Creating a functional and beautiful home office
Many of us are now working from home and creating a functional and beautiful working space is more important than ever. Creating a space that’s inspiring, keeps you motivated and is beautiful at the same time is easy with our style tips.
Whether you're in need of some small tweaks or a complete home office design, our team of interior designers will work with you to make the space your own.
Here are some ideas to help you create a beautiful new at-home office space:
Lighting
If you have a room with windows, natural lighting is optimal. It lifts the mood and if you are like most of us working at a computer, taking a break to gaze out to a distance is good for your eyes.
Inadequate or dim office lighting can cause eye strain, headaches, and fatigue, which all compromise productivity. It can also result in a lack of focus and even drowsiness at work. Harsh lighting can be similarly harmful, bringing on the same symptoms.
You can create the illusion of natural window lighting with light paint colours such as white, cream, light blue, or light green. Pastels provide freshness - a bright environment that effectively reflects any light source around the office. Bright yellow illuminates the entire space - an effective substitute for natural sunlight.
Cove lights: provide one of the most effective lighting solutions in an office without windows. Cove lights hide the fixture, giving a feeling that the light is natural. A type of indirect lighting built into ledges, recesses, or beams, cove lights are direct up towards the ceiling or against an adjacent wall to project light throughout the space. They tend to minimize the visual disturbances of direct light, making it an ideal choice for an office environment.
Hidden lights: have a similar effect to cove lights, but are easier to install and are more cost-effective. Installing hidden lights is as easy as tucking small lamps onto shelves, behind furniture, or in other discreet areas to provide more light. The fixtures are largely unseen and provide a sense of natural light by mimicking window light.
Fluorescent light filters: If you already have fluorescent lights, you know how gloomy and dull the effects can be. One way to help your fluorescent lighting appear more like natural sunshine is to invest in fluorescent light filters. Filters allow for nearly full-spectrum natural light, even if you have no windows. Safe and affordable filters can provide the healthy, natural light your office needs to enhance the morale, health, and well-being of your team.
Lamps: Effective office lighting may not always mean overhead lights. If you’ve got inadequate overhead lighting, don’t bother turning them on. Instead, rely on the warmth of lamp light. Lamps help reduce glare, and the use of daylight bulbs can mimic natural light.
Greenery
Regardless of the space, plants can have a huge impact on the spirit and health of a room. Include living greens in your decor and help your workplace feel larger and brighter. It’s essential, however, to choose varieties that thrive in low light — Peace Lilies, Snake Plants and Philodendrons. Live plants are also natural air filters. Some of the best filtering plants include English Ivy, Snake Plant, Spider Plant, Aloe Vera, Broad Lady Palm and the Weeping Fig.
Your work space
If you work remotely, own your own business, or want a home office for other reasons, it’s good to consider different desk sizes available. You want a desk that can support a computer, paperwork, writing space and more. There are plenty of options available large and small, minimalist and decorative. Consider the size of your space. If you are in a smaller space, a desk with open sides and minimal lines will feel less bulky and not take up as much space as a desk with solid sides or drawers on each side.
A good supportive chair that is adjustable is a must. Your feet should touch the floor and your arms should be at a right angle while working on a keyboard. For those of us that are on the petite size - this may mean adjusting not only the chair but the desk height as well. Make it work for you, it is your space!
If you have the space, a comfy reading chair is a nice addition. This could be set in the corner with a small side table for a lamp and a candle.
Storage
Extra storage is an absolute must in an office. Think about finding lower storage units for under your desk, or larger book shelves to put against the wall. Utilize the space over your desk with some floating shelves or cubbies. This also gives you the opportunity to add some fun accessories.
Easy to build and endlessly customizable, open shelving is a perfect way to store office supplies off your desk and easy to find. Break up books, magazine holders, and other items by adding a few special objects like picture frames or vases to increase the attractiveness of your shelf and avoid the appearance of clutter.
Cubes are a perfect shape for many baskets and boxes and they create a small enough space for mini collections of books and papers. With these easy-to-construct box shelves, you can create a custom space that is the perfect match for your office door.
Desk Accessories
Most of our home offices are tight on space and items on our desk need to be functional and necessary. That doesn’t mean they can’t be beautiful and fun. Think outside the box for containers that hold our pens, paperclips, rubberbands, etc.. Glass and ceramic jars are a beautiful way to organize items.
Walls
Choosing the right paint color is important because it sets the tone for the rest of your room and your mood. Blue colors energize, yellow is cheerful, red excites and white calms your emotions. We love whites and grays, soft blues and other neutral beige tones.
Adding a bit of wallpaper to a space can liven up the decor and define the office space from the rest of the room. There are so many beautiful options for wallpaper and many of them are available in “peel and stick”.
Artwork
Get inspired, increase your productivity and creativity with beautiful artwork. Find artwork that speaks to you. One large dramatic piece, or a collection of smaller pieces will bring interest and inspiration to your work space. We are always getting new artwork in our store. Come in and browse our curated collection.
Under Foot
A plush and cozy rug to place under your desk is a bit of luxury that will add style and comfort. It’s also a great way to add unique textures or patterns to your office that keep you inspired throughout the day.
Come visit A-Z Interiors to shop our beautiful selection of lighting, desks, chairs, accessories, plants, artwork, rugs, pillows and more. Our team is here to help you find and create an inspiring home office. Visit us here or give a call at (815)-526-3200.