Back from Vacation, and needing some home office inspiration

If you think Mondays are bad, what about a Monday after spending a week in the beautiful Outer Banks of NC?

It's hard for me to not wistfully daydream about how just yesterday morning, I was sipping coffee on the beach.  ...sigh...  Anyway, it's back to work and I definitely could use some pretty, organized home offices to help inspire me to be more productive.

The gray is such a nice background for everything.

Check out the pop of yellow from their Nat.'l Geographic collection!

The three above images are from the office of a husband and wife team, who work out of their home. A quick side note, check and make sure you don't need to supplement your home insurance if you are running a business out of your home.

read and see more of this office at Country Living

Love this crisp, tailored home office.
via Adore Home Mag

I would LOVE to have a work space with windows like this one!

2 above via Interiors Porn

A mod work space

via Lonny Mag

*disclosure: this post brought to you in partnership by SwiftCover.com

Two fashion designers, two different homes...

I love checking out house tours from other designers. Since they have similar needs, and these two happen to work from home like me, I always get some great ideas for improving my workspace. Enjoy!

I love that this space is super feminine, but the brick walls balance it out with an industrial element.

I really want a dress form - I'm finally going to have space to have a dedicated space for my sewing machine, too.

The home below belongs to a lingerie designer.

love the saw horse desk

fab stools

via Rue Magazine

Home office for two? How to make the space work

So my boyfriend and I will be moving into our new apartment in Bethesda, MD in a week. I still have a ton to do - pick out paint colors, paint, pack, etc. I work from home, and he will be spending a lot of time studying when he starts his masters program at GWU the end of August. We have a large living room, and a medium-sized bedroom, so we've been trying to plan out how to create workspace that works for the both of us. I know I will want my desk in the living room, and we can either set up a home office for two in the living room, or he can set up his desk in a nook in the bedroom. We're not sure which route we will take, but in my search for inspiration I found some great 2-person home offices.

Check 'em out below:

This set up is a great idea..though it will inspire footsie in times of peace and kicking in times of war...
via Unclutterer

Really like this one too...seems the key is staying uncluttered!
via Curbly

two desks situated in an L position...I like this home office but I don't think we could work this configuration in our space

via Apartment Therapy

One of my all-time fav offices.  If we had the space I'd love to do something like this
via ?

This couple created a workspace in the bay window of their bedroom with a piece of Ikea counter top. This is great but I can't work from the bedroom. The idea could really be done anywhere, though.
via Flickr

This 2fer looks like it's an ikea desk with a small set of malm ikea drawers for storage to divide the desk space.  Also one of the monitors is mounted on the wall to save space.
via Picasa

So pretty.  I need a tad more surface space on my desk though, and one of those hopelessly ugly office chairs... There's a DIY for this desk here.

I adore this home office/guest bedroom/playroom all-in-one
via Young House Love

 
Another pretty option.  This desk is fashioned from a closet door.
via Utopia Invitations

Has anyone every had a 2 person home office? Any tips for me - did it work for you or no?
Thanks guys! I'll be sharing some pics of the new apartment soon!

A most pretty little space

I've yet to loose my sense of wonder at beautiful interiors, but even more so when the space is small! As some of you know, I work from home, and live small, so I'm always on the look out for great small spaces that serve as both live and work space. I think this apartment, owned by a jewelry designer who works as well as lives in it, is just one such example


I think the light colors used consistently lends an openness to the space

Collections are kept in neat groupings

Her desk/workspace is behind the couch in the living room


Lovely desk details...

Jess's Tips for working from home:

1. Make the space work for you:
Jess says her kitchen was begging for an island, so she placed a large table there that doubles as a jewelry assembly station by day and a dining room and kitchen prep table after hours.

2. Dress for work:
Jess puts on a nice outfit with shoes when she's working. As for her space, she uses overhead lights during business hours, while pharmacy lamps atop cabinets and bookcases create a homey glow in the evenings. (I like this idea, however, living on a farm with muddy dogs means I only dress nicely for meetings or going out)

3. Separate storage:
To avoid seeing a stack of business receipts when she's looking for a recipe, Jess keeps her office supplies completely separate from her personal items. Each day her assistant wheels out a cart with the jewelry supplies and it's tucked away at night. (I think this is really important, to have all of your work supplies put away at the end of the day - however, I think I would rent a separate office space or get a bigger apartment before hiring an assistant - but that's me..)

via Rue Magazine

Gorgeous images from my favorite blogs

I started this little "favorite images from my favorite blogs" feature to reconnect with what got me started blogging in the first place - other blogs. But with the chaos of running my own blog and being a freelance web designer, I tend to loose touch with my beloved blogosphere. This week I refused to put it off again though, so without further ado - some lovely images from my favorite blogs. Enjoy and happy weekend!

Just discovered this blog. I'm the New Victorian Ruralist's new biggest fan. A wonderfully edited blog - you don't have to go far to find lots of luscious pics.





The lovely La La Lovely Things

LOVE the books in the fireplace


*swoon* I could really use a day at the beach. This is heavenly.

Last but not least, some images from Joey and Lana Make a House a Home

I'm liking black and white as a palette more and more everyday.

Check out this Chinatown work/live loft.

While I don't know if I could live in a loft, or in a space this sparse. I can still appreciate the good clean design and serene environment. What do you think?

I love the modern retro, wood furnishings used throughout the loft.





Great workspace, great light






via Loft Life Mag