How to create the perfect Home Office
Example of a window facing layout / Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Given the present circumstances, and with the pandemic…. blah blah blah, you probably have read a similar statement infinite times by now. I’ll get straight to the point. You might be working from home longer than expected. Even after the lock-down ends, there might be a shift in how organisations approach traditional work culture. After getting a feel of employees working virtually from their homes, companies might start offering a flexible set up in the coming times. So you’re looking at a future where working from home isn’t just going to be a trending hashtag #wfh, but a necessary alternative in everyone’s work life.
Sounds familiar… means you’ve attempted setting up a home office in the recent past. Are you procrastinating on setting up a dedicated work desk in your home for lack of ideas? Did you take a tour online of all the options available and end up with an empty basket because you couldn’t figure the right solution for the set up? I get it! It can be challenging to be solution-oriented when there’s a sea of options to choose from.
Do you need a standard desk? Where will you put it? Is the colour of the desk too off from the present bedroom scheme? Why do most of the options look like old-school wooden desks? If you can relate to these type of questions, you’ve at-least taken the first step in trying to achieve a home office set up. Questions like these may have left you undecided, so you’re probably working from your dining table or using a wobbly laptop table as a makeshift desk. Fret not my friends! Honestly, one of my friends was fretting hence I managed to scan and plan (ooh that rhymed) options for setting up a stylish, compact, and functional home office.
Now that we’ve established the goal… “Set up a stylish, compact, functional home office”. The most essential item needed to achieve this goal is a good, solid table that will be your work desk in your home office. This post is going to focus on two things: Layout options and Desk options.
Layout Options
Most of your rooms will already have existing furniture. So what you’re going to be left with is possibly one of these three alternatives, a window, a spare wall or a little nook in some room.
Window facing: Is a very likely alternative for a bedroom or a living room desk set up. Very often the space under or near a bedroom window is free of any furniture, because it’s a great source of natural light. This is also a space you don’t want to crowd with any heavy furniture. So if you’ve got a window in your bedroom, or living room which can accommodate a compact desk and still leave some space around it, this layout could work for you. Keep in mind that you will have natural light falling on the desk, so if that’s going to be an issue you’ll need to draw your curtains and/or figure a suitable way to block any excess light. (Reference image for a window facing layout -above)
Wall facing: The goal of any room layout, is not to place things against all the walls and fill up each elevation with a unit. There’s always a balance of blank vs occupied walls. You need to pick one of the unoccupied walls in your existing rooms… no need to crowd it up. Prop a sleek desk against the wall, pull up any of your existing straight back chairs (a dining chair works well as an alternative to a traditional ergonomic chair) and you’re good to go. You can additionally get creative with the set up and prop a peg board or a large poster to make it inspiring. Place a few necessary desk organisation items and maybe an odd little planter or two for decor, and that’s about it. Key is to remember it’s a desk you’re intending to get work done from, and not setting up a side board for a house party. So go easy with items you plan to place on the table top. (P.S. this rule of minimum clutter applies to all of these layouts. Since it’s a compact set up, you also want to keep it clutter free.) (Reference for a wall facing layout - below)
Nook layout: Now if you’re one of the select few, blessed with actually having a decent sized nook available for your new home office set up, consider yourself lucky. You’re going to have one envious home office set up if you manage it right. You could always have a sleek table as suggested above. But if you’re one to experiment, and if your space allows it, I’d suggest trying a round table set up. Besides being functional, it also make the set up less formal and slightly more homely than the standard rectangle table. Alternately a square table could also work well for this set up. (Reference for a round table set up - below)
Above and below are some references for the three types of layout.
Example of a wall facing layout / Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Example of a wall facing layout / Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Example of a round table layout / Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Example of a round table layout / Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Desk Options
Now that you’ve understood some basics about how and where to plan your home office set up, I’ve shortlisted some desk options that you could source and get started with the set up. I’ve only listed options which don’t need a custom installation as that would not be possible in a time like this. These would be easy to self-assemble, and put in place by yourself. I’ve linked the images to the actual site link, so you can get further details on price, dimensions, colour options etc, instantly. I’ve stuck to budget-friendly and modern-looking options so you can get a great looking set up without burning holes in your pocket.
Since we’re presuming that this is a compact yet functional space, I’ve also added options for some three tiered trolleys on castors (wheels). These would be great companions for our sleek and compact tables. Since your surface area on the table top might be limited, you could stack and store additional work stationery and documents in the trolley. And if needed they can be rolled away and stored in some corner when you’re done with your work day. Practical and efficient isn’t it! And your desk will always be clutter free this way. How brilliant is this!
Without further ado…
Here’s a round up of some interesting and stylish tables that can be set up as a desk for your home office.
If you’ve now learnt a bit about the process and would like to explore more, there’s a great selection of desks available on Pepperfry, Urban Ladder and of course my favourite Ikea. I really hope you find a piece that you love and one that works well for you. Whichever options you select and wherever you might find them I hope you’re able to set up your home office and also enjoy using it. If you do manage to set it up after learning these helpful tips, please do share your final results with us on hello@madebyurvashisathaye.com. We would love to see how you’ve put together your unique set up. If you’re sharing images on social media do use the hashtag #mademyhomeoffice and we’ll share the images on our stories.
Cheers and good luck!