Since we moved into our Chicago apartment last October, I’ve complained about the small “triangle room” we have. It’s oddly shaped, oddly sized, and it became quite the design dilemma for me. In fact, ever since we moved in this room has just been a catchall for all of our clutter. Basically if we had something that didn’t have a home in the rest of our apartment…it could be found shoved in here.

I slowly started to tackle this space with a reading nook and swag light which made a big difference in there. However it was still far from finished.

Because once you entered the room and looked to the right, you were greeted with a scary scene.

Yikes. Clearly this desk area left much to be desired. Well I’m happy to say that after a little rearranging, a trip to Ikea, and a few Sundays with a very patient fiancé…this room is now looking much better.

Take a look…

The room now feels much lighter and brighter. We first took absolutely everything out of the room and started with a blank slate. For me, I find that this technique really helps me to come up with a game plan for the space. Oftentimes people just shove furniture into a room, without much rhyme or reason to its placement. That was definitely the case in here. We then put everything back into the room with a better idea of where it should go, and why it should go there.

Obviously the diamond accent wall is a new touch to the space. It adds so much visual interest and really draws the eye up to the high ceilings. Tomorrow I will chat all about how we added the cool geometric design to create a focal wall. I’ll go into all of the details then, but for now I want you to know that it cost me about $5 and there was absolutely zero painting involved. Yep, you heard me right. No painting!

We ended up getting rid of the dark bookcase that used to live in this room. Instead we replaced it with a tall dresser from Ikea. It is ideal for hidden storage (like all of my craft supplies!) and goes with the sleek look of the rest of the room. I ended up personalizing the dresser a bit further to make it look a little higher end (more details and pictures coming on that soon).

I think it’s safe to say that both Bridget and I have an obsession with the Ikea Ekby shelves. I have them in our family room, she has them in her guest room, her laundry room, and now they’re here in our office! I think we use them so often because they’re affordable, sturdy, and they create a streamlined shelf to display personal items.

This particular shelf is actually the 11″ version, so it is a bit deeper than ones we’ve used in the past. It definitely works in here over the desk and it holds plenty of books, personal items (like my special dates frame), and fun knick-knacks.

We ended up moving our file cabinet, photo cabinet, and printer to the other side of the desk area. It’s less of an eyesore over there and tucks nicely into the corner.

I must say, I’m loving this space much more now.  There isn’t stuff jam-packed into every corner, and most of our office and craft supplies now have a place to call home. Instead of avoiding this “triangle room of horror” we’re now actually spending time in here.

No more blogging on the couch for me. Woo hoo!