7 Steps to designing your ideal home office space
The past few years have enabled many of us consider our working environment and for many to try our hand at working from home. Whether creating a temporary space or settling in for a more permanent stint the beginning of a new year brings the opportunity to re-think our work stations and prepare for the year ahead with a clean and organised space.
The old saying ‘a tidy desk is a tidy mind’ rings true when it comes to productivity, focus, being pro active and comfortable, in your work environment.
We have put together 7 steps to assist you in achieving the ideal home study or office space.
Location
When selecting a space to set up your desk there are a few key points to consider:
Noise
Space
Desk size
Day to day needs
Light
Selecting an area situated away from noise and distractions is a must. Focus is a key in ensuring you have a productive and consistent output. Having the best designed space is one thing but if the location is not right it can dramatically diminish its effectiveness. In an ideal situation you will have a spare room that you could convert into an office space and close off to distractions. This is not the case for everyone so an alternative might be to corner off a section of your living room or guest bedroom.
Also when deciding on a location consider what essentials you will need to work with on a day to day basis. These might be things like a printer, storage, or filing. You want a space that has the essentials at your fingertips without feeling overcrowded.
Creating a dual purpose guest bedroom / office space by incorporating a sofa bed that can be folded up when not used to get the most out of the room.
Who is using the space?
When thinking about a home office location you will also need to consider who will be using the work space.
If you require a dual work station consider your desk size and how this will effect the space. Multiple work stations can take up quite a bit of room so think about the layout and how it will flow. You might be able to stretch your desks along one wall or maybe you need to consider positioning them back to back.
If you have young children who need a desk for homework these can often be integrated into their bedroom design. If they are planning on using your desk space after work hours remember to pack away your essentials at the end of your day and implement tidy storage systems to make sure everything is where you need to be when you next use the space.
Dual home office setup
Dual custom office space with overhead storage and draws dividing work stations.
Dual purpose guest bedroom and home office
Dual study and spare bedroom space with added sofa bed. Built in shelving and task lighting.
Consider dividing off the two work stations with storage or plants to allow both areas to have their own sense of purpose.
Layout
Once you have worked out your working essentials and who is using the space you can start to think about what shape and size desk would best suit you. It’s important to consider this carefully to make sure that all of your needs are catered for. As previously mentioned if the space needs to accomodate more than one person then your desk positioning and size might be determined by your space.
If it’s just you think about how deep and wide you would like your desk to be. It’s important to consider that most likely you will need to fit a computer screen (maybe 2), keyboard, laptop, notebooks, stationary and files. We like to base an average desk size on a 750 deep by 1500 wide to allow for a comfortable work space.
Other things to consider are:
Do you have a dedicated area for your printer or does that also need desk space?
Do you require storage in your desk?
Do you require filing?
Where will you house stationary?
Consider if a built in study desk will be adequate or will purchasing a ready made desk be sufficient? There are some great options in the marketplace. Check out stores such as Officeworks or Ikea for ready made desks or DIY options.
If you are planning on working from home long term custom work areas and cabinetry enable you to design the space around your specific needs ensuring you get the most productive output from your space. This can include filing, shelving, stationary draws, pin boards, printer cupboards, and ample desk space. A designer can work with you to make sure your custom home office reflects your personality and flows with the rest of your house.
Custom cabinetry
Home office custom cabinetry with storage shelving, and designated pull out printer storage.
Custom cabinetry
Custom cabinetry, overhead storage designed by Davis and Co Interiors. Shaker style cabinetry and brass pulls.
Ergonomics
Now that you have sorted out the location of your home office and the layout you would like to achieve you can begin to plan the finer details.
Maintaining a healthy posture is key in a productive work area and will enable you to work more comfortably for longer. When selecting a chair check that your feet are able to sit flat on the ground and your hands can comfortably reach your mouse. Most ergonomic chairs these days have gas lifts that will enable you to adjust the setting to best suit you.
There are also many designer office chair options in the market that come in all sorts of colours and finishes and still provide great ergonomic benefits. Many will enable you to adjust the seat height, provide lumbar support, adjust the back support, tilt the back support, and support your arms and wrists. Remember to check the weight rating and warranty before you purchase your chair.
You also might like to consider a stand / sit desk. These give you the option of either sitting or standing to work and are more readily available and affordable these days. Alternatively if you already have a desk you could add a desk riser which sits on top of your desktop and holds your screen. A desk riser will allow you to adjust your screen up or down so that you can work standing or sitting.
Remember to adjust your screen height and angle so that it sits at eye level without having to tilt your head up or down. There are loads of options of laptop stands and screen stands in the marketplace that will allow you to do this easily.
Lighting
Lighting is such an important consideration when designing your work space. When positioning your desk think about where the natural light is coming from in the room and if possible position your desk to the side of the natural light. Ideally you don’t want to sit with your desk hard up against a window as the glare directly behind your screen will make it quite difficult to see and will strain your eyes. You could also consider adding a desk lamp for additional light so the space is well lit in the evenings.
Also think about your light bulb output. It might be worth changing your ceiling light bulbs to a brighter output to brighten the space further. Select a warm light as these can often assist with reducing eye strain while working.
Desk lamp
Stand alone desk space with task lighting in the form of a desk lamp.
Natural light
Custom made desk and cabinetry positioned to the side of the window to make the most of the natural light.
Organising
If you are anything like us, we love being organised. There is nothing like a tidy, well organised desk space to make sure you are able to sit down to work ready to focus, knowing where all your essentials are.
Consider shelving, filing, and accessories. A few questions to ask yourself are:
Do you have the room for a filing cabinet or will a few magazine files do the trick?
Do you require a stationary draw or will a pen holder be sufficient.
Do you need a large planning calendar or pin board? If so consider placement and design these into the space as they will often take up a considerable amount of wall space.
Considering each and every aspect will result in a well organised, un cluttered and efficient work space.
Custom cabinetry
Storage and filing designed by Davis and Co Interiors. Timber benchtops, shaker style cabinetry and brass pulls.
Accessory draws
Built in floating timber desk with concealed draws. Lighting in the form of natural light as well as task lighting.
Personality
When thinking about a design style for your office space it’s important to consider the surrounding areas of your home. Start with selecting a colour pallet and work from there. It might be helpful to create a mood board or colour board to refer to when working on the space as this will keep you on track. Think about using the one colour metal finishes or the one colour timber as this will help the home office space to look more cohesive.
Plants are a great addition to any work space adding life and colour into the area. Another option is to add a vase with dried flowers to your desk helping to soften harsh lines.
Another way to add personality is to add artwork or a quote to the wall to accessorise the area. Be adventurous with this and make sure that your desk space not only reflects your personality but the personality of your business.
In Short…
We hope these suggestions have helped you feel confident enough to create your ultimate home office space. Embrace working from home and enjoy all the perks that come along with it in your well thought out space that is designed just for you.
If you would like assistance with the design of your work space whether a small study area or custom cabinetry for a built in office contact us to have a confidential chat.