Transform Your Office Like a Designer

Summary

Dear Alice | Interior Design

Episode: Transform Your Office

Release Date: June 18, 2026
Hosts: Jessica Bennett (B), Suzanne Hall (A), Corey (C)
Theme: Transforming your home office into an efficient, beautiful, and personalized space.

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Episode Overview

In this episode of "Dear Alice," the hosts revive their popular "Transform Your..." series to focus on one of the most relevant and requested spaces: the home office. Prompted by a listener question, they explore how to approach designing an office for both function and feeling, regardless of room size or whether it’s at home or in a corporate setting. They break down their signature process and showcase real examples from their portfolio, discussing color, storage, lighting, furniture layout, personal touches, and smart problem solving for challenges like cord management and small spaces.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Design Framework: Function, Feeling, Foundational Pieces

• Function:

  • Every office is unique based on shape, doors, windows, fireplace; always start with assessing what you need the space to do.
  • Function should drive space planning—think through your work habits and storage needs first.
  • Quote:

    "Every office space is different... How do you need it to function? And how do you space plan all those things?" — Jessica Bennett (B) [01:00]

• Feeling:

  • The office is usually a personal space where you can express your own personality or corporate identity.
  • Different from other rooms that are often kept neutral; offices can—and should—feel unique.
  • Offices can serve as cues to the brain, distinguishing work from the rest of home life.
  • Quote:

    "It will signal to your brain when you're going in there that you're going into work mode ... So I picture the office being a color and having this mood ..." — Suzanne Hall (A) [02:50]

• Foundational Pieces:

  • Includes the desk, storage (built-ins, cabinets, shelves), seating.
  • Desk options: traditional desks, dining or project tables, depending on work needs (drawing, spreading out blueprints, etc.).
  • Storage must suit your needs for file cabinets, safes, open vs. closed shelving.
  • Quote:

    "Every office that we do, the office is where... you schlep all the papers, you have all the leftover projects from your kids. It's your files, it's your socials, it's your passports... you have to store all that somewhere." — Jessica Bennett (B) [04:32]

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2. Space Planning: The Power Position & Room Layout

• Desk Placement and Safety:

  • Many clients, especially men, want their desks placed so they have a direct line of sight to the door and windows—known as the "power position."
  • Story about an executive insisting he be able to see anyone who might enter (“so I can’t get murdered!”).
  • Quote:

    "There's a certain power position that he wants to be in, where his back is to the wall... and he can see his windows, or if he has French doors... he is James Bond in this room and nothing is going to happen." — Suzanne Hall (A) [06:46]

• Concealing Mess:

  • Arrange the room so messy or utilitarian things (clutter, printer, less-attractive storage) are out of immediate sight.
  • Open, visually-appealing items go on display; cords, paperwork, and supplies are hidden.

• Room Examples:

  • Custom layout for a small executive office with a peninsula desk up against a window, preserving space for a lounge area.
  • Under-the-stairs pocket office example maximizes tight spaces with built-ins, wallpaper, and glass sliding doors.

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3. Color, Mood, and Personal Identity

• Saturated Color Benefits:

  • Dark colors create focus and signal containment, especially important in creative work—scientifically supported!
  • Quote:

    "Doing a dark color, it allows your mind to focus... Finished projects happen more efficiently in a space that has saturation." — Jessica Bennett (B) [11:08]
    "That’s actually scientifically proven... more often [creative work is] done in rooms that are enveloped in color." — Corey (C) [11:31]

• Color as Self-Expression:

  • Home offices are a great spot to use favorite hues, signature wallpapers, or even corporate branding colors.
  • Women's and men’s office examples:
    • Soft pinks and florals in a feminine space, featuring hidden TV storage behind sliding panels.
    • Rich navies, woods, and custom paneling add seriousness or warmth.

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4. Storage Solutions for Any Budget or Space

• Custom and Semi-Custom Options:

  • Built-ins with closed bottoms (for “riff raff”) and open uppers (for attractive books, art, keepsakes): ideal but not the only possibility.
  • Ikea or other system furniture can recreate a custom look affordably; line multiples up for visual impact instead of using a lone bookshelf.
  • Closet or niche systems with adjustable shelving can turn even a small corner into a super-functional project room.

• Open vs. Closed Storage:

  • Blend both open shelves (for books, pretty objects) and closed (for papers, unsightly supplies).

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5. Multi-Use Spaces and Diverse Office Types

• Offices dedicated to projects, crafts, wrapping gifts, or study as alternatives to traditional desk-and-chair setups.

• Examples included:

  • Shared tutor-mom space—combining a shared desk, lounge seating, and a built-in, pull-out walnut work table.
  • Command center where multiple family members, including kids, can work side by side.

• Using Dining Tables as Desks:

  • For those who like to spread out, consider a dining table in place of a desk (storage handled separately).

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6. Maximizing Small Spaces

• Offices under the stairs, converted closets, or small nooks can be both efficient and glamorous.

• Use mirrors and reflective or glossy surfaces to create a sense of spaciousness and bounce light.

• Choose smaller-scale, multi-functional furniture (e.g., ottoman as spare seating/footrest), and keep the color palette cohesive to avoid visual clutter.

• Quote:

  "You can really make any space an office ... forever been a favorite little moment. I think all women love small spaces..." — Suzanne Hall (A) [34:12]

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7. Furniture Choices & Movement

• Lounge chairs and swivels add comfort and versatility—great for casual calls or relaxing between tasks.

• Foot ottomans under desks add function and comfort—a place to put your feet up while working.

• Circular/softer shapes in decor (mirrors, tub chairs, art) offset the many straight lines of office furniture for a more inviting, less rigid feel.

• Quote:

  "Whatever you can do to bring in soft shapes because the intent or no matter what in office design, you're just always going to end up with a lot of straight lines..." — Suzanne Hall (A) [31:19]

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8. Cord Management and Tech Integration

• Always plan wiring early, keep monitors facing so cord clutter is hidden from visitors.

