I have been attending a ton of interior design webinars in lieu of in person events, which has been so inspiring! A topic of interest was residential design in the times of COVID, and the term “Pocket Office” was dropped. Needless to say I’ve gone down a rabbit hole and even created a space that you can recreate in your own home, regardless of how much space you have! Keep reading to find out how to incorporate an office space into your home, some design tips, and a cute way to modernize a traditional design theme.
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What is a Pocket Office?
A what now?
A pocket office is a workspace you can tuck into any nook or cranny of your home. A lot of people were forced to head home and not return to their cubicles or offices for a long time, and carving out a space to help create that work life balance was, and continues to be, very difficult. It is so important to find a space that you can leave at the end of the day. Also, carving out a space in your home for work is a good way to help other family members and housemates to create a sense of privacy.
Now where do I put it?
Now for the difficult part- finding a spot for your office space. First of all, definitely keep your office out of your bedroom if at all possible! The worst thing has to be having a restless night, and having work staring at you from the corner. Your bedroom should be your sanctuary, and no matter how passionate you are for your career, bed time is special.
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Living Room
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Have a corner with a blanket ladder or a bookshelf? These are easy pieces to relocate and replace with a small desk & chair to dedicate as your workspace. Another option is
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End of a hallway
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I’ve seen images of desks at the end of a hallway! Have a corner of your home or a little nook at the end of a hallway? Make sure to incorporate some lighting if there are no windows but this could be a great way to use an otherwise “dead” space.
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The kitchen
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Although this one may be a last resort for me, some traditional kitchens may have the perfect desk space already installed into your cabinet system. Bonus points because you won’t have to purchase a desk!
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French Country Color Palette
It should come to no surprise to my Instagram friends that I am IN LOVE with Benjamin Moore’s Color of the Year 2021 Palette. It is just so versatile, and although the main color Aegean Teal is bold, it’s also subdued. Pairing the main color with the rest of the palette they have proposed, you’re sure to create the perfect palette for your space.
You’ll see I picked a few colors from the palette, and although they all don’t make an appearance in paint on this project, but in textiles and other finishes. A good tip when designing your own space is create a color palette, which you can do for free at your local home improvement store! Grab all the colors that catch your eye, and mix and match them at home. Once you decide on the paint, you can still use the remaining colors in other applications.
French Country Furniture
Now for the fun part! When I started sourcing items for this project I made sure to keep in mind of the bare minimum of what I would want if I had to condense my space to the bare minimums. A cute desk with a little drawer, a comfy chair, some good lighting for late nights, and some inspirational art! (Do I address there are two moped images? Yes? No? I just really like mopeds, okay?!) Something I always tell non-designers, Pinterest is your best friend. Check my board below for this project specifically to see the furniture and accessories I picked for this project!
In the board you will find a healthy mix of Pottery Barn furniture and Anthropologie accessories. When designing for french country schemes, Pottery Barn has a great mix of feminine & rustic furniture, while I find Anthropologie will bring in my boho and modern vibes to help balance it out. Definitely use the board I created to recreate the look in your own home. I’d love to see pictures of how you incorporate some of these pieces into your space!
Looking for More Inspo?
I hope this post has been inspiring to you and is providing the creative juices to get your workspace off the kitchen table. (Which I kid you not… is where I’m working right now. I do have an office space, it’s just nice to mix it up!) I do have another all-encompassing home design Pinterest board here that you can check out!
If you need more direction on the design process, I have a great FREE workbook that helps you step by step.