House

My Office Plan

Oh my office.  I'm excited to make this a workable office.  and tv room. and workout room.  It wears many hats, but the primary one needs to be workable office.  This is where the design magic needs to happen. Before we tore out the carpet, my office had stalled out shy of usable office.  No desk or workspace and the computer placement made me feel like I was in a cave.

myoffice2

While I'm still fleshing out the layout, I know what feel I want here.  This office (via House Beautiful) spoke to me.

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Clearly I don't have anywhere near the space or want to fork over budget to replicate this, but I'm inspired.  Sometimes it's the hardest as a designer to work on your own spaces because of all the possibilities in front of you.  When I find myself getting tripped up like this I always try to pick a jumping off point.  For my office, it's this rug that I stumbled on at HomeGoods.  It's so soft and more subtle in person.  Traditional and feminine without being too girly.

HomeGoods rug find- Safaviah Calista Rug- via Year of Serendipity

From there I was inspired.

Fresh and fun office plan via Year of Serendipity

1.  IKEA ranarp task lamp.  I've had this lamp for over a year and I still love it- it just needs a better home.

2.  My vintage craigslisted settee will need to stay in the space (for the tv room functionality portion), but it requires some new pillows!  This fun stripe is Color Lesson, Cantaloupe from Tonic Living

3.  I love the way yellow pops with the rug, so my office chair might get a good dose of Heni Slub Goldenrod from Fabric.com

4.  #polkadotsforlife.  Polka dots make me weak in the knees, so I'm very very seriously considering a roman shade in this Small Ikat Dot from Tonic Living

5.  This room needs plants!  I'm still not so great at keeping them alive, but I'm officially a plant addict.  The one pictured is technically a small, artificial one from IKEA, but you get the idea.

6.  This image is courtesy of Apartment Therapy, but I am actively on the hunt for a small scale desk to maximize my worksurface in my small scale space.  Hopefully my besty Craigslist will help me out.

7.  Totally the same rug as above but it changes color in different lights- more beigy at times, and others more blue.  It's actually billed as silver which is probably accurate.  I stumbled on mine for an amazing deal at HomeGoods, but I found it later at Target as well- Safavieh Calista Rug

8.  If you have a really good memory, you might remember this guy as my $25 Brimfield pick from a year ago.  He's been patiently waiting in the basement for new upholstery- I'm thinking #3 above.  A nice yellow pattern would make him look super dapper, don't you think?

I have a few other tricks up my sleeve here too (like a creative way to hide the TV), but the bedroom floors are still unfinished, which means 1/3 of the bedroom is currently shoved into my office.  Another 1/3 in Hubby's office, and the last 1/3 in the living room.  The cats seem a bit bewildered as to why there's a mattress taking up the entire living room floor.

 

Hubby's Office Plans

With new (old) floors upstairs, that means the 3 rooms affected will also be getting new looks.  The bedroom's transformation will be minor with just a new rug and maybe new night stands and lamps, but Hubby's office and my office will both get pretty drastic changes.  Neither office got too much design, planning, or thought previously. Hubby's office was regrettably painted lime green (when we first got the house and were in desperate need of some color in the house....) and it inherited Clifford the big red chair when it got ousted from the living room by my reupholstered ikat chair.  Hubby loves that big chair.  I'd love it in another fabric.

hubby's-office-before

Basically, I hate to admit, Hubby's office was where all the bad design decisions in the house went to die.  Out-dated messy gallery wall, clashing colors, ikea desk left over from my bachelorette pad....  Bad designer/wifey.  Hubby deserves better than that.

I'm deciding to finally be a good designer/wifey on this room and take my own taste out of it.  Clifford stays despite my best efforts.  Hubby's finally getting the dark, traditional office he's always wanted.  Complete with oriental-style rug and antique (craigslisted) desk.  The base layer is going to be very traditional.

hubby-office

Color: Behr Marquee Mossy Bench; Anya Chair; Task 1 Floor Lamp; Amida Rug

Hubby would die happy if I let him live in this room (with the addition of his computer of course):

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image via Architecturaldesigns.com

It's a little too buttoned up for me.  Luckily, however, Hubby's not as buttoned up as he thinks and there will be a heavy dose of cheekiness in his office.

The fun and funkiness will come in primarily through art and accessories.  You can't have too serious of a room when you have this hanging on the wall, right?

daisy charlie painting

hehe.  I'm really looking forward to styling in here (ya know, once we move the dresser and night stands back into the bedroom).  Mixing traditional paintings from Hubby's travels with a crazy anthropomorphic painting of our cats along with some fun/geeky decor which includes Optimus Prime.  This is going to be one serious room that doesn't take itself seriously at all.

I can't wait to share my office plans with you Wednesday!

 

 

Sofa!!

The excitement really only needs a one word title.  After 3+ years of lamenting our too-large-for-the-living-room lumpy (but oh so comfy) couch.... Living room before with out of scale furniture

We finally have a sexy adult sofa that will hold up for more than a couple years.  The word 'sofa' just sounds so much more sophisticated than 'couch,' don't you think?

MGBW Diane's Sofa via Year of Serendipity

We splurged for the Diane's sofa from Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams in the stock velvet (aka unable to be ruined by little kitty paws), and I.am.in.love.

Living room with new  stylish but neutral sofa via via Year of Serendipity

I'm also so amazingly happy with how far the living room has come this year!  From the highly artistic and totally accurately perspectived sketch that I showed you back in January, I think I can say- mission accomplished.

Living room plan sketch

Living room sketch turned reality via Year of Serendipity

All the puzzle pieces have finally come together and I'm giddy!  Just a few last finishing touches needed *coughpillowsandrugcough* and I will soon be able to put the Done(ish) stamp on this room.  When is a room in my house ever fully done?  Well, done enough to take some new pics for my Home Tour.

Living room with new  stylish but neutral sofa via via Year of Serendipity

Hubby's still rather neutral on pretty new Diane- I think because the color is almost identical to our old one, but OMG, I personally think having the right scaled sofa for the space is a breath of fresh air!!

eclectic living room with stylish but neutral sofa via via Year of Serendipity

Since my sketched out plans in January, the living room has gotten:

So, are you as in love with Diane as I am??