Your Home Office needs may vary, from a “perch” for household accounts and the family computer, to a full-blown, separate work space. Here are my top Home Office Ideas.
HOME OFFICE
- TYPE OF USE: Do you need a “perch” for occasional use? Or a dedicated room, removed from household noise and clatter?
- LOCATION: It is fairly easy to smuggle in a modest desk at ground floor level. Don’t forget to scope out the first floor for possible desk locations also. The beauty of an upstairs study is that it is so much brighter than the ground floor, all year round.
- DIMENSIONS: Make sure any shelving is far enough apart to accommodate large books and files. A minimum of 32 centimetres clear should fit most office filing easily.
- STORAGE: Books and files can be unsightly so consider a mix of enclosed and open shelving.
- LIGHT: Are you left-handed or right-handed? If you are left handed, locate the desk so that the window is on your right. That way, you will not cast a shadow on your hand as you write or work at the computer. If you are right handed, locate your desk so that the window is on your left.
- FLEXIBILITY: Few of us can afford the luxury of a completely separate home office. Can a Guest Bedroom double as an occasional work space? The desk could double as a useful dressing table for any visitor.
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Built-in Desk -
Desk as Sideboard for Buffet
- GROUND FLOOR – BUILT-IN DESK: A 3 metre long wall-mounted desk on the ground floor doubles as a sideboard. It is placed on the wall alongside a 3 metre long table. Open shelving overhead accommodates books as well as display objects. The desk and table together create a flexible location for computer use and study. Two Leaving Certs were tackled here.
- GROUND FLOOR – FREE-STANDING DESK: A Micke desk measuring 142cm wide x 50cm deep currently sits in the left hand recess of the fireplace at the front of the house. It faces south and looks on to the front courtyard,.
- FIRST FLOOR – TRESTLE TABLE: A 180cm long trestle table in the south-facing TV/Teen Room at first floor level level, is bright and removed from household distractions. The trestle table is extremely flexible, being easily de-mountable and stored or re-deployed, as opposed to a fixed desk or table.
- TOP FLOOR – STUDY: A small alcove off the Dressing Area on the top floor of the house is fitted with built-in desks and shelving. It acts well as a truly separate Home Office when needed.
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First Floor Trestle Table on Flexible Landing/Den/Study
