the Office: Revised
I mentioned last month that the office was my next target for a makeover. Visit my previous post for my details on my plans. After making a few significant changes, I’m happy to say that I’m now ready to show off our progress.
Our first step, if you remember, was changing up the layout from desks on opposite walls, to a back-to-back setup.
Before
Once my attention was focused on the space, a flurry of changes transformed it from a mismatched and clutter-prone mess, to a crisp white and playful one.
After
For our desks, I finally decided on the Ikea Melltorp. It’s a simple an affordable table that is normally used as a dining table, but it works perfectly as a desk. We purchased two of these to replace our existing, and rather beat up desks.
I’m using an Ikea Helmer for storage under my desk. The white powder-coated steel is very classy looking, and it fits perfectly under the Melltorp (with the casters removed).
We also installed a plethora of art on the walls, making the room feel like a gallery of geeky prints. Most of the prints were ordered from Society 6, which is a fantastic place to find affordable art. The frames are an assortment picked up from Ikea and Michaels.
Two Ribba picture ledges add some additional space for interchangeable art and other assorted items.
The bookshelves also received a dramatic makeover. We added doors to the lower halves, covering some of the clutter. Storage boxes and bright teal baskets and canisters keep the upper halves tidy.
The printer also found a new home on top of a wide set of Alex drawers.
There are still a few additional tweaks and projects remaining, such as adding fabric to the back of the bookshelves, some DIY dinosaur planters, and a new chair and monitor for me. Someday in the far distant future, I also hope to paint the walls a gorgeous shade of teal. I’m extremely pleased with how it has turned out so far. It finally feels like a room that I want to spend some time in (which is good because it’s where we work for 8 hours every Friday).
Click on the spreads below for a better comparison of before vs. after.
Before
After
1) Eee, squirrels!
2) LOVE the facing desks! Steven and I have this same problem, where we both need our own computer space and we want to be near each other. Do love your solution here, and using dining tables is brilliant (and likely MUCH cheaper!) All that clean white in the shelving units makes it look so tidy against that oatmeal wall paint. <3
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Glad you noticed the squirrels
. Jace managed to break the original frame I put them in (while we were setting up the desks), but they survived unharmed and are very happy now.
I enjoy the face-to-face desk setup a lot more than our previous one. It’s much easier to ask a quick question without turning around or talking to a wall. I’m sure it would be very distracting for some couples, but it works for us. I’m very happy with the dining tables so far – they are more durable and much cheaper than most official desks.