Home office ideas

Regardless of whether you are working full-time from home, sitting down regularly to keep your household admin under control, or using the space occasionally for your personal interests, most people would much prefer a space that is clear of clutter and distractions, yet decked with the best lighting and features to inspire creativity and aid productivity. 

The design of your home office is important so to help, we bring you the following home office design ideas. With just some simple changes to colour, storage and lighting, you can refresh your work space, maximising both your space and productivity.

Choosing the right home office colours

The colour on the walls in your home office or around your work space can influence your mood and productivity. By choosing the right, calming colour for office spaces, you can enhance the value that the room has on your everyday life.  

Blogger Chris Bailey’s interview with world-renowned colour psychologist Angela Wright in A Life of Productivity explores the exact colour to paint your office to help you become the most productive you can be.  

Chris summarises: “Research has shown that blue colours affect your mind; yellow your emotions; red your body; and green your ‘balance’.  By combining these colours you can influence your behaviour.”

When deciding on a colour, keep in mind the amount of time you’ll likely spend in the office. Bright, distracting colours may work for a cool feature wall, but may be overpowering as home office colours. Keep the palette muted and introduce pops of colour through accessories. 

Home office storage ideas 

Choosing smart home office storage options can also enhance the space, by allowing you to keep your work area tidy and ordered. 

Open shelving is great for housing box files which can hide all your paperwork or magazines. Carefully choosing the files you use can actually influence the space, acting as a vibrant colour feature rather than a boring essential. 

Use drawers to conceal all your random items of stationery, or you can make a bold feature of these too, as illustrated below. Our Premier Storage Kits with both shelving and drawers have been specially designed to offer a variety of storage solutions to suit any space, including the home office. They are available in 10 different wood effects to match any style of room.

Home office lighting ideas 

If you have the benefit of natural light, position your desk or workspace near it. Supplement this natural light with layered lighting from different sources. A task light with a swivel head can be angled directly onto your work.

If space is at a premium in your home office and you need to remove the footprint from your desk, opt for a clamp swing arm desk lamp to attach to the side.  

Include some ambient lighting such as recessed lamps or up lights to help create a soft, relaxing mood.  Lastly, good overhead home office lighting will illuminate all the nooks and crannies that the other lighting hasn’t managed to reach.

Making the most of a small home office layout

With a little consideration, you can make a small home office space go a long way, turning even a minimal area into a productive place.

Firstly, making the most of vertical space is key, and you can do this with smart storage on the walls of your office, or you could even add a standing desk. Installing a wall mounted pin board can also allow you to keep work tidy and surfaces clear, and they also make quirky additions to your space. 

You don’t need to have a room dedicated to office space, though. Some narrow desks are small enough to fit into alcoves so you can create a makeshift home office in these otherwise unused spaces with a bit of creativity.

Alternatively, room dividers can help you create a small home office using underutilised space in a larger room. It can also help disguise your home office equipment without impacting the overall feel and design of the room. 

 Give your space a definitive style 

We’ve already discussed the colour palette of your home office but keeping colours muted doesn’t mean your office has to be void of all personality. Add interest to your space by adding house plants, wall prints and other decorative items. Of course, the space needs to remain practical, so keep accessories to a minimum to avoid over-cluttering what could potentially be quite a small space.