When your dream house is less than 1,000-square feet, a home office may seem like a fantasy. Luckily for urban dwellers, multifunctional furniture makes it possible for a home office to magically appear, anywhere.
“I can’t remember the last time someone said they wanted a ‘home office.’ Now, everyone says they ‘work from home’ and want to incorporate those functions into their existing space,” said Eric Kole, interior designer and co-owner of Vastu, a contemporary furniture store in the District.
The most challenging space Kole outfitted with an office was a tiny studio in Dupont Circle. “There was almost no storage and the only flat service had to function as a desk, dining table and bedside table! We wore out a couple of tape measures making sure we utilized every last square inch.”
Lori Welch of JCL Services LTD. helps clients design, organize and manage their home offices. With the exception of the bedroom, Welch said any space will do, “as long as you have a way to hide, separate or close off the work space. You need to be able to break away.”
She suggests multifunction armoires. “You can hide your files and even have some of your mother’s best china in there.”
Forget the massive room-swallowing office armoires of the late 1990s. New models double as vanities. “Some of these are small enough to tuck away in the dining room or a corner in the living room,” Welch said. “They look like they belong with the decor.”
So seamless are some designs that unless you tell, no one will ever suspect the workload hiding beneath the surface. Room&Board’s hand-built Linear collection allows you to select components like drop down drawers, pull out desk tops and file cabinets, and have them configured into something that looks like museum quality Arts and Craft furniture. BoConcept’s Occa series features a cocktail table with adjustable tops, which can be used for as a desk or dining surface.
“The dining area is one of best spaces to utilize as an office, primarily because the work surface is already there, as is seating,” Kole said. “With the ability to use almost anywhere as a work space, people are more interested in minimizing the visual impact of their technology and just utilizing existing space as comfortably and efficiently as possible, without having that space dedicated exclusively as an office, or even to read as ‘office’ when not in use.”
Resources
www.vastudc.com
www.roomandboard.com
www.boconcept.us
www.jclservicesltd.com