• Zip ties, Velcro strips for grouping cords; run cords down a discreet leg, or through a grommet in the rug to a wall outlet.

• When building or remodeling, consider installing a floor outlet beneath the desk.

• Rechargeable bulbs for certain lamps mitigate unsightly cords.

• Quote:

  "Cord management ... we try and consolidate all of them at some point and run it down... the most discreet." — Jessica Bennett (B) [37:46]

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9. Adding Inspiration & Function: Cork Boards and Desk Blotters

• Cork Boards:
  • Essential for inspiration, vision boards. Large-format or fabric-covered boards look more “designer” and can often be found at big-box stores or custom-ordered via Etsy.
• Desk Blotters:
  • Leather or fabric pads beneath your keyboard or writing area protect the surface and create a “grounded” feel.
  • Ivory or brown are favorites; avoid black for a softer look. Great for vanities too!
• Quote:

  “If you don’t know what that is, like a leather pad that goes underneath your keyboard... your handwriting looks better when you have kind of this surface to write on.” — Suzanne Hall (A) [41:01]

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Notable Quotes and Moments

• The "Not Getting Murdered" Rule:

  "He said, no, I've got to make sure that wherever I am, I can't get murdered. So I need to make sure that I can see the door and the windows at all times." — Suzanne Hall (A) [06:45]

• Color and Mood:

  "I swear, finished projects happen more efficiently in a space that has saturation." — Jessica Bennett (B) [11:08]

• Small-Space Love:

  "All women love small spaces and to have it be so feminine in color." — Suzanne Hall (A) [34:12]

• Swivel Lounge as Phone Booth:

  "If you do some sort of swivel loungy chair, it's actually the best place to take a phone call ... you're not in the business seat." — Suzanne Hall (A) [35:28]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:27] Listener Question: Rowan asks about starting points, glam, and efficiency in a small office.
• [01:47] The Three-Part Framework: Function, feeling, foundational pieces.
• [06:45] The Power Position: Desk placement insights and client anecdotes about safety and layout preferences.
• [09:10] Expressing Creative Identity through Design: Using paneling/wallpaper/art for personalized backdrops.
• [11:08] Why Moody Colors Work for Focus: Science and design converge.
• [14:47] Affordable Storage Solutions: Using Ikea systems and designing on a budget.
• [15:39] Small Office Example: Under-stairs office with glass doors and custom built-ins.
• [19:28] Clever Planning for Inspiration: Creating multi-use spaces for work, creativity, and inspiration.
• [24:29] Open vs. Closed Storage: Personalized storage solutions and blending visible/invisible storage.
• [31:19] Circular Shapes in Design: Offsetting straight lines in office decor.
• [37:46] Cord Management Tips: Hiding computer and lamp cords with smart fixes.
• [40:44] Cork Boards and Desk Blotters: Functional inspiration and setup touches.

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Tips and Takeaways

• Always start with function: what will you really do in the office?
• Infuse feeling—color, wallpaper, and art make the office distinct from the rest of the house.
• Be clever with foundational pieces—use lounge chairs, ottomans, or dining tables to achieve your work needs.
• Blend open and closed storage; conceal clutter, display inspiration.
• Plan for cord management with every device and lamp.
• Swivel and lounge chairs add comfort and personality.
• Use large/fabric-covered cork boards and pretty desk blotters for daily inspiration and organization.

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For Further Help

• Home Furnishing Design Service: Alice Lane offers a free design service for clients seeking custom or semi-custom solutions. Fill out a request at AliceLaneHome.com for expert guidance.

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This episode is full of actionable advice, illustrative real-life examples, and lots of wit and warmth—the perfect resource for anyone wanting to create an office they love to work in.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

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[A]

Hello, welcome to Dear Alice. Today we're bringing back our transform your series. Do you guys remember that?

[B]

Been too long.

[A]

I know.

[B]

I will say that.

[C]

One of my faves, though.

[B]

I do too.

[A]

I actually forgot about it. And then we got a listener question in from Rowan, and he wanted to know if we were going to do a transform your office series, because he's working on his office and it reignited inside of us that we're like, oh, my gosh, we haven't done the office yet. So we've done the transform your bathroom, your kitchen, closet, your bedroom. So if you're working on a project heading into the summer or just any project wanting to redo a space in your house, that's a really great series to go look for any of the transform yours. So today we're going to be doing your home office. And a lot of these things can be applicable at work as well, where we really take you through just how to set things up so that it really looks and functions great.

[B]

If you have any other ideas of transform your that you haven't heard from us, that you want to hear, write that in. We'd love to know because we love the series.

[A]

Okay, so, Corey, take us into Rowan's question.

[C]

Rowan asked. I'd love a deep dive on where to start with offices, how you decide what to put in them. And for a practical, small room to be glamorous and efficient, not just for show, you got to put paper, pens, notebooks, whiteboards, cork boards, your vision board, and inspirational messages somewhere.

[A]

Yes, you do, Rowan.

[B]

As we thought about where we would start with the office and looked through our portfolio of images and offices that we've designed, there are three things that we pay attention to. The first being the function. Every office space is different. You have different shapes, you have windows, you have doors, you have fireplaces. You have maybe none of those things, but it's not very big. So how do you actually think about what do you need it? How do you need it to function? And how do you space plan all those things? Right? Second is the feeling. So we figure out the function first. But the second is the feeling. Everybody, when you're going into any space, space that you're going to actually invest in, put money into. You want it to have a feeling, especially when you're thinking about a space, when you're going to go work, whether you're working full time in this office or whether it's just a place to escape the kids or anything to actually get something done. We want to have a feeling so that we can actually be productive and we're going to enjoy being in there. And often it's in the office that you can actually express your identity.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Versus the whole family room or the whole kids rooms or anything. Because you want it to inspire you to be and do your best work.

