Avenue

Office Space

Modern home offices get down to business with beautiful objects, versatile furnishings and personal touches

By Lynda Sea
Illustrations By Rob Machida

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Whether you work from home or just need a place to pay the bills, designing a good home office can mean many different things. After all, everyone works differently. From dedicated rooms, to a casual work area off the kitchen or a whole suite in the basement, today’s office is anywhere and everywhere.

Read on as office furniture experts and designers dish on the latest trends, the importance of comfort and ergonomics and creative projects that help you get the job done.

John Brown, principal with housebrand
“Our work environments are becoming more fluid with Blackberries, laptops and wireless technology. We’re on 24/7.

There’s been a shift in the way people think of offices; there’s a mobility now that makes it easier to think about how you work from home. Create an emotional or physical barrier between your office and the rest of the house. You need to have distinct spaces so you go to work and you need to be able to come home. Otherwise, you’ll find you’re always ‘at work.’”  

Aly Velji, interior decorator and proprietor, Alykhan Velji Design
“Just because it’s an office doesn’t mean you should throw beauty out the window. If it is a space you use a lot, your home office should be something that inspires you. Surround yourself with beautiful things and beautiful colours. If you’re out shopping and see a chest of drawers, beautiful buffet or side table, definitely incorporate those pieces into your home office. Don’t think that just because they’re for the dining room, you can’t use them for your home office.”

Scott Ellis, principal and chief sales officer, Contemporary Office Interiors (COI)
“One of the big trends we see in desks right now is adjustability. You can adjust your work surface to your proper height. Most furniture today is still set at 29 inches, but that’s a military standard set for a 5’11”, right-handed male. That doesn’t make too much sense today. We’re also seeing areas in the office that were dedicated to individual space shrinking, while space dedicated to the group and community continues to grow. A lot of people don’t have dedicated office spaces and it’s not so segmented anymore.”

Les Schaeffer, decorating consultant and assistant manager, EQ3
“Especially in Calgary, since we’re building up with condos, people are looking for functionality and storage that doesn’t take up a lot of space and a computer desk that isn’t too bulky. Nowadays, a lot of design concepts are component based. There are a number of office pieces you can buy where you can add to it as much or as little as you want. More and more people are using laptops now, so the computer desk is downsizing. It’s also important to declutter as much as possible. A clean work-space is an effective and efficient workspace.”

Victor Gauthier, owner, Interior Living
“People are moving away from executive desks and matching credenzas and filing cabinets because they just don’t have the space. Today, home-office work stations are a little more decorative and not so utilitarian. Instead of a traditional task lamp, people are using a modern table lamp on their desk. Depending on the motif of the house, a single upholstered dining room chair can often be substituted for an office chair. Consider a dining room table for your desk if you can’t find a big enough table for your office.”

Marlena van Walraven, senior designer, Ethan Allen
“Function is the key in home offices. The workspace has to be adequate for your needs, depending on your type of work. But use pieces that are multifunctional and don’t scream ‘office.’ You don’t want to look like you bought a set of something. Mix things up. An antique table is great if you don’t have a lot of storage needs. If you need lots of storage, put your home office in a spare bedroom and use the closet.”

Debbie Carruthers, designer, DIRTT Environmental Solutions
“Considering how we communicate and work now, we’re moving into an age where the office is the most important part of the house. It used to be a space in the basement where you threw a desk in the corner and was a space you thought of last. Now you see family rooms acting more like media rooms — like a business centre in your home — where you have more than one computer, the big screen TV, the scanner and printer and where the kids play games.”