Office Makeover Part 2: Design Board

My aim is to create a space that is light and fresh.  I've always been partial to white trim and built-ins.  Unfortunately my home has dark stained trim and an abundance of it.  I'm trying to minimize the dark look by incorporating bright colours, fun fabrics and white bookcases.  I don't think the hubby would let me paint the trim, besides not many 100+ year old houses still have their original stained trim.  So I work with what we have. 

Originally the colours for the room were going to be grey, white and turquoise.  Yellow wasn't even on the radar.  Funny how things change.  I'm still a big fan of the chevron print, and want to incorporate that in the room somewhere.  To mix things up, I'm going to be using two different sizes of chevron.  I'm also pairing the larger chevron print with a bird print.  I think this will create a nice contrast between the crisp graphic look of the zig zag and the flowing, nature inspired look of the birds.

To save money, I'm reusing some of the original furniture and accessories.  The most prominent piece is the huge pine desk.  Unfortunately, I can't justify replacing it with something sleeker and smaller as it still serves its purpose, and with a little facelift should be OK.  So instead, the office is going to be built around this.  The size of the desk dictates how big the bookcases can be on either side.  To make the piece look built in, or intentional, I'm going to be hanging drapes wider than the windows to hide the wallspace.  This will also have the effect of making the windows look wider.  The drapes were originally in my living room.  I had intentions of painting zig zags on them or stripes, or god knows what (sometimes my mind goes into pattern overdrive) but because of all the other prints in the room, I've decided to leave these plain. 

I've been reading a lot about how important lighting is to the overall design of a room:  A unique lamp can add some pizazz to a room like a great pair of shoes can to a plain outfit; pendants and chandeliers add a certain sparkle (figuratively or literally) and are sometimes referred to as the jewelry of the room; well placed task lighting is key to creating an overall atmosphere or mood and for comfort.  I really didn't know any of this when we bought the house.  All I knew was that the track lighting had to go and the most popular thing to do was use canned lighting.  Fast forward 13 years.  I'm now trying to bring hanging lights back into the home.  Luckily, there is a product that you can plug into your recessed cans that will convert them to a pendant.  Yay!  I'm able to undo the mistakes that were made early on without having to rewire or drywall anything.  So I've bought a plain drumshade pendant can converter from Ballard Designs to hang in the middle of the room.  I plan to cover it in the same bird fabric that will be on the back of the office chair. 

The yellow was a happy accident and just makes me smile when I see it.  It's the main accessory colour in the room.  I may tone it down with some pops of turquoise and black here and there.  So far the plan is to have the seating yellow; the lighting yellow; the back of the bookcases yellow; and the odd yellow office accessory.

Dingley Residence: Home Office



Home Office

  From left to right:

1. tolix 18 inch stool.
2. pendant adaptor to convert a recessed light to a pendant.  Fabric for shade: thomas paul aviary maize.
3. premier zig zag fabric to line back of bookcases.
4. besta bookshelves from Ikea.
5. grey striped rug. diy.
6. storage bench in thomas paul aviary maize fabric.
7. parsons chair (existing) to be recovered in premier zippy fabric on seat and aviary maize fabric on back.
8. thomas paul aviary maize fabric from Calico Corners.
9. peyton drapes from Pottery Barn (existing).
10. premier zippy fabric.
11. large desk with drawers (existing, not actual one pictured) repainted white with grey top.
12. west elm task lamp.
13. knobs from Anthropologie for desk.
14. silver frames for accessories.
15. west elm laquered office accessories.

I apologize for the amateurish looking design board.  Unfortunately I don't have Photoshop so I had to use Paint, and Paint isn't the most sophisticated tool to use.

To see before pictures go here.