[A]

I agree. And I actually think the home office should feel different than the rest of the house. It will signal to your brain when you're going in there that you're going into work mode or even more important when you're done for the day, that when you leave then you have a different feeling in the rest of your home. So I think usually homes end up being pretty neutral in hallways and open areas. So I picture the office being a color and having this mood or this feeling. If you own your own business, maybe you even think about the corporate color of your company. Maybe that shows up in the background or maybe it's just something that you really love and identify with and it's that color that you look so great in.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Because so much of working today, especially if you're working from your home office, is taking video calls. And we want that backdrop to be really good looking and we want you to be well lit. So that might be positioning you in front of the window.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

So you look good on camera.

[B]

Yes. Or the window for sure. We're gonna talk about windows facing you.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

You looked your optimal on your camera and you get that angel glow.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

We all want.

[A]

Yes, yes. We want to look like baby angels on camera.

[B]

We figure out what is the feeling. Is it dark and moody and studious or is it light and bright again? Along with offices, we've done features on command centers is what we call it for most women in their house. This is also for that too. I think there's a lot of, I think creating cross pollinating ideas there between your command center and the office, whether it's his or hers or a whole family's office. And then the third thing that we're going to talk about is the foundational pieces. Now these are the larger pieces that you need in the office to function. Talk about a desk. Is it an actual desk with drawers than a pencil drawer in a traditional desk, Is it more of a dining table because you need to spread out your project, get those blueprints, you know, whatever it is that you're working on, you, you just need a project table. Or is it storage? Every office that we do, the office is where all you schlep all the papers, you have all the leftover projects from your kids. It's your files, it's your socials, it's your passports, it's all those things, whether it's in a safe or in a file drawer, you have to store all that somewhere. And that usually ends up being in the office. So what are your storage needs and how are we going to satisfy those? And so usually there's some type of built in. So what does that look like for your office? Roan? So those are the three things that we're going to go through. And we're going to take you through several of our projects and show you how we solved for all three of these things in every space. Which is really fun because you get to see same functions but different personalities, which kind of goes to that feeling.

[A]

So whether masculine or feminine, whatever, this is just one of those spaces that really can be your very own identity. Because usually an office doesn't need to be shared with everyone. Yeah. So it's a space where you can dream. It's like a closet. Guys, this is going to be a great episode. I can't wait. We're going to be showing you some visuals. If you're not where you can see them, we're going to do our best to describe these spaces.

[B]

This is actually just a sketch of an office that we just proposed for our client. Again, it's not finished. We haven't even done all the edits to it. But I thought it was a really great example of having a space and having several different needs for the space and how we problem solve for that. So in this space, it's a lovely men's office. We have a fireplace, we have two built ins on the sides. But it's not a really deep space. So if you were to try and center the desk, you wouldn't be able to have the sitting group that he also wanted to have. He wanted a little place to lounge for his wife to come in. They can hang out, kids can hang out. But he needed a desk, he needed storage built ins, he needed a tv, he needed all these things. And so in this space, I thought the space planning that we came up with was super clever in that we actually brought the desk and kind of created a peninsula from that far window wall. If you're looking at the actual sketch, you'll see this, but. But it's actually sitting up against the window and kind of creating a peninsula coming into the space. So it's not centered on the fireplace, it's not centered on the room, like looking toward the door. But having it this way allows for it to not only feel smart, love this vantage point, looking in there and seeing that this is the function, but also being able to appreciate all the other beautiful things. And I think it's less ordinary. Also.

[A]

Let me say something funny. I've worked for this executive probably for the last 24 years or so of my life. And when I first did his first office, I. I had a certain vantage point that I really thought would be beautiful for the office. And he said, no, I've got to make sure that wherever I am, I can't get murdered. So I need to make sure that I can see the door and the windows at all times. And ever since then, I've noticed that every man that I've worked for, that there's a certain power position that he wants to be in, where his back is to the wall. He doesn't have windows behind him. He doesn't have doors behind him. And he can see the spy that he is. He can see his windows, or if he has French doors, or if he's got just the man door coming into the room, that he's got a vantage point of these things and he is James Bond in this room and nothing is going to happen.

[B]

Full survey.

[A]

He does. He is full survey at all times. I think that is. That should be true for everybody. You want to make sure that you're not going to get murdered first. Just like we learned about on Schitt's Creek, right?

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

And so if you're watching on the screen, you can see Susan's sketch. Even in this sketch, you can see that he's not going to get murdered here in his office. He's got wall behind him, he's got wall to the side of him, and he has sight on who's going to come through that set of French doors. If there's any other windows, he's got a vantage point. I do think that is somehow true.

[B]

That's very true.

[A]

It sounds funny, but as you're surveying your room and you want to figure out how to arrange it, just make sure that you're not going to get murdered.

[B]

Also, people don't want nor Do I? I don't want to walk into the mess.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

I want that to be as concealed as possible or whatever is the least desirable thing for me in that office. I don't want to see it. Yeah. So how do you put that behind me or put it in a corner or something that's disguised by something more beautiful?

[A]

Yep.

[B]

So in this case it was actually interesting. He also wanted a TV in the space. And so we put that in the built in that's directly across from his desk so he can see it, but I don't have to see it. And we can do something beautiful over the fireplace so we all get to see something beautiful. And it's not the center of attention, but he has a direct line to that TV that sits in front of him because of how we oriented the desk.

[A]

Smart.

[B]

So, yeah, I thought it worked out really well. Other things in this that you can't see is that the built ins have a solid base to store anything that's not as cute. All the paperback books, they are tagged and ripped up. But then you do have upper storage above for all your pretty collection of books and things that you need, boxes of supplies, whatever that is, I can see it in my mind. It's breathtaking. Here's a sketch for you to try and identify.

[C]

This sketch made me think of this because it's with all the paneling and stuff and it feels very traditional and studious. I would say if the office is for someone who's maybe has a more creative. Are you going maybe less studious, more inspirational or adding some funky things in to make you feel like alive in the room. The creative juices are going to be flowing when you're in there. When you're designing a space, does that play?

