Office Archives - Emily A. Clark

Give & Take: Kim’s Desk Area

Oct262016

A lot of us have work spaces in our homes that are part of our main living areas, which means work supplies, clutter, papers, etc., can also be seen. Kim’s desk is in a small corner of her living room, and she asked for help making it both look and function better.

Not much. I think containing the clutter, however, is key in any workspace. Kim mentioned that the top shelf is removable, so I would take it away to give her more surface space. I’d also take away the basket under the desk (I think it’s the wrong texture for the space) and replace with a small side table.

I would replace the removable desk shelf with three smaller, stacked marble/brass shelves and a small memo board to get more items off of the desk top. I would also add a small, square piece of art (16×16” in my example) to draw the eye up. Some modern, metallic accessories would also help to break up all of the wood of the traditional desk and chair. (And, I’d keep that pretty desk lamp!)

hummingbird art // memo board // marble shelf // succulent // frame

catch-all tray // pencil cup // gold waste can // side table // file holder

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The Plan For My “Office”

Aug32016

I’m calling it my office, but it’s kind of an everything room. Technically, it was the formal living room when we bought the house. Then, I had planned on making it our dining room until I decided we didn’t need one. And, for a while, it became our temporary “kitchen.” (That was no fun.)

As for right now, it’s just a mess. But, there’s something about the approaching start of another school year that makes me motivated to get my work space together. I have blogged for much of the summer from our kitchen island or in a chair with my laptop. But, I’m eager to get back into a work routine with more set hours for the few days the twins are in preschool. I’m ready to feel like a big person with a real (home) office again.

Hey, I may even take the tags off of the window shades. :)

And, why do we have strips of painter’s tape in the middle of the floor, you may ask? For our gymnast in training, of course. (Hurts way less than falling off of a real balance beam.)

I plan on keeping the china cabinet and adding baskets on the bottom for storage. The pendant light from our piano room (pre-kitchen reno) has already been moved over to this space. (And, the piano is staying.)

pendant light (small) // bamboo shades

Here’s what the plan looks like in my head. (I’m excited to use some fabrics from Studio McGee’s new line.)

Sources: pendant light // fiddle leaf fabric // stripe fabric

chair (or something similar) // table // blue & white jar // basket

Now, how many days until school starts?? ;)

My Inspired Room

Nov32015

You may have heard that my friend Melissa of The Inspired Room has a beautiful, new coffee table book that was just released. It’s relatable, inspiring and real-life all wrapped up into one pretty book. (See more here.)

To celebrate, she asked several blogger friends to share their own inspired rooms. To be quite honest, I’m not feeling over-the-top inspired by anything going on in the “new” house just yet. So, I’m sharing a space in our last home that really ended up being my favorite room so far.

All office photos by Caroline Lima Photography.

Not only was my office a wonderful (light-filled!) place to work, but it taught me about what’s really most inspiring to me personally when decorating a space:

A mix of old and new. I’m not sure I would ever be totally at ease with a room full of brand new everything. There’s something to be said for the history and character of older pieces.

Books. I love a space that’s filled with colorful books (old and new). To me, they instantly make a home feel collected and cozy.

Wisely spent (and saved) money. I can always feel good when I know I’ve used my budget well. For this room, we invested in built-in bookcases (which gave us a lot of bang for our buck!) and found the other statement pieces—a farmhouse table and lantern pendant—from Craigslist and a thrift store.

Flexible pieces. By flexible, I mean furniture that can be moved around and used in lots of different spots around the house. I think a classic farmhouse table and a good reading chair were both good investments for my style. (We’re still using both of them in a different house now, after all.) And, I loved being able to quickly change the office into a dining room by storing extra chairs in our attic.

For more inspiration, you can purchase The Inspired Room book here.

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