A client recently asked me to design a home office that doesn’t look like an office and I knew exactly what she meant. Surely, if we now have the pleasure of working from home then why would we choose to spend most of our waking hours sitting in a drab uninspiring room with bad shelving and dust gathered A4 expandable files. Plus, now that it looks like many of us will be working from home for the foreseeable future and the actual working landscape is now changing to something more ‘hybrid’ and flexible then surely it’s time to invest in our daily wellbeing by investing in our home offices.
For my client I wanted to create an office which would make her heart sing on a Monday morning when opening the door. An enjoyable place to work but also relax, spinning around happily on a beautiful upholstered office chair feeling delighted by her joyful home office haven. Somewhere that makes her want to be efficient and tidy, with everything lovingly filed and stowed away easily.
Of course as with all of my design projects first and foremost I listened carefully to my clients needs and requests…freestanding office furniture only, greens, blues, teals, decorative shelving, glamorous touches, something with it’s own personality, an office-not office.
I was dealing with a small to mid size white room with no features and a window with a view of the concrete driveway and road outside. With this in mind I was keen to inject some nature, greenery and softness, to bring life into the room and a feeling of wellbeing that visions of nature conjure (I promise that I’ll bore you about Biophilia some other time). So after an extensive search and much deliberation this beautiful wallcovering from Borastapeter was chosen for its clean contemporary pattern, rich tones and sweeping curves.
Borastapeter Velvet Leaves Wallpaper
As the room size is fairly small it was decided that the wallpaper would be used as a feature wall at which the desk would be placed. Careful not to allow the room to become too dark and to create a more feminine feel a blush wall colour with subtle grey tones was chosen from Paint and Paper Library in Plaster V.
Plaster V by Paint and Paper Library
To add further character to the room texture was a key element, from the fluted wood finish on the freestanding office furniture, to the cut velvet in the window blinds and the curved opaque discs in the ceiling pendants, all were selected to play together subtly and in harmony.
Detail of the White Glass Disc Ceiling Light by House Of
The Quinn Office Range by West Elm UK
The fluted front of West Elm’s Quinn furniture range is complimented by the pleats in the Lottie office chair by Cult Furniture finished in a rich inky-blue velvet.
Lottie Office Chair by Cult Furniture
In terms of storage the Quinn Entry Cupboard was used for files and bulky items that needed hiding away, however my client wanted some decorative shelves included in the room. Instead of placing shelving on the beautiful wallpaper I decided a display unit would fit the room much better (there is a shallow alcove that just happens to be the perfect size…this never happens!) and found this fantastic number by trade only partner Gallery Direct.
Pippard Display Unit in Champagne by Gallery Direct
As with all of my design files some gentle styling advise was given to guide my client when curating the items for her beautiful new display unit and these items were listed in detail in her completed shopping list so she knew exactly where to source the items and at what price.
So, if you’re feeling depressed by your home office environment and need some much needed help turning your space into a productive and happy sanctuary to while away the working hours then get in touch to see how I can help you.