I am working on this project that got me to thinking… the project includes a small office space yet my own office is not in order (so to speak). Actually, I had almost completely stopped using it since leaving the corporate world.
Back when I had a cubicle or office in an industrial building, I had a very minimalist aesthetic. I kept very little on my desk or “walls”, mainly because Texas is an at will state so I felt like on any given day I needed to be able to pack up all my belongings into whatever bag(s) I happened to carry on that particular day. When I began working from home, still for corporate America, that all changed; my work space was very efficient but also very personal.
Now that Xtraordinary by Design is my full-time career, I decided I should start using my office space again. But since I hadn’t done so in a while, it definitely needed a little something. Nothing major but just that little “something”. It’s interesting to me when I look at design pics of home offices and the desks are either totally clean (i.e. nothing on them but a pretty (expensive) lamp and maybe a posh objet d’art) or they are a full on craft center. Both of these have their place, but I wonder if that’s really how people work.
Here’s a little background on my “office”. It is really a shared “entertainment” space that was originally the dining room. When it was a dining room, we used it exactly 2 times in 4 years – a waste of space with some pretty things in it… so I changed it. My original thought was to have our kids in an open shared space when they use the computer and gaming systems so we’d always know what’s going on. It has since evolved into THE place where they watch movies and/or TV, hang out, entertain friends, and of course MY OFFICE during the day. Now we use it ALL the TIME; me during office hours (or whenever I want since I’m the Mama), and everyone else most any other time.
Check out the photos below to see how we all use the space differently depending on what we’re doing (click on the pictures to view as a slideshow).
This IS how I truly work and live. Everyone’s wants and needs are different and we design with that in mind. Form and function really are the backbones of great design.
