Office Inspiration

I hate our office.

HATE.

In fact, I hate it so much that I refuse to show you a picture of it. While I suppose that other people would be just fine with our office, it drives me crazy.

In fact, I've always hated it. But before Molly came along, it wasn't our office. It was David's, though it held the majority of my books. He doesn't mind it, so I never paid any attention to it. My office was in our spare bedroom, which was clean and airy and clutter-free. But when we were expecting Molly, the spare bedroom became Molly's room and my office got shoved into the already dark, disorganized, cluttered space.

So now the office is basically just a collection of the furniture and things that don't have anywhere else to go. It's the smallest room in our apartment, so the dark furniture (none of which matches, of course) makes it feel even darker. There are, no kidding, three different bookcases (all different colors) as well as a hutch (in still another color of wood), a small TV stand, two desks, and a CD stand, all in an 11' x 12' space with two doors (one to the hallway, one to our porch), a double-door closet, and a window taking up precious wall space. So, yeah, you could say it's cramped.

This wouldn't be a problem except that, technically, I work from home. And I find it absolutely impossible to work in a dark, disorganized space. It's not that I'm being picky; it's just that I know, from years of experience, that I am more apt to become distracted amidst clutter than in a clean room with lots of light. I make excuses to get me out of the room (and, therefore, away from my work). Or I decide that the clutter has to be resolved right this very minute, which obviously doesn't help the work get done.

Before Molly, I just found different places to work, usually the dining room table. When I was studying for comps, my dining room became my office. There were books, notes, notebooks, and index cards spread across our table, with a little space carved out for my laptop and a coffee mug. It worked well for me because I do best if I have a designated work space that doesn't require me shifting from place to place. But again, now that Molly's here, the dining room table isn't convenient. Especially as Molly gets closer and closer to eating "grown-up" food, the table needs to be available for meals.

So I'm stuck in the dark, claustrophobia-inducing office. It shouldn't come as a surprise, then, that I'm not getting any work done. But we're working on changing that. And since I can't get out of the office, we're just going to make the office work for me.

This project is going to take some time, though. Because there is a lot of stuff we have to fit into the office (it's possible I have a lot of books - though I swear I've gotten rid of a lot in the past year), we have to be smart about what we put in there to make the most of our space. And because it's a small room that tends to be dark, we need to find someway to lighten the space that doesn't include wall color (because we rent).

The first thing I did was look for some inspiration. These are some of the offices I love:

From The Artful Abode. I love that even though the walls are a dark color, the hints of white & yellow make the room still feel open & airy.

From Making it Lovely. Even though I don't use a lot of pink myself, I love that her office feels both fun and professional, making it a work space you'd actually want to spend time in.

From Tart House. This is the exact type of desk I want (because we need space for both me and David), and since she DIY'd the desk herself, we are seriously considering making a desk like this. Fingers crossed that it actually happens.

The rest of the inspiration pictures are all from various Flickr photo pools (which, by the way, is a great way to find inspiration).

Eileen Josephine. Love the cork board & the chairs, which don't feel "officey."

supershoppertoo. Love the color.

snidergrrl. Love the fabric on the chair and the arrangement, which makes it both a livable space and a workable space.

joemullins. Love the big desk and, again, how the colors are dark but the room still feels light.

quinnr. I love how colorful this room is. We'll need substantially more desk space, but I'd love the find ways to mimic this room's organization & introduce color through curtains.

stacy anne longenecker from The Domino Magazine Files (another great inspiration resource on flickr). There is a lot going on in this room, yet because of the organization and color palette, it all works. We need to achieve the same kind of balance.

Because of time and money constraints, this project will probably take a while. But I'll let you know how it's going and if I'm actually getting any work done. First up, though, that DIY desk.