Now that our DIY built-ins are underway, it’s time to chat about the rest of this room – you know, the area where I’ll actually be sitting and working, not just storing all of my stuff. Ha! But seriously, finding office furniture can be super tough. So much out there is butt ugly and too “officey”. Yes, I want a large desk to get work done, but I also want the entire room to feel comfortable and an extension of our home. I chatted about my overall goals for the room back in this blog post, but I never went into details about exact products.

Finn and I typically tackle our big DIY projects on the weekend, so during the week I’ve been dreaming and scheming the plan for the rest of the space. Do you want to see? I’m pretty jazzed about the direction we’re heading…

Oak Desk // Blue Loveseat (similar) // Green Table Lamp // Tan Pouf (no longer sold) // Brass & Marble Floor Lamp // Wall Mural // Brass Chandelier (similar) // Area Rug // Faux Fiddle Leaf Fig

There is a lot to discuss from this mood board. Let’s start with the office furniture.

The Office Furniture

I’m so happy to team up with one of my long-term partners, Article, who will be providing some of the furniture for this space. At first, I didn’t even remember that Article sold desks and other office furniture, but I was so happy to find that they have a wide variety of desks that don’t look like typical office furniture. You can browse some of Article’s new 2020 designs in this lookbook. There is a lot of wood, green, and gold in there, which is totally up my alley!

After perusing their site and the lookbook, I immediately knew this oak desk would look perfect in the room. It’s big, but not too large. And I’ll have lots of space to spread out when I work away, which is a must for me! Plus, it has a discreet power cord compartment, which I love.

I’m still figuring out exactly where I want to place the desk in this room. I used some painter’s tape with the exact dimensions of the desk to envision it. I may float the desk in front of the built-ins. I feel like it’s kind of a “girl boss” setup with the sprawling shelves behind me. However, I’m a bit concerned about room flow and getting into the cabinets when sitting at the desk.

I’ve also considered putting it against the wall and facing either towards the windows or towards the closet. This would be a good solution because I would be close to an outlet and it would leave a big space near the built-ins for walking.

Honesty, I think I’m going to play around with multiple layouts when the desk arrives and see what feels the best! So, stay tuned for my final setup. Oh, and I’m still narrowing down my office chair contenders. I need an ergonomic chair (Read: comfy, but not the cutest) for working and I know my friend Kim highly recommends this one! I may have to scoop it up.

Now, onto the loveseat (similar)! Oh my goodness, I saw this deep sea blue color on Article’s site (similar) and immediately fell in love. It’s a nice, petite size for the room, yet it’s still deep and comfortable. I’m hoping to do a very similar color on the built-ins, so I think it will coordinate well.

Installing a Wall Mural

Photo via Photowall

Okay, now for the other big DIY project in this room. I ordered a large wall mural to go on the couch wall. Ahhh! I’m a bit scared about installing it and getting it perfect, but it will be another challenge for me. This wall is just so big and blank and I wanted to do something interesting right when you walk in the space. I ended up ordering this wall mural, but there are hundreds to choose from on the site and it was tough to narrow it down. I like the moody colors and it isn’t too wild or colorful, so it should work well with the other elements in the room.

I’ve never installed a mural before, but from what I’ve read, it looks similar to installing wallpaper. If you remember, my mom and I installed peel and stick wallpaper in her closet and had a blast doing it. I’m hopeful this will be a fun and quick project. Stay tuned for a full blog post on how it goes!

My Lighting Choices

I’m going with this large gold chandelier in the center of the room. Because we have vaulted ceilings, I needed to find a chandelier on a chain that we could swag to the center of the room. This one is really pretty and was super affordable.

I’m all about layered lighting in a space (more about my tips for lighting here), so I ordered this marble & brass floor lamp to keep near the loveseat and this cute green lamp for my office desk. We also have canned lights on dimmers in the room. Multiple light sources is the way to go and this room should be extra cozy!

Other Accessories

I purchased this rug (another Loloi one like the one in my living room) for the room and I’m still torn if I’ll place it by the desk or loveseat (the shape of the room doesn’t allow it to be under both). Or maybe I’ll do two rugs? We’ll see how it feels when all of the furniture is in.

I originally thought I would have room for a coffee table in front of the loveseat, but there just isn’t enough space. So I opted for a leather pouf (no longer sold) to place near the loveseat. Then, whenever I’m sitting on the couch, I can prop my feet up on it.

Photo via Haute Co.

I’m still planning to DIY a large acrylic board for a wall in this room, similar to the look above. That will take up some wall space and be super helpful to keep me on track with all of my projects. Other than a few plants, I don’t want to put too much else in this room because the built-ins will showcase lots of books and decor and I don’t want the room to feel too busy.

What’s Next?

Some of the small items have already arrived and the office furniture arrives next week! I’m hoping we can get the built-ins painted before then so we can then just move the furniture right into the room. Slowly, but surely, my office vision is becoming a reality.

Casey

Catch Up On the Home Office Makeover

• Office Design Plan
• Built-Ins Part 1: Installing the Base Cabinets
• Office Furniture
• Built-Ins Part 2: Building DIY Bookshelves
• Priming & Painting Built-Ins
• Built-In Reveal & Budget Breakdown
• Installing a Wall Mural
• Home Office Makeover Reveal
• DIY Acrylic Dry Erase Board