CAVdesign on Apartment Therapy

Hooray -- another Apartment Therapy post!

Jennifer's Home Office Silver Lining Redux

Last year a leak destroyed the floor and walls of Jennifer's home office, a space which was only recently redone. Thanks to mother nature, now her redo required a total redo, so she decided to look at the 'silver lining' and take the opportunity to make some practical changes to the space to accommodate her growing design business. An inspiring case of making lemonade out of lemons, Jennifer updated her home office to better accommodate for her height and needs better this second time around...

Jennifer's DIY Workspace & Home Office, before a water leak ruined her hard work.

For the replacement flooring,  I tested samples of various brands of bamboo flooring for durability and scratch resistance and this one came out on top: Shaw vertical bamboo solid wood with DuraShield, which can stand up to my using the floor to view samples.

I  also repainted with a 'high energy' color Benjamin Moore Celadon Green, and lowered the desk height  to 27" using IKEA Vika Kaj adjustable legs

A new IKEA BESTA unit in high gloss white utilizes the high ceilings and holds lots of samples.

I love the deep drawers in my kitchen, and I was wondering if I could get my printer and scanner off the desk by keeping them inside a similar cabinet under the desk -- here's the first test -- it fit! The printer and scanner are wired through a hole in the the back, so I can just pull out the drawer and use them. The bottom fits two letter size file frames side by side.

I used the 12" high large drawers and hardware from the cabinet link below, which can be purchased separate from the cabinet box. The full-extension drawer glides are excellent and the 24" depth means it holds a lot and you can access the back.

And I installed them in this cabinet, which at 24" high fits nicely under my desk. It also takes advantage of the depth by going all the way under the desk. For this I just bought the box without the doors. For fun, I customized the file / printer unit with one of my photos printed on adhesive paper.

My new mood board was easily made by tacking two strings across the wall and using mini clothes pins to clip things on.

For a more decorative dry-erase board, I took a gold frame and cut the dry-erase board to size (donated by my son) and mounted it using picture framing points, then I screwed an angle onto it and bent it slightly. I also had a  mirror-less medicine cabinet in storage for years, so I put it to use and  printed an enlargement from an old book and framed it behind thick mylar instead of glass. It's handy for printer paper which I use often. Lowering the murphy bed hidden behind curtains reveals a cozy alcove painted in Benjamin Moore  metallic paint in 'Envy', and decorated with a collage of artwork (yes, it stays there when the bed is up!). More about projects Jennifer has worked on in her home and in other spaces over at her site, CAV Design.