I’m totally thrilled to have had my home office project featured on the fabulous Remodelaholic! Check it out here: HERE
So it was mostly a present for my hubby. But a little bit of a present for me too.
When we moved into our house, The Husband immediately claimed the nook off our master bedroom as his home office. Which was fine by me. My only rule? Since I can see it from my bed, it had to look good. No mismatched, leftover office furniture. No golf trophies. We kissed on it, and the office was His.
But it took one of his week-long business trips out of town to kick me into gear. I thought I could do a mini makeover and surprise the guy when he got home. So for weeks before his departure I scanned Craigslist, stashed items in the back of our garage, and mapped out my plan. Once he left on that jetplane I jumped into painting and staining. I’m an interior designer, so I always start with the infamous Mood Board.
DIY Project #1: The File Storage
The back storage area was inspired by the (very beautiful) Pottery Barn Bedford office collection, but that would have put me back several thousand dollars. Instead, I used four file cabinets and had a plywood top cut for it. (Do you know at Lowes and Home Depot they will cut down your wood for you? FOR FREE. This has saved my marriage. No more pleading for the hubby to pull out his equipment Sunday evening when I have a project in mind). Then to finish off the rough plywood edge, I added a small 1/2″ molding to the front. To turn it into a rich walnut shade, I spent $5 in stain and about 20 minutes of my time.
The file cabinets I scored from the sketchiest Craigslist location I’ve been to in my life. You know the expression, the wrong side of the tracks? His backyard was literally ON the tracks. The seller ended up being a nice guy, but I had to dig through a small landfill in his backyard and grab these four cabinets. I peeled outta there pretty quickly after loading them up. Three were tan and one was black. But it was a pretty straightforward paint job. I used some leftover white paint from another project, and it took about three coats. I primed first, then used a small roller brush for a smooth finish. My original intent was to remove the hardware and add new. But that was easier said than done. So I moved on to “Plan B”. After really looking at it, I was thinking I could jazz up what was already there. I used some Dollar Store black craft paint and a tiny brush to cover up the industrial looking hardware. To give it a pop of color, I added turquoise craft paint right inside of the hardware. I loved the end product and soooo much easier!
DIY Project #2: The Maps
The maps are my favorite part of the room! The rustic wood frames are from Hobby Lobby during a 50% off frame sale. If you are patient…the sale will come. I knew I wanted to use maps to decorate, so I used a map for every town where my hubby has lived. One is from his hometown, one from his college town, one from where we live now, and one from the beloved family cottage. It took a bit of searching, but I found the free maps online and simply printed them out on my home printer. It added the personal touch to his space.
DIY Project #3: The Desk
The “desk” was actually a small dining room table that I used as his desk. Searching for “desks” online wasn’t coming up with the look I wanted. But if you try to think outside the box, you can find a wider selection on sites like Craiglist. I found this dining table listed for $50. I used a quart of charcoal gray trim paint (trim paint is easier to wipe up) for an easy update.
DIY Project #4: The sign
Like many home offices, we have a mass of tangled cords, routers, security system, etc. that I wanted NOT to be the focal point of the space. I literally found a scrap piece of wood at our office’s garage (I admit, it pays to have a remodeling company some days-I am always finding free treasures in there). I painted it using the same paint I used for the file cabinets. Then I hand painted a “B” for his monogram. I distressed it by wiping it down with the leftover stain from the file cabinet top. I sanded it down a bit…and done! It added a bit of personality to his space with $0 spent.
The rug is a Target find. I have gotten more rugs from that store over the years, and it is hard to beat the price. There is carpet in the room, but I wanted to use a rug to ground the space and make it feel separate from the rest of the bedroom. I found it on sale for $79 on a “detour” down the home decor aisle at Target.
Going down those aisles gets me every.single.time.
I added some office accessories that we already owned and moved in a lamp from another room. Sometimes a room can be rounded out by simply repurposing or taking a trip down to rummage through the basement. I popped in some family photos and the space was finished.
Here’s the Cost Breakdown:
Desk: $50 off Craigslist
Paint for the desk (quart): $15
Maps: $0
File cabinets: $40
Paint for the file cabinets: $0**
Frames: $46
Craft Paint: $2
Rug: $79
Countertop: $20
Stain for the top: $5
“B” sign: $0
Lamp: $0, moved from another room
TOTAL: $257
**I am the queeen of re-using existing paint I already have. Before going out and buying new, see what you already have. Or mix some existing colors to create a new color-that is how I painted my kid’s bathroom. Just label that new color so you can find it for touch-ups!
Most of my clients know what they like, they just don’t know how to pull it all together. Or some people think you need to spend a fortune to hire a professional. I believe that good design can be accomplished on ANY budget. Postbox Designs is a custom E-Design company. You choose your space and I personally design it-choosing everything from paint color to your furniture to your accessories. I provide you with all you need to recreate your space: floor plan, color perspectives, an instructions page, tutorials, mood board, shopping list, and more. But I don’t simply email it to you. I package it up into a beautiful custom Postbox and mail it all to you.
It is interior design straight to your mailbox.
You take what I designed for you and create your space on your time, in your way. No designer mark-ups. No shopping trips all over town. Now that is Postbox Designs.
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Happy Looking!
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