[B]

Absolutely. And actually what you can't see in this. Maybe I'll get you renderings of it. Is we did a panel play on this and you can't see how creative. There's some really artistic intersections and stuff happening. So it's not really stodgy, traditional old man. He's fresh, he's young. We want to make sure that his backdrop shows that and the color that we do to the rhythms that we do to the line work, to the art that we will eventually do on all those layers. So that will always play into the space we. Or the level he's at. You kind of want finish work or something that feels like better than drywall. But if it was for a creative wallpaper. Wallpaper is a really fun thing to do in a space like this, whether it's just a texture to feel enveloped or if it is more artistic print or it is always that thing when you are on camera, what is your backdrop? What are people seeing behind you? Because then what does it say about you? I think that is really important. And they're really artistic. We probably will play with color or do something really interesting in a big way that feels less ordinary, feels like an expression of them.

[C]

I think that's a good point. What does your background say about you? The fake ones? Let's just. Can we just get rid of those? Everyone knows you're not. You know what I mean? Like, yeah, that's always driven me nuts.

[B]

But yeah, we have a client in Puerto Rico and every time we FaceTime, I'm just like, it's not a back joint.

[C]

It's actually if it's real, more power to you. You know what I mean? Yeah.

[B]

If I do say so myself. So but yeah, that's a great question. One thing I will say before we get into the actual color of all these next images and offices we're going to show you is I can't remember when we heard it. It was years ago. And I believe it to be true. You believe it to be true. That when you are trying to focus your attention, it's not always the best idea to surround yourself in a bright white space where you see the contrast of every furniture piece. The world just escapes and there's no containment color. Doing a dark color, it allows your mind to focus and allows your thoughts, your task at hand to be contained. Really get it onto paper or your computer, whatever that is. Be able to finish projects. I swear, finished projects happen more efficiently in a space that has saturation.

[C]

So true and hue. That's actually scientifically proven. Yeah. Whether you're like trying to connect to the muse or whatever, write music, that type of thing, it's more often done in rooms that are enveloped in color. Yeah. Specifically like dark vibey ones, actually. That's why studios and control rooms are always lights down.

[B]

If it is dark and focused, you can be able to focus on the screen, focus on your print, whatever it is. And I'll say that for the ceiling too. Cabin. A deeper ceiling. Again, just even that contrast line where the dark meets the light. Doing something up there just to hush it. It'll allow you to your work to be, I think, better this next slide, this is fun because this is our House of Flora and we did a whole episode on House of Flora. If you haven't listened to it, it's really great. They're empty nesters and she had an extra guest bedroom and she wanted an for herself created this space. And what her asks functionally she's I want a desk where I can have my laptop out and I can actually get work done. Whatever that is, whether it's paying bills, doing actual work, writing a love letter, whatever it is. She's on a desk. I want a sofa and I want a little seating group so my husband can come in and talk to me. But I want to have a tv but I don't want to see it all the time. How do I do that? How do I sit in my sitting area, watch the TV but just have it look like a really beautiful backdrop if I am on a call or something. So enter this scene. This is her office and you can see where the desk is focal in the room. It's sitting there, it's floating and behind her. What I think is the most brilliant thing is that we again have a built in with closed storage on the bottom to hold all the riff raff, paperwork, files, things like that. But then up above we did a really clever system where we have two open shelves on the left and the right. And in the center of that open cavity is where her TV is actually housed. We actually did sliding doors that can cover up the built ins and expose the TV so she can watch it full view when she's lying on her sofa just right in front of the desk. Or she can close it and see her beautiful built ins. It was a really great I think solve for all the things that she wanted. She wanted to see pictures of her grandbabies and have books and just beautiful display when people were coming over. But girl wanted to binge to watch some stuff. She can hide that the TV behind closed doors. I think it just turned out so beautiful, so pretty. The overall feeling, she wanted it to feel put together and she wanted it to feel soft. This was like one of her favorite colors. She loves pink. She was very much an anthro of a girl. We went through her closet. The individual expression in the space you can call your own is the office. So very much felt like her and her. The key pieces for this were the desk, the sofa and the built in for storage.

[C]

Love it anyway, you nailed it.

[A]

I think storage is such a key part of the home office and really we've done full walls of storage able to lighten up the rest of the room. In her case it was the lower half. So we'll be getting into just different examples of how you're going to gain that storage if you're in a rental space or budget doesn't allow some of these built in pieces. We're always going to do an interior design but we also have clients that are wanting to have a really custom look. Just know that you're going to be clever in how you're going to go about it. But storage is the main thing in making an office function and not having your desk constantly be full of everything.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Because it's just too much stuff to be able to focus. You want that to be behind you in drawers or in a wall or something where you can hide it all away to really be productive.

[B]

Yeah. And I think that there are options out there. Be at Ikea or whatever fits your budget. Right. Remember my in laws they in their previous home they had a basement where she just needed to keep just a lot of storage. She just had books on books and books. And she found this one system, this top piece from Ikea and she bought eight of them and she just lined the house. It did the job. And it felt like a system versus just one single bookcase and not really creating a scene or a backdrop. I'd rather see multiple of something sandwiched together to look the appearance of a built in or something really thoughtful than just one. This is a fun one. This is the next project we're talking about. And this is from our Manchester house. And what was so fun about this is that she had a laundry room. She had a craft room for her kids. But she's. I need a spot. I can go and take a call. Have my laptop and I can pay my bills and it's small enough that no one else can go. There it is mine like my own.

[C]

It's full. Yeah.

[B]

No room at the end. And there was this pocket underneath the stairs. Sometimes people would utilize that for built ins or things like that. But we actually created this little office under the stairs with a glass door that can slide shut. So when you pass by it's so cute because you have this leaded little glass door. But when you look inside we have full built in where you do have a desk blotter and open space. Lots of closed storage for all the flim flam that gets put in mom's office every time. And we wallpapered it and we put a great chandelier. It just felt so unexpected. Like when you walk by you're like what's in there? Am I invited in the two person office space. I thought that this was a great use of space. If you don't have a lot of space. There's still opportunity to create a room for you. An office or something that you can express yourself and you can get projects done. I know it's not the beginning of the year, but it's the beginning of a season. And I'm like, I want to get stuff done right now.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And so I'm like this idea of an office. I don't have an office right now because my kids. Yeah. But when they do eventually buy the nest. I'm excited to create an office. But these little pockets of space are. Should be utilized for something and be at an office. I think it's a great idea.

