Category: Organizing makeovers

An office in the home should be more than a place you work in – it should be a place you LOVE to be in, as well.

My own home office was a bit stuffy when I first set it up after moving in to my house. The walls were all white, my file cabinets were an “office” gray, I had very little “color” or decor items in it, and there was a homely shelf unit sitting in plain view. Dull, dull, dull.

(Don’t even ask why I stuck a leg coming out of my desk!)

Since I knew I was going to spend a better part of my day in this space, it became important for me to spiff it up a bit.

First thing was to decide what color scheme I wanted in the room. I was going to go with peach tones, purple, and (heaven help me) turquoise.

I then started with painting the walls the two shades I selected (to add dimension and variety to the wall space). While the paint brush was still in my hands, I painted the file cabinets as well!

After several room re-arrangements on paper, I found the arrangement I liked best, and brought in the furniture pieces to situate in their new spot. So far, so good.

The next thing was to get a nice purple cover for my futon to brighten things up, of which was the largest piece of furniture in the room (and my dog’s place of rest).

I complemented that with purple shear curtains to decorate the windows, but  left the blinds there for functionality so I could close out sun glare.

I even made purple velvet curtains over my file cabinets (inside closet area) to hide the stuff on the shelves above it where I stored office supplies and do-dads – all of which were very organized into storage containers and drawer units, of course.

I started purchasing a few other decorative items that served a dual purpose – functionality and decor. For instance, instead of just an ordinary office file holder, I found a decorative rod iron wall rack for my action files. I found a shiny turquoise bulletin board too, which made me so very happy! And turquoise magazine holders, shelf boxes for “stuff”, and of course a turquoise mouse pad.

Because I tend to go a little crazy on the decoration part of this project, I went with floral arrangements in colorful vases, some plant life here and there, a turquoise water fountain, and several other items that give me a “feel good” feeling while hanging out in this space.

My home office is an evolving area, and has gone through a few minor decorative changes here and there. But overall, it has remained a place that makes me happy in it. And that’s what really matters.

Here is a picture of the first phase after the office makeover:

And, here is what’s been done since:

It doesn’t matter if other people like it or not – what matters is that I like it. And, that my dog likes it.

Now, one of these days I’ll get me a new desk!

The common thing about clutter is, it’s just a bunch of unrelated stuff tossed together in heaps or boxes or bags. As unsightly as it becomes, it still continues to grow if left unattended.

At that point, the stuff is then difficult to confront. Some people don’t actually see it anymore. Funny thing, that is.

It wasn’t until this one hairdresser was faced with a tax audit that he took notice to his “stuff” around him. Not knowing where to begin, he called for help.

The worst area with the most accumulated clutter was in his car port area, so that was going to be the area to tackle first.

There were boxes and bags and bags within boxes and bins all filled with a mixture of paper, household items, hair products and accessories, electronics, clothing, CDs, and old cassettes of music. A large tarp was placed over the stuff – either to hide it or to protect it, who knows.

Starting with one box, the sorting process began. The best things to use for sorting into categories of like-items are any kind of container or box. In this case, we carry our portable foldaway mesh baskets.

It was evident after just a few boxes that the habits of the hairdresser was to swoop up everything lying around the house in preparation for the arrival of some guest, and toss it all in a box or bag together, then put it in the car port, never to be dealt with again.

It was also evident that the hairdresser had good intentions at one time to do something about his clutter habit.

The sorting continued for 3 days, one box and bag at a time, until the only items left to sort were some plastic bins. It was time to sort the paper category to organize those and sift through documents relating to the tax years he was being audited on.

The hairdresser’s task was yet to come, which was the “decision-making” segment on what to keep, what to toss, what to donate or sell. He would have to go through the sorted categories and review the contents, one item at a time. The papers were going to be saved for last, as these were still being sorted.

Progress continued in the car port until everything was sorted and organized into categorized bins.

The mess is gone!

Sometimes we just get tired of  looking at the same old room and wish it to have a whole new look.

It could be that we are tired of the furniture, or the way it is situated in the room, or even the decor, or lack of decor.

The decision to convert the look of a room is often prompted by something, like adding one piece to the room.

That’s what happened to one couple after buying a new bed. Once their new bed and beautiful new bedding arrived in the room, the rest of the stuff in it didn’t look so good to them anymore.

You could say the life-cycle of the room was over.

Since the blue wall colors were still pleasing to the couple, this was the only thing that was to remain unchanged (besides the new bed, of course). The rest of it – the furniture, curtains, wall decor, accessories – was going to be replaced.

Upon interviewing the couple, I was able to determine what they wanted and get a sense of their taste and color preferences.

• The woman wanted a private work area with a desk for her computer, where she could shut the door and work undisturbed by her two young children.
• The man wanted a place to hang their new 36″ TV on the wall in view from their bed.

I took these into account, and proposed some other options for the room as well.

One of the suggestions was to get a wardrobe closet unit since their existing shared closet was too small and crowded.

Besides the king bed, this piece of furniture was going to be the largest piece to fit in the relatively small master bedroom.

I started to look around at various wardrobe closets, since it was going to be the largest piece of furniture we were buying for the room. I noted the different sizes they came in, as well as some good choices.

From these choices and size options, I created a floor plan (actually, I created several floor plans before I decided on the best one!). This plan would allow for a 78″ wide closet and area for a 40″ wide desk.

I then created artistic renderings to show the couple what the room would look like. The client decided not to do a canopy over bed however.

The wardrobe closet, dresser, and desk were assembled, and curtains were hung.

Now, it’s a beautiful room, no more clutter, a place for a home office, and plenty of closet space!

All that’s left are touches of decor, some wall shelves, and ceiling lights to finish up the room.