Design your home office

Design Concepts

Establish a concept
Come up with your main idea, feeling, style aesthetic for the space. This will be your design concept. If you already have one, great. If not, look through imagery to find one.

At this stage it is one, idea. We will develop and expand on it in the next step.
Develop your Concept
Use sources offered or your own to find imagery that supports your concept. Anything that communicates the feeling and style for your concept. This does not have to be of interior spaces!

Pull 20-25 images (or more), you will be weeding through these to select final images for your concept board(s)

Save these images to your computer or bookmark them.

See example of concept imagery for several past projects of mine (attached). Projects were residential and retail projects.
Create your concept imagery boards
Using photoshop or other software, create 1-2 imagery boards using the following specifications
1. 8 1/2" x 11 sheet
2. include your name / title text
3. Save as RGB color for screen view
4. files should be saved as .jpeg or .png files
5. 72 dpi
If you do not know how to use photoshop, I have a short basic tutorial on how to drag and drop images into photoshop and save the files.

You can download a free trial version of the software from Adobe which is good for 30 days. Otherwise you can use any other software that allows you to organize images onto a page with a title and save the files as a .jpeg or .png

Upload your concept boards to share with your classmates.

Developing a floor plan layout

Document your space
Using a tape measure, measure the following:
1. length + width of your space
2. location + size of windows + doors
3. height of windows off of floor
4. location of existing electrical outlets and ceiling lighting
5. ceiling height
6. location of any other fixed architectural elements (or furniture that cannot move (ie if part of a larger space)
Draw the perimeter of your space
For architectural drawings, we draw what is called architectural scale. Basically, real life items are too large to fit onto a sheet of paper. Drawing at a scale, allows us to fit the drawings to a sheet of paper and be able to measure them.

Using 1/4" graph paper, draw the perimeter of your space at 1/2" scale. (each 1/4" square will be equal to 6" of space) *refer to sample perimeter drawing
1. draw wall thickness to the OUTSIDE of the space so that interior measurements match your measurements
2. if space is between 6" and a foot, (ie 12'-9") estimate the location based on the 1/4" grid.
3. locate doors, windows and electrical in plan (use sample floorplan for examples of symbols)
Scan your perimeter plan and print several copies to play around with for your layouts.

*note: you can download printable graph paper at various scales (Imperial and metric) on many online sites for free.

Measurement note: this course is being taught using US standard Imperial method of measurement (inches + feet). If you are more comfortable using the metric system, this is fine. You will need to find graph paper in centimeters and you will be drawing your plan at a 1:25 ratio (basically 4 centimeters = 1 meter or 4 squares of the paper = 1 meter)
Developing your office layout
Draw several options of furniture layouts for your space.

Refer to examples provided and take the following into consideration as well:
1. What type of work do you do (on computer, paper, drawing, etc)
2. Based on how you work, how much desk space do you need, natural light, storage space, shelving
3. What kind of equiptment do you need to accomodate and what size is it.
4. Refer to your concept and think about how it may affect your furniture arrangement (ie minimal vs cozy)
5. Use typical furniture sizes provided and sizes of any existing pieces you already have that you will be re-using to come up with your layouts.
6. Choose a final layout to scan, upload and share with your classmates

Selecting Furniture, Lighting fixtures + Accessories

Revisit your design concept
Make sure you have your design concept board(s) printed out and at your side for a reference as we begin the next step

Remember to stick to items that work WITH YOUR CONCEPT not just items that you may like.

This will ensure that the final design is cohesive and looks well put together
Establish a budget
Make a list of the following that may apply using spreadsheet software or notebook and create a column for a budget price for each item:
1. finishes you will be changing (paint, flooring, decorative wall finish)
2. furniture for your space (based on your layout)
3. decorative lighting for your space (pendant light, floor lamp, desk lamp per your layout)
4. Include a lump sum item for accessories
If you have a starting budget that is defined, make a note of it. As you select your pieces you can see how they are working within the budget. Another way to do it is to set a budget price for each piece (this can vary substantially, so it may be best to start looking at pieces first)
2. Select finishes first
Begin selecting architectural finishes for your office. This can include:
- paint color(s)
- flooring (if you are changing it- If you are just adding an area rug, wait until you are selecting your furniture to make sure it works together)
- decorative wall surface (such as a wood paneled wall, wainscotting, etc)
Below are few links to a few sources that I know of for some fun decorative wall products. You can find paint at your local hardware store or paint store and flooring from local vendors. Please consult a professional if you need help.

stikwood easy to install wood paneling

modular arts wall tiles

tom haga concrete and brick wallcoverings (based out of norway - shipping charges will apply)
Select your furniture and decorative lighting
Based on your concept, budget and floor plan, begin looking for pieces to fit your design.

Begin with larger pieces first (ie. desk, lounge chair or sofa) then move on to office chair, storage furniture, shelving, etc.

Select lighting based on your layout. Be sure to dedicate a good amount of attention and importance (and space in your budget) to your decorative lighting. Lighting is a very imporant element in the space, both for light output and style.

Here is a list of a few sources for modern furniture & lighting for your reference. This is just a few. Feel free to use your own sources!

modernica

design within reach

allmodern

unica home

cb2

west elm

inmod

room & board

lighting universe

lightology
Select your accessories
Remebering your concept select some accessories for your space. These could include: a decorative mirror, clock, wall calendar, desk accessories, book ends, vase, etc

Dont go overboard! You can fill these in later as you use the space. (once your furniture is in etc)

Sometimes less is more. Accessories add style but you want them to feel collected, not too planned. Sometimes it is good to fill them in over time.

Here are a couple links for modern accessories (also check your furniture list! Some of those companies carrry accessories as well)

poppin

deskology

Styling + Final Presentation

Stylizing your office
Looking back to your concept, begin to style your space.

This can include placement of items on shelves locations of accessories, artwork etc.

Refer to links provided below as well as magazines, other blogs etc for styling tips.

Remember: good styling doesnt look forced!

Keep it natural yet organized looking.

Have fun!

*note: if you have not purchased your items yet, you can save this step for when you have everything together

A few links of websites (stylists) + blogs with great styling (in no particular order) :

style files

patricia ketelsen

pinterest

interior styling

matte black inspiration

delicious designs

Also, Apartment Therapy has a great collection of posts on styling
Redraw Final Floorplan
Re-draw your layout on graph paper (to scale) to correspond to your final furniture selections.

Make any adjustments as needed.

Scan your floorplan for use in your final presentation.
Create Your Final Presentation Board
Create a blank digital board for your final presentation.

Board should be 18 x 24

Collect your images of the following items to include on your project presentation board
1. Board Title including your name & project name
2. Final floorplan
3. Images of architectural finishes used
4. Images of furniture and lighting
5. Images of accessories
6. Optional: a small collection of your key concept imagery to go with your final items
Arrange these items onto a final digital presentation board using Photoshop or another software program

Keep your layout organized and scale furniture images to the same relative scale.

Upload this final board to share with your classmates!

Additional Resources

Here are a list of some of my favorite design blogs and resources for some ideas in NO particular order. (I follow hundreds of blog so there are definitely MORE great ones out there)...these are just a start.

Feel free to use your own too!

designscene

minimalissimo

dailyicon

designmilk

houseandhome

materialicious

remodelista

apartment34

trendland

boooooom

designspiration

dailytonic

designspotter

otto

yatzer

Also, check out

Pinterest and Tumblr for some great collections + blogs
Some resources for your use:
1. Typical office furniture sizes
2. Sample perimeter plan
3. (3) Sample office layouts

Leon Barnard

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