In a coronavirus quarantine world, lots of people are working from home or at least want a dedicated space in which to manage household tasks like bills and homework. Although WFH spaces have become a popular feature in newer homes, not all homes have an obvious place for this. So what can you do when a house does not have this designated home office space? Get creative and find those spaces that can be transformed into a purposeful work-from-home spot. Whether it is a big or small house, you will be surprised how easy it is to find that extra square footage that can be utilized in a valuable way!
Here are 5 possible ideas that could be staged as an office or study:
1. Set up an organized workspace
First, you should decide the area that you want to stage a workspace. It can be a small acreage in the bedroom, living room or under the stairs. To imagine using the space, clear off the desk and arrange only a few key things on it, such as a computer, desk lamp, cup of pens, and a notebook. This will set the stage while making it look clean and tidy for the perfect workspace.
2. Remove bulky furniture
You only need a few pieces of furniture (namely a desk and chair) to show a room as a home office, especially if you’re dealing with a small space. The office might look bigger without that bookshelf in the corner or the sofa across from the desk. When in doubt, a desk with a glass top makes the room look bigger while a stylish chair — rather than a standard rolling office chair or ergonomic monstrosity — creates a more inviting space for staging purposes.
After you’ve removed anything that is taking up extra room, if you have the floor space available, pull the desk away from the wall. It almost always looks better with some space around it.
3. Add Neutral Accessories
To help balance out the room, keep the accessories to a minimum. It’s important that the items placed on shelves and tables have a cohesive style. From color (include tones of silver, black, white, and tan), to materials, and size, keep your design along a certain theme.
4. Home office lighting
Ambient light is a general, evenly distributed source of light that brightens up an entire room. Natural lighting is the preferred form of ambient lighting for any room in the house, so open the drapes or blinds, or remove window treatments entirely.
If natural light is lacking, a ceiling fixture or floor lamps will brighten as well. You may need two-floor lamps to balance the light. See lighting.
Task lighting is a must in every home office. A lamp for the desk should be bright enough to illuminate your workspace, but not blinding.
5. Limit the number of visible tech devices
For staging purposes, you can display a desktop computer or laptop, as well as a printer/scanner/fax machine. But if you have a lot of additional tech devices, hide them away in the closet or another storage location in the house.
Remember that you’re doing this all for show. You don’t need to actually accomplish work here to sell your house. Put away your extra desktop screen or video tripod to keep the look clean and to show off how much functional space you have.
6. Add a few houseplants to brighten up the space
You’ll be amazed what a floor plant such as a fern in the corner, a cute succulent on the desk, or a bright flowering indoor plant can do to liven up an office for staging purposes. If you have a black thumb or little time to think about caring for and watering houseplants, check out artificial and fake plants that look just like the real thing. For more inspiration, visit websites about houseplant care to find easy plants for home staging.
7. Take a Good Look Around Your Home Office
Now it’s time to take a look around the room and survey your work. Less stuff sitting around creates a welcoming feeling and a sense of calm a good workspace needs. Look to be sure you put away anything that’s not necessary and walk around to see if you can maneuver through the room without having to squeeze past anything.
Staging your home office to impress today’s homebuyers
Our homes are where we sleep, relax, enjoy time with family, and entertain friends. But more and more, the line between work and home is blurring, making a functional and inspiring home office space a must-have for many people. If you can show buyers that you’ve got a room where they could successfully perform a full-time job or at least handle everyday tasks like bills and paperwork, your house will no doubt be more marketable to the masses.
A simple, effective and economical way to achieve this goal is to use a 3D rendering service. Home3ds is a company that provides 3D rendering services at the quality and affordable prices. Contact us to get free product details.