[C]

Chandelier underneath the stairs.

[B]

Too huge.

[A]

It just feels so intentional.

[C]

It's cool.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

It's Harry Potter in the best way. You know what I mean? That's what makes me think a little like cozy spot.

[B]

Yeah. This next one is actually a project that we haven't. We're in the middle of shooting right now over the summer. We're taking it 4x4 because there's so much to digest. But this was her office. The space to have an office for her and an office for her husband. And they both express each so beautifully. They're very much east coast. I think that whole feeling of just feeling studious and so the navies and the richer colors with the woods I think is a big priority as far as feeling. And so what we did for the feeling is like just to try and dissolve that a little bit and not have so many lines. We took a toile and we papered all those vaults so that this little hat lid could again contain the excitement and the busyness of what you need to do in an office.

[A]

Blurs the lines on all the facets.

[B]

Totally.

[A]

This is a space where she wanted to be able to have a tutor come in and work with her kids that are still at home. And that it could be away from the noise and be in a more. A smaller space that will just allow them to focus and study. But there's a couple different areas to this room which really accomplish so much. I think this office is a really hard working room. Even though this viewpoint that we're showing right now is just a really lovely shared desk with two chairs for a tutor and a student. Or for her to be able to sit down and process some online shopping or some returns or whatever she's got to focus on. Do some emailing.

[B]

Just like just said, you have this space with the built in which when you look in the first thing in this space that you look into is not this vantage point. It is two really beautiful chairs sitting in front of a window kind of calling you to come and have a conversation with Mom. When you look to the left, then you have all the busyness of the built ins happening behind you. So again, keeping that function behind you, sitting far left and even in the pocket on the right, you see there's a hole built in for her wrapping paper. And then we actually nested a walnut table within the cabinetry, but we actually had our cabinet maker create a walnut table, waterfall table that's nested into the base cabinet that pulls out, and then you can pull it for projects, for sewing, whatever it is you're working on. Yeah, exactly. And so it becomes, again, office is a space where you need your space, space to be smart in how you utilize your surfaces. And so that was one way, a really custom way that we were able to give her one additional surface to use in that space. So. But the overall feeling, I think, was also just, again, that nautical navy and the toile and the woven. She wanted to feel approachable. Her kids want to be there. She wanted to be there. I think we accomplished it.

[C]

A clever way to utilize something, too. An office is a room of function, really, to start, like we've been talking about. So, like, finding clever ways to do that, I think that just makes it more remarkable.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And inspiring. Been thinking about that a lot lately. I'm like, I want to be inspired. Where do I go to be inspired? And I don't know if it was someone that asked me that question. It was like one of those 50 questions that we go through with the kids, and they're like, where do you go to be inspired? And I was just like, good question. I go to books. I go. I go to all these different avenues, but is there a space that I go and really do remarkable work that I'm excited about? And I think clever planning, just these little hidden Easter eggs of function make you feel smart. I solve for that. I'm going to solve for this next big thing in this next phase of my life. And if you can create a space that inspires you. High five. You've already have your backdrop, and if you haven't created that space, that's what we all should do. We should figure out what is our space that inspires us.

[C]

And I think that goes along with something we talk about often on the podcast, but maybe don't dive too deep on is thoughtfulness. So, really, all of that work, and I think the clever design and the thoughtfulness of it is before the project is before you start. That's really the homework right there. And that's what's going to make the finish product, or room, space, whatever, that much better. The more time you can spend on that thoughtfulness kind of time before the project starts. So whenever we talk about that being thoughtful, it's really the prep done before, the legwork of recognizing what you want in the space. What we talked about, the function, feeling and the foundational pieces of it.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And that can really relate to multiple rooms in the home.

[B]

Oh, you guys, I love this space. This is again another project that we're capturing this summer. This is our chestnut row. This is our project in Boston. And we had two spaces, one for him and one for her. His is a more traditional office with a desk and things. She's. I want my office to actually just be a project room. I want a project room where I can just go and I can be happy and it can feel like me and I can have storage for all the things get put in my space and I can wrap a present. I can go and work on a project. I could have Rory, my daughter, come and we do a fun something together. And so in this space, again, these are just cell phone shots from our install. But what's so great about the space functionally, you have a dining table just floating space. We don't. We didn't have a ton of room, but we had space enough for a dining table, four chairs, a little open bookcase for her to put all of her loves that she wanted to see. But then we also had a closet that you can't see that's in the corner of the room that's filled with a closet system that has like all of her wrapping paper. It has open shelving that's adjustable. It has space for all the things that you just need to store. That's not necessarily the cute things. If you have a closet in a space, put a system in there, do some finish work to just throw up what you need to store what you need to get it out of public eye so you can be inspired to do the things you want to do to finish those projects. So those are like the functions of the space as far as the feeling goes. Like wrap me in raspberry. It's so pretty. They were down to do high gloss paint and lacquer and just like, it just feels like a candy coated shell. It's so beautiful. The walls and the ceiling are all done. And in this, again, this kind of like Mauvey raspberry color. And you can see your reflection, the light. Like, even though it's not a big space because it's so shiny, the light just like pierces against it and bounces all over the place. And it's so much fun to be in there. I can't imagine anybody like not being like a gravitational pull into this room.

[A]

And that's what we create for the home office, right? Is we want this different feeling than the rest of the home so that it does signal to your brain, I'm here to be creative. I'm here. This is my time. And I just love the feeling here. And I love this for her.

