office planning
posted 2004.07.24
My office is a mess. Part of it is because I'm a pack rat, part of it is because this office was set up and organized when I still had a full-time office away from here and therefore it's not really optimized for home office work. It has also become a bit of a wreck room, in that stuff I can't find a place for anywhere else ends up here - my dog carrier, doggie backpack, crafting supplies, and a ton of books. On top of this cacophony, the furniture is dark (teak color and black, with a black office chair and black blinds in the window).
It's becoming one damned depressing place to work, really.
So I have decided to splurge and re-do the office from soup to nuts and make it a place I'm excited to go to every single day, and not just because there's a computer with Internet access within.
First steps first: I need to lighten this room up. It's just so dark all the time, even with the blinds open.
Enter the Bedford Modular System from Pottery Barn (for those of you who don't know, I subscribe to the cult of Pottery Barn - and yes, I know it's a sickness but here I am anyway). While it's modular and I can pick and choose what I want, I'm considering a setup pretty much like you see in the photos. I'll turn things around in here so that I can sit facing the window. That's as opposed to now, when my back is to the window all day long, which means my monitor has glare every single day.
Second, I need some good bookshelves. I'm seriously considering the Agerum bookcases from IKEA, one of each size to provide some contrast in height.
Third, a better chair. Preferably one that doesn't show dog hair because Merry sheds like a tumbleweed, which shows up in high relief on a black fabric chair. And one that fits the retro-ish thing I'm planning in my head. I will probably decide on the Lenny swivel chair from IKEA. It's white, it has a removable cover (which means I could also get another cover made in another color, if I wanted to later), and the site copy reads: "For heavy use; especially strong and durable to withstand long periods of sitting. Approved for office use." Well, that's me all right.
Now that I've painted my canvas white, so to speak, I need to choose a color.
Wait for it. You know what's coming.
Yes, I've decided to try and get this pink craze that I cannot seem to shake out of my system once and for all by adding pink accents to my new office. Blinds, for example - because these black ones have to go. I'm also going to combine it with my desire for retro and pick up a few very retro pink display pieces - a lamp maybe, perhaps a clock, or a diecast model of a 1959 pink Cadillac Eldorado. I haven't decided on exact pieces yet, and I'm sure there will be some garage sale and/or flea market and/or antique warehouse shopping, but really, shopping for retro pink stuff sounds like a perfect way to spend a Saturday, doesn't it?
There will be more storage. There will be repainting. I'm serious about this, because I'm really sick of this room. When I'm done, organization shall rule the day (for at least 24 hours) and this place will be a pretty, pretty place to work and I will sit here and become wildly successful and make my millions sitting in white and pink splendor while watching boats on the lake, which you can see from my office window.
Or at least, that's the plan.
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I am. so. jealous.
Don't forget the pink mousepad, trash can, coffee mug, magazine files, file folders, PENS!, and of course, a little pink bed for Merry!
Just don't paint the walls pink. You'll get sick of it in 2 nanoseconds. I know this because the room I'm sitting in, my parents' computer room, is SPONGE PAINTED pink. I now know what it's like to live inside a vagina.
Colleen, I hope you'll be pleased to know that your last sentence *actually* made diet coke spurt from my nose, most painful, but funny.
Merry, luckily, already has a pink dog bed in the office, here's a photo:
http://www.pamperedpuppy.com/features/merryv/200407_roomcandy.html
Faux fur, natch.
I was actually thinking of doing one wall pink, but VERY VERY pale, something along the lines of #FFF3F9, since I apparently cannot think in terms of colors any more unless they're in hex. The wall that has the white bookcases in front of it, actually, so it's not overloading with pink.
And no sponge-painting; god, no. Makes me ill. I will duly keep your concerns about vaginas in mind. :) (too. funny.)
Well, I shouldn't bitch too much about the vagina, it does have broadband afterall. I don't think I've ever made someone spurt pop from their nose :D I rock!
You should be wary of putting the computer screen in front of a window. This can be as tiring on the eyes as having the window behind you. The main problem is when it's sunny outside and the world is much brighter than your computer (and much more interesting to look at mostly).
Be wary of chairs from IKEA. They look great, sure, but often don't provide the right kind of support you really want from an office chair.
White and pink. And furnished with PB and IKEA. You are my idol. When can I move in?
Much, much later...
I was googling for info about the Lenny chair from Ikea (as they so unhelpfully have removed it from their US and Canadian sites - never mind that I sat in one at my Ikea today!) and this entry came up - did you end up getting one? (Sorry for the entirely random comment...)
I looked at all the links and it looks like it will work together. And yes, accent with the pink, it will make things more cheerful!!