Designing your home office

There needs to be a balance of your personal life and your work life.

A home office should reflect who you are.

Here are some questions that will help you understand your needs.

• What kind of work do I do and how much space do I need to do it?
• How many will be working there?
• Will I have visitors?
• How close - or distant - do I want the office to be from living quarters and family members? Must it share space with other needs such as a den or guest bedroom? Does it require a separate entry?
• What work tools, electronic or mechanical, must I accommodate?
• How much storage do I need?
• Will there be adequate utilities: power, lighting, soundproofing, climate control, ventilation, plumbing, telecommunications, and data ports?
• Have I considered ergonomic features and safety?
• What sort of budget do I have?

Home Offices: Design Tips for a Tricky Interior Space

Posted on September 19, 2005

By Dawn West
dawn.west@interiordesignschoolreview.com

When you design a home office, you face a serious challenge. Coming up with a great design requires you to balance two competing ideas in one interior: the idea of the home, a place of comforting retreat where friends and family gather together, and the idea of the office, a place to buckle down and work, usually away from those same friends and family.

As more home owners look to carve out a work space in their homes, designers have to be more creative to meet their clients’ needs. Here are a few tips for helping you design home offices for today's interiors.

Tip #1 -- Remember the Home in Home Office

Home offices need to be functional, but they also need to be homey. While office designs can be highly functional, they won't fit most home owners' tastes. No one wants a cubicle set up in the corner of their living room. An old farm table may be a better work surface for a home than an institutional desk. A colorful patterned lamp shade may give the right feel where a standard office lamp doesn’t.

Tip #2 -- Find Space in Unusual Ways

Some home owners are lucky enough to have a spare bedroom or a room designed to be an office. For many interiors, though, you'll have to carve space for a home office from a room that has another function -- a family room, a kitchen, etc. Fold-up work surfaces can give home office spaces maximal flexibility. An office chair that's comfortable but that can double as an accent chair is another way to share the space. Don't be afraid to propose something risky. Partitioning a big living room to create a separate office space, even if it doesn't have a window, could be the perfect solution.

Tip #3 -- Lighting and Storage are Key

Buzzing neon lights are bad enough at the office. Forget about them for the home office. Sufficient lighting for work is important, though, so make sure you have several sources of adjustable light. When it comes to storage, nothing is more important for keeping a home office from spilling over and distracting from the rest of the home. From shelving to drawers, fit in as much as you can by carefully organizing your belongings.

Designing home work spaces can be a challenge for even the most experienced interior designer. But keeping in mind the basics will help you maintain the oh-so-crucial balance between home and office.

About the Author:

Dawn West teaches writing at Oregon State University. Her previous experience includes working for the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance, a not-for-profit in New York City, and serving as the director for an educational program for at-risk youth in Boston. Dawn holds a B.A. in English from Harvard University.