[B]

Yeah. You want to know what? You're gonna love this, Corey? Okay. They collect original art. There's not a print in the place. They go to galleries. They just have been collecting for a long time. And she had this piece originally, I think over her bed. It's a long linear piece that sits on this wall. And we didn't know where we were going to put it. And when we started to place the art at the install, I was talking to her and I'm like, tell me about this piece. And she's actually from a Vegas artist. And they actually take songs, like artists and songs, and they create like the rhythm and like the kings of the notes and everything in the song. And that is what the art is. So right now you're just seeing a bunch of lines, but it's actually a song from the Killers. That's awesome. In this space. And she's. I love the artist. It's from my hometown and I want it in my space. And I was like, it should go in your office. It's totally good. And you put it in there. And it's just. It's not like we looked at the art to pull that paint color, but like art does that. Paint colors do that. Especially when you have a myriad. They start to just pull with chameleon wise pull from whatever's around it. And it's just. It's the perfect. Most like, it's like ignition to the space. And I just, I love. That's like your very first direct shot of that.

[C]

Good to remind her of home. And then also it's artistic. Something she loves. She looks at it and she knows what she's seeing.

[B]

She hears the song, I'm sure when she sees it. So I just.

[C]

I love it. Really cool.

[A]

This is my home.

[B]

Get it, Jess.

[A]

I wanted to just point out really quick, open storage, closed storage, obviously Vantage points is the first Image here where you come in, you see the side of the desk. But again, I needed to be in the power position so I wouldn't get murdered. Or if I was about to get murdered, I could see them coming and I can hurry and choose.

[C]

At least you knew sketches face.

[B]

I could hurry choose a new room.

[A]

So my back is against the wall, which is. My back goes to that wood Chinese chest that's in the middle of the room. And then I can see out the window, the French doors. And then there's a big open case comes in from my entryway. And then you can see the home office there. I've had different things over the years. I've had some upright occasional chairs which gave the room a more formal feeling. And I feel like I'm in more my more laid back, casual era. So I've got two of our cocoon chairs in there now, which is so fun to get in there and just lounge and really be comfortable. Especially if Adam happens to be working at the desk. I don't have to sit upright in an occasional chair. So I just want to give you guys permission. If you have room, you don't have to do the upright chair. You can do like a dining size type chair. You can do something a little bit more lounge where you can hang out and spend some time. And then the open closed storage debate here I solved. I had a ton of design books that I really wanted out. I think if you have books, you kind of want them out so that you can see the spines. You can be like, oh, here in this book or borrow this or oh, there's this great quote. You just. You always want to be able to see your books and book spines. So I have two really tall brass etagers in this room with holding all my design books and boxes. And then all of my clothes storage is just behind the desk in this really large chest. And inside the chest is multiple shelves where I have thank you notes and printer paper and all of the things that you don't really want to look at. So anyway, that's how I solved the storage issue in my room. Because my editors are open. I did want to do an art paper on the back wall so that your eye had something to read. But anyway, that's how I'm solving for storage. And Rowan, maybe this is something that you can do. Depending on how much of your stuff is good looking and you want to look at it. You can do open storage or if it's stuff that you don't want to look at, then maybe you need More closed storage that goes floor to ceiling. I think one of the ideals is one of the first offices we showed you where you have closed storage on the bottom, open on the upper. Because you always have beautiful things that you pick up on your travels that you want out and you want to be able to see. So anyway, you're going to want both in a space and that's how I solved for it.

[B]

Yeah. The feeling you nailed.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, for sure. The Italian car and the backdrop. I've had plenty of meetings with you and Adam and I'm just like, yeah, the. The wall behind you is great.

[A]

Oh, it's getting so hot lately. It's hard to sleep. I don't know about you, but I have nightmares when I get too hot. So I finally swapped my bedding for the Cozy Earth sheets.

[B]

Good call.

[A]

Why didn't I do that so much longer ago?

[B]

They're amazing.

[A]

They really are. They keep you. I think that the science says they're like 40% cooler than cotton.

[B]

Oh my gosh.

[A]

I know. And they're like got this great hand. They're so slippery. I love how they feel. And I'm finally sleeping through the night again.

[B]

Bless. And I think just overall summer like as temperatures are rising also in addition to your sheets, what becomes our everyday set that's going to keep us cool?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Thomas complaining about that and he I actually finally just pulled the trigger and I bought the every wear pant and the everyday polo for him. He loves them. We're going to get him multiple pairs because they're light, stretch, breathable, barely any wrinkles. He loves them. And this is going to be his summertime uniform because it's finally something that he can wear that looks good dressed down, dressed up and will keep him cool all throughout the summer.

[A]

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[B]

This is in our lovers lane project. And again, this is a another space where we had an office for him and an office for her. Hers Was this is where we like you the command center title. She's I need my space. I need a command center. And so there were several functional things that she needed in here. She's I need spots for at least two people to be working on computers. However you space upon it. I have a lot of stuff to store. I have wrapping paper, I have reams of paper. I have printers. I have all those things like for my office. I need a store. I she wanted a shade. She's I just want a shade. I can lay down while my kids are doing homework if they need to use the space. And I can just like doom scroll or whatever you do. And so that those are like the directives of the functionality of the space was like closed storage, not open storage. Shay's desk. We came up with such a pretty solution. This is probably one of my favorite desks that we've ever designed. It was out of a viola marble. And we did this again, a peninsula to instead of an actual desk centered in the space, we did a full built in with an offshoot of like actual desk space and a peninsula where two people could park themselves with laptops opposite each other. And it turned out so beautiful because it's not only sometimes the desk isn't always the prettiest. And you'll have a sitting area that's like your first shot of the house but or of that room. But this I think is just centered right on the actual door system. Glass door system looking into the space. And it's something you want to feature. And as a parent I want to see what are my kids doing, what's on their computer, all those things. And so visibility is beautiful. The design is beautiful. So functionally, I think we hit it right on the nose or feeling though she liked. She loved light and bright, but she also loved interesting. And so we kept the beltons and everything light. We kept the walls actually in a beautiful paper that was like she's from Arizona. So we did it just kind of a little bit more natural texture that she might feel more like reminder of her home state. But then like she also just had a lot of like different little fashion points. So we actually did a darker ceiling to again bring that hush give her some containment. And and then we did this like little pinstripe navy just to add a little like designer detail into the space on that hood. And then we put that light in there that looks like the halo of the queen that she is.

