed doors, thereby freeing up precious desk space. A vintage cabinet, sideboard, or armoire can be divided up to accommodate all your technology and office supplies. Pull-out drawers can easily be divided into compartments using strips of wood to keep all your paper, envelopes, and stationery organized. Think about what you actually need before you install it.
Let the boardrooms and executive offices use the classic banker’s palette of dark mahogany, forest green, and oxblood leather. Opt for a scheme that is sunny, cheery, and bright so your office is a place that wakes you up. The bubbly energy of the yellow and cream graffiti print sets the tone for the room — but remember, a little bold colour goes a long way, so limit your use to impactful accents instead of overall application. I like colour best when tempered with plenty of white and cream, even on wood furniture, and like to use glossy white paint to unify dark mahogany and dated golden oak.