Office Space Refresh

I'm so excited to show you our office refresh! I can't really call it a remodel or fixup because we didn't change the layout of the space. The basic elements are the same but the changes we made are huge and have made such a difference! I've been posting some pictures on Instagram of our #officespacerefresh and I wanted to share the results with you. Here's what we did.

1. We evaluated the space. Tommy has an office at our church where he's the pastor. He does most of his studying and keeps all his books there. Then we have a small desk in our room where we keep a desktop. Tommy is the primary user for at-home studying. He noticed that when I was working on my book or doing anything on my laptop, I had to drag out all these cords and books and spread things on the dining room table or huddle on the chair in our bedroom. We had a desk in the basement but I couldn't plug in my laptop easily and there wasn't space for all the notebooks and references I like to have when I write.
So he graciously said the downstairs space could be primarily mine and I could set it up how I wanted. I wanted a big desk to give plenty of room for writing projects, a bulletin board, shelves for my books, and space for my separate craft table. With those things in mind we did what all Jeffcotts do: research.

2. After measuring the space and talking about what we wanted it to look like, we settled on an IKEA desk setup. We had never bought furniture from them before so spent quite the afternoon writing down the codes, finding the pieces, and loading the car. The desk assembled fairly easily and it fits the space perfect. I love it. Lots of room to spread out. The white drawers are also IKEA and came together easily. It's great for holding pens, scissors, paper, envelopes. I liked the look of the shelves above the desk. I didn't want everything white so the wood look matched but still kept it simple. Unfortunately, the bookcase we bought from IKEA didn't work out. The holes had been drilled in the wrong place in the factory so, no matter how Tommy and my dad tried, there was no getting that together! We got a white bookcase from WalMart, the Sauder brand which I highly recommend. My mom and I put it together in an afternoon with just a few head scratching moments. My craft table fits perfectly across from the desk. It's great for sewing, paper crafts, extra