So, a few weeks ago I posted a general post about what kind of stuff we had going on around our house. I mentioned our home office. A home office was one of the main features we were looking to be able to add when we were looking at prospective places to move into a few months ago. Our cozy one bedroom apartment (which I did love and it did work for me most of the time) afforded us the option or having the desk in our living room, right next to the TV. In this set-up, the most self-controlled individuals out there would eventually cave and turn to watch the TV show [or commercial] interrupting actual work trying to take place at the desk area. We did cave and pegged it as an efficiency problem in our home. So, our search for a new place was focused on a 2-bedroom house in order to create a home office.
Mind Space
Have you noticed how you tend to work better in an area specifically designated to do work in? All the books and magazines tell you not to do work in your bedroom because of the work-mind-relaxation associations and your brain will get mixed up and you could end up feeling tense in your bedroom, in a space that should be solely for resting.
In the process of moving, everything gets boxed up and then you have to find a new place for everything that you already had. Then you find that you have a different space with different design and style challenges and need different things. I’ve been processing all of these details and have got our place just about set up. (I just don’t believe people when they say they moved and a week later, everything is done. Halfway done maybe.) I knew that our home office needed to be a place that was organized and a place where my man and I could both work harmoniously and not trample on each other’s space. We also have different tastes. He prefers plain, simple and what I would consider ordinary[/boring]. Me, I’m drawn to jewel tones, prints/patterns and want to DIY on everything. A few weeks into unpacking/organizing I had an epiphany. He was right, we need 2 desks.
After a weekend of desk hunting and coming back empty handed (desks are waaay overpriced! plus he’s picky), we ended up falling into a situation where a desk was given to us. As was mentioned somewhat previously with photos of a desk in pieces… we had trouble getting the desk into the office area (it’s the back bedroom and just couldn’t take the 90 turn in the hallway), but eventually did get it through in several pieces. After putting it back together, (amazingly it holds) we were able to set up a definitive his and hers office space where we can both organize our own papers and items and work independently, albeit in the same space.
The photos I posted a while back are of it in a messy state. Little by little, we’ve been working on it and, while I would like to add more graphical elements on the walls and remove some elements (like the toolbox in the corner 🙂 ), it’s functional for us and that’s a big WIN! So, here’s the update on what I’m calling our Mind Space.
Our Mind Space
Includes his/her desks, lots of organizational items such as rustic wire baskets to get folders/papers/notebooks off the desk, a personalized Pinterest-inspired weekly calendar to keep both of us up to speed on events, and a cheap bookcase that I (with lots of help!) did some work on to give it that extra edge.
His Desk
Your typical large style desk with a hutch and drawers and cubbies to store things.
Her Desk
Much less “typical” desk design with mobile mini file cabinet type drawers extended on both sides of the desk and wire baskets flanking a customized bulletin board over the desk.
Let’s talk a little more about my desk. Like I said, I like color and pattern and DIY. I actually designed this desk myself from the 2×4 ft. dimensions of the desk top to the mobile drawers that can be sat underneath the desk like most desks or can be moved outside of the desk to hold a printer and lamp, like mine currently do in this photo. It was originally painted a dark brown, a nice neutral. I got bored with it so I painted most of the desk an eggplant purple and painted the drawers a goldy-yellow color and added colorful knobs. (I was pulling colors out of these two paintings that were hung about the desk in our old apartment, but I’ll probably repaint those desk drawers because I’m still not sure if I like that yellow.) I also made curtains to hang under the desk so that I could hide the ugly tangle of wires/cords underneath. This was an especially awesome feature when this desk was a main feature in the living room.
As seen in a BHG magazine, I made curtains for my desk to hide all of the ugly wires/cords underneath.
Now that we have a separate office space, I don’t NEED the curtains anymore but they make a tent-like environment and the babies like to play from time to time. 🙂
Peekaboo!
All my life, I’ve had desks that allowed me to put a piece of plexiglass over the top. For years, I made collages and put them under the plexiglass as my desktop design but as you take new photos, you get bored with the old ones and always want to switch out the pictures. I got bored with a plain purple desktop though too, so I bought a stencil from Michael’s Craft Store and a few different metallic paints and set to work. It took me a week or so and I kept layering the same stencil with different colors until I was happy.
A stencil layered in several different metallic colors on a desk top combined with fun office supplies makes a personal and creative work space!
Our weekly calendar
Pinterest-inspired weekly calendar that offers personality and keeps an entire household up to speed on all events coming up in the next week.
I found this group photo frame at Ross and pretty cheap at that, for about $8. I selected different scrap book prints and stickers and labeled each pane a different day. We simply change the dates every week and write our personal events for the weeks so that we both know what’s going on and what’s due.
Bookcase Makeover
When we moved, we knew we would need a new bookcase. We threw out the old one that we had been using because it was falling apart. I’ve had it since I was a kid and it had made 3 moves, the 4th probably would’ve been the end of it. So, I scouted my options and ended up picking a bargain priced bookcase from Target. It’s a 6 foot bookcase with 4 shelves for $30 bucks. I didnt want to spend $100 bucks on a book case because I had found a Pinterest idea to cover the back of it with fabric and have a pop of color coming through from behind. I reasoned that even if it wasn’t the nicest bookcase, with a little work – it would be great.
So, my amazing man locked himself in the office for probably 2 hours and put this sucker together. I was so happy that he took it upon himself to do that but so frustrated by how CHEAP and ugly it looked.
Can you see the back? Is that not ridiculous? I understand it’s only $30 but if you’re going to use that kind of backing.. why can’t the box be bigger so that it can lay flat and not SHOW all of the creases?!?!
cheap, cheap, cheap.
So, I tried to begin the process of “fixing” it.
That stinkin thing had about 100 nails holding the back on, and then I found that the back was in TWO pieces of crap. It took a while to get it all back off. Josh was NOT happy with me when he walked in and saw me taking it back apart. What I thought was a one person job, turned into a 4 person job. If you’re handy and a one-man show, by all means I encourage you to take on this kind of project by yourself. But it was MUCH easier when my mom and dad plus Josh took pity on me and all worked to help me put it back together. 🙂
I found some turquoise floral patterned fabric at Joann’s Fabric for $1.50 a yard, BARGAIN.
$5 bucks later I came home and cut the fabric into two pieces to cover the two corresponding pieces of backing for the bookcase. I ironed each piece and attempted to staple them. Don’t do that. It ended up being MUCH easier to hot glue the fabric edges to the backing, as it was really only glorified poster board anyway. But it did take 3 of us to add the hot glue and pull the fabric taut over the board, so if you’re planning to replicate this project – make that note.
After covering both pieces of backing with the fabric, the men hammered it back onto the book case and we set it back up right. I’ve added all of our books and trinkets that have been living in cardboard boxed for 3 months now, back where they belong and voila!
A pretty patterned fabric pops out of the black book case, giving it a customized look and hiding the ugly backing that came in the box.
Book cases don’t just have to hold row-by-bow books. Feature some of your favorite books in a stacked style with a few trinkets and you’ve got a book case full of personality.
If you have the option, take the time to make a space where you can think. Everybody means to get things done but alot don’t. If you give yourself the opportunity to think and a place to be creative in, you might surprise yourself by what you come up with. 🙂
Until next time, thanks for reading!
-LRL-
I just feel like if I can create a great space that inspires, great thoughts will come and creative juices will flow.
Spark!Lovely 