[A]

Feathers. Yeah. It's basically beautiful.

[B]

That's the light that's in the middle and it's massive. I want to say it's like 4 inches round and it just like floats like a halo. And I just love, especially at night, I'm like, oh, the daytime's beautiful, but nighttime study in here with that glowing.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Is sensational against that dark color. If the light ceiling were light and the light you disappear, you would never get credit for it. But the fact that you gave us some like, contrast is everything. It's so beautiful.

[A]

I say this about home offices. It's the same thing as kitchens. You're really dealing with a lot of things that have straight lines. Desks, right. Your chairs, your office chairs are pretty square looking. There's just all of the built ins and the rhythms of the drawers and books and everything else is really a lot of straight lines. What I love about this office is that whenever they could, they used just this non directional circular shape. The end of the desk is, is a semicircle. The sort of center piece below it, that pedestal is a complete cylindrical shape. You've got this beautiful folded fan art that makes a circle. You've got a circular light, you've got circular shapes. In the iron windows, we really brought in these soft shapes to keep your eye moving. Even the tub chair in the corner is a circular shape and just takes the edge off. Because whatever your office is, Rowan, at home, just do whatever you can to bring in soft shapes because the intent or no matter what in office design, you're just always going to end up with a lot of straight lines and it start, it can start feeling a little bit rigid. So you're going to get a lot of credit for these softer shapes.

[B]

Especially when you introduce tech, when you introduce desktops. Yeah, Computers, things like that. Adds a real cold to a space. And so whatever you can do again to just slam it up through shapes, I think is really smart.

[A]

Yeah, this is a really fun one. Rowan, you talked about your office being nine and a half by nine and a half wide windows, doors. And I know a lot of people would think, oh, that's so small. But I want to say this is even smaller than that. This is an office that we did within the first, I'd say five or six years of being open at Alice Lane. So it was probably, let's call it 2015 and this client was renting this space and had this little tiny moment in a historical old downtown apartment, if you will. And we painted the walls pink and we brought in that really big huge circular mirror. This is probably 40 inches round at least. And then we did a little writing desk is really all that the room could hold. It couldn't even hold a proper full on desk with drawers. And then we did a little ottoman as a guest chair if you will. There's no back so your eye can keep moving beyond it. And and then a really beautiful desk chair for her. Now this desk chair is a gorgeous dining chair. So this isn't a space that is going to be that you need an eight hour sit chair. This is just. I'm going to perch and send a few emails at the end of the day or do some online shopping. But you can really make any space in office. We couldn't even. We did a cowhide on the ground to bring some organic lines to this so that it wasn't yet another square in the space. But this has forever been a favorite little moment. I think all women love small spaces and to have it be so feminine in color. I think the mirror with those is it capis shells that make up this beautiful sort of. They fan out and bring a lot of texture to the space. And the light bounces a wall around the walls. It's just gorgeous.

[B]

And that chandelier again when you're dealing with small space, try not try to have colors that bounce off of each other and evolve to one another because even that light in the glass that's pink, it takes on the. The form of what's happening on the walls and even the capi shells pick up on the pink. And so there's nothing that's too hard of a contrast in this small space to feel like it's being like tacked.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It melts really beautifully. And I just love that little chandelier.

[A]

Love it too. The storage is going to have to be somewhere else because this is literally a walk in closet. But I think this is so inspiring to show that you can. It's kind of like the space under the stairs that we showed earlier for that client that you can really create a little office, a little sense of place for you wherever you can.

[C]

When you said we talked about this ottoman it made me think of your office and this is something wanted to mention that I thought you did great in your office when considering and I thinking about Rowan's question as well. Is this a smaller room? Your guest chairs that maybe you're sitting across the desk. You have a grouping of two of our cocoon chairs and those have movement in them. If someone wanted to swivel and face you sitting at the desk or the other, another person sitting at the other chair there's movement there. So that chair can serve multiple spots in the room.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

I thought that was, like, brilliant that you did that. So I just wanted to touch on that. Maybe Roman, want to consider it.

[A]

What's fun too, is if you do some sort of swivel loungy chair, it's actually the best place to take a phone call. Because otherwise, if you're at the desk, it feels like business time. And you might get a phone call from a girlfriend. You're like, I'm gonna sit down for a second. And I love to go in and perch in my office in those lounge chairs. And it's just so cozy and comfortable. And I'm not in the business seat.

[C]

I'm in wearing a different hat now.

[A]

Exactly. Yeah. So it serves a different purpose. Yeah. Advantage point.

[B]

One other thing, when you were saying the thing about the ottoman, I think we had a request from a client we must have, like years and years ago. That's always stayed with me. And I feel like we employ in a lot of offices where we do an ottoman nestled underneath the desk or something that's serving possibly lounge chairs or sofa over here. But for them, the nice thing about having an ottoman that's nest underneath the desk is whoever is sitting in power position at the desk, they can throw their feet up.

[C]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Like, are you the person in the booth where I'm just like, end of day, I'm just like, I'm sorry, kids. My feet are going right there. Yeah. But same. Same thing like in the desk. Like we always. People like to elevate their feet. They like to move. They like to elevate their feet. So having a little something that's beautiful, tucked up graduating heights, but also serves a little foot rest for you if you're at your computer for eight hours. It's helpful.

[C]

So anyway, lifts the design as well.

[B]

Exactly.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Just really quickly. This is a home office for a husband, Contemporary home. He loves a dining table as an office. He uses one at work. So this is 98 inches long. And it looks very chic in his space. Something about a really long line looks really good. It allows him to pile a few books on one end. He can roll down to one side. If he's having a conversation, he can roll in front of his desktop computer on the other. But it just kept. It kept the space feeling just really chic and very minimal. And so if you are. If you have the space for one, consider a dining table. You're not going to get any drawers. But the drawers are behind him in the built ins where he can grab pens, pencils, whatever. And then he just has a really clean surface to work off of. He wanted lounge chairs as guest chairs. Again, it kept things really low, it kept things looking lean and it wasn't as serious as having the upright sort of occasional chair. So anyway, this was just a different look for an office. But I think it turned out really great. Very handsome.

[B]

Yeah, it's a feeling for sure. Okay, so as we wrap up the offices, we want to talk about just a couple quick tips. 1 I think Achilles Hill of all offices and they're like how do you do the cord management? And that is always something that we're thinking about because you might have a desktop on your desk, you might have a lamp, which we all love. A little glow while we're working. We'll have our laptops. We need to charge it. How do we manage the cords? What we do is we try and position things in the most beautiful spot where they're not as heavily seen. So if I had a desktop and my door was on the left, if I'm sitting at my desk, I'm going to kind of angle my computer screen a little bit this way so they don't have to see the back of my screen cords coming out completely. Yeah. But there's so many different things that you can do for cord management. We try and consolidate all of them at some point and run it down. Basically a leg of the desk that's again the most discreet. We, whether we use zip ties or those little velcro strips, we'll do that just to try and keep them contained. We'll take em down and then we'll plug em into the nearest wall. Or a lot of times if you have a rug and it's floating in the center of a desk, we'll get a little buttonhole put in the rug from our. We have a carpet place, a rug place close by that they'll come and hand knotted rug. They'll do a little grommet and basically surge it. And then we can take those cords through underneath the carpet into the nearest wall to plug in. So that's a really easy way to do that.

[A]

Yeah. And maybe when you're considering where you're not going to get murdered and where you're going to put your desk that you do look for your outlets at that moment. Because you might choose to do the peninsula and put your desk by one wall or by the other based on where the outlet is.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And where you're going to be safe.

[C]

Or if you're doing a new build and you just consider it where your desk placement is going to be before the electrician's done. You can put a floor outlet in there somewhere that would sit underneath your desk so you don't have to run across to any wall or anything.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. I love that for the lamps. They do have a lot of these rechargeable bulbs. I think that's probably the next best thing if you don't want to deal with a cord. And that's where you actually charge the bulb. So in your closed storage back here, you're going to have several of them charging on a dock and then when that one's out, you can quickly put the new one in. That'll be a lot easier than having to recharge a whole lamp, so a lot less frustrating. So that's great. Yeah. Advice on cork boards. A lot of people, Rowan, you said that as far as for inspiration, things like that, there's a lot of spaces that you can get. You can get them at like through Ballard Design. There's a lot of like big box stores online that sell cork boards that are really large in format. I would probably go there and that's probably your most cost effective. We recently had a client that bought these tall, like, almost like floor to ceiling cork boards. Like really simple. Why, I believe they were even from Ikea. And they looked incredible. She had two or three of them in a row. And they were working in an office, a fashion building. And so they just had it all littered with just like all these like really inspiring, beautiful images that like revoked inspirations.

[A]

And hers, they looked like they were covered in fabric. So it wasn't actually that yellow cork that you were looking at. And it looked more fashion house for sure. And I think was really good looking. It was a great solution.

[B]

Yeah. And a lot of times, just what do you guys usually do for cork boards? I'm like, we'll usually customize them like with work and like fabric so that they can go along with whatever we're doing in the room so you can get really creative. And Etsy, Etsy has so many cool options too.

[A]

Good option.

[B]

So go there.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And yeah, a desk blotter. I guess that's our last thing.

[A]

Oh, yeah, we love a desk water. If you don't know what that is, like a leather pad that goes underneath your keyboard. It also is really nice if you're writing a thank you note. Your handwriting looks better when you have kind of this surface to write on. It's not your wood Surface. And you also don't want to press into that wood surface. Surface. So you don't forever see what you wrote on that note. And I always love an ivory leather blotter if it's a more handsome space. We love the brown ones. I really don't ever want a black one. I'm just gonna say don't buy the black one. But yeah, we sell them online. I think that they're really handsome and they ground a space. I even really like them for women's vanities where they do their makeup. Desk.

[B]

A little rug. The rug for a desk.

[A]

Yeah, it does feel like the area rug because you can put your desktop computer on it or your laptop and open it if you have a keyboard or maybe you're working on an iPad. It just grounds everything. You can have your beautiful cup of pens or whatever, your lamp nearby, and it's like you just feel set up. It doesn't feel so swimmy and floaty.

[B]

I love it messy. It cleans it up.

[A]

It does clean it up.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. I'm a huge fan of the desk blotter. Rowan, I hope we answered some of your questions. I know we, we're passionate about this topic. We get to work on a home office in every house that we work on, and hopefully some of these tips come in handy. I wanted to say really quick, we have a really amazing free design service. If you've been here for a minute, you know about it. It's called Home Furnishing Design. We've got a whole fleet of designers that have gone to design school. They're working in AutoCAD, and they can help you with any of the resources here at Alice Lane. So whether it be vendor product or our own product, they know that sectional math. We can customize rugs to any size with any of our colors. They just know how to work the whole system. It's the easiest way to get your home furnished. So if you're in a position where you're wanting to work on furniture, definitely use the service. It's called Home furnishing Design. Corey, what's the best way to. To fill out the form and get started?

[C]

So go to alicelanehome.com and on the Design Services tab, there'll be a drop down that takes you to home furnishing Design. Click that. That'll take you to a form that you fill out, and one of our designers will get back to you in a day or two.

[B]

That's great.

[A]

And if you guys are loving the podcast, be sure and click follow on your favorite listening platform. And while you're there, give us a review and a five star review if you don't mind and share the episode with a friend that you think loves design and would be grateful. If you guys have any questions just like Rowan did today, please feel free to send those to Dear Alice alicelanehome.com We make sure and read through all of them. They're super helpful in knowing what you guys want to know and be sure and follow us on Instagram. We're at Alice Lane Home and we're also at Alice Lane Interiors. We'll catch you guys next time. Hey, thanks for listening. If you like our show, please leave a five star rating.

[C]

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