Warning: This post contains graphic "before" images of an
adolescent boy's bedroom. The incredibly messy nature of said images may cause
nausea. (Actually, the floral vertical blinds alone will cause nausea!) Also, be grateful they don't come with smell too.
If you follow me on Instagram you'll know that for the last eight months I've been slowly planning, painting, decorating and hashtag-ing (that's a word, right?!) #homeofficeisgonnabeawesome. Well, now we are close enough to done for the big reveal - brace yourselves - the home office is awesome!
At the beginning of this year, my eldest son flew the nest and, while the idea of preserving his room as a kind-of shrine and hoping he'll be able to come back and use it again soon is tempting, it's not just feasible in a house with so many people.
Eventually (when we've abandoned all hope of Michael wanting to live at home with his parents again!), Liam will move into this space but for now we have decided to keep this room as a multifunctional space. It's a home office for me to blog and (maybe someday again) scrapbook - which means our computer isn't sitting out in the hall like it used to. It's also our library and a place to cuddle up with a good book and it's a guest room.
This room was a terrific space for an adolescent's bedroom as it was obviously designed to be a study. It has a great built-in desk, bookcase and cupboard...
And most of our books lived in here already...
Once we stripped down to the bare space - and got rid of those curtains! - all we really needed to do was paint. There are lots of great tutorials online about how to paint laminate furniture. First up is cleaning really well and Windex is supposed to be the best to ensure a really good clean.
After about three or four coats that hideous blue was finally gone! and that left the best part - decorating!
There are two main issues with our built-in desk space: firstly, there's no room for a printer (but having it under the desk is working okay for now) and secondly, the shelves above the desk are really narrow - too small for regular sized books, anyway.
Initially I decided to use this old noticeboard that I had and accessorise with a few of the goodies I'd picked up at Typo and Kikki-K back in January.
The amazing folks at Howard's Storage World were kind enough to supply me with a lot of the products you can see on the shelves.
The magazine holders are not only gorgeous, but really well built and seem to be handling the weight of my Donna Hay collection and reams of printer paper just fine (unlike my last cheapo ones!)
The A4 storage boxes fit well on these awkward shelves and the bamboo stacking boxes (seen below in two different sizes) and just perfect for the space and are holding all those little bits and pieces that scrapbookers collect.
You can see HSW's Orla Kiely collection here and the bamboo stacking boxes are part of this range here.
The acrylic charging station on the left is also from HSW.
All of the white storage boxes are ones that I've picked up from Officeworks. I've styled the rest of the shelves with a few little bits I've collected that will increase my storage and add a bit of pretty. There are even a few little tiny, books that fit too!
The coffee table sits on the other side of the room which is our reading nook and guest accommodation. The largest of our board games (that were too long for the cupboard) live in storage baskets under the coffee table.
How much of a difference do the timber venetian blinds make?
That sofa bed was very comfortable and was even big enough for two adults and a little girl! Thanks again for lettingus stay with you while we were visiting that part of the world!
ReplyDeleteOur pleasure x
DeleteIt is looking great - very real and happy. I am Anima, hopped over from IHeart. Love your space.
ReplyDeleteIs the chair comfortable sitting extended period of time? I am looking for a chair that is slender but comfortable.
Best Regards,
Anima
Thank you so much for visiting, Anima and taking the time to comment. I'm finding the chair very comfortable, though perhaps a bit too low for the desk. All the best with your search, Sarah
DeleteThis is beautiful! I am always amazed with what white does to a space. We are also making everything white in our house and it is so beautiful. I found that the Zissner paint primer works well with one coat, but we had to make sure that we waited the required time between coats to be sure that it had cured properly. Perhaps in the humidity, this didn't happen so well? Yet, still beautiful. Play with colour with the read sign. I agree, it's not quite working yet.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for linking this up to my linky, 'hello'. It is a perfect fit of all the goodness you are looking forward to. xS
Thank you, Sarah and thank you for hosting the link! You're right about those letters- time for more paint! S x
DeleteThe white paint was a major improvement. The finishing details you added really make it! What a wonderful transformation!
ReplyDeleteThank you! And thanks so much for taking the time to comment. Sarah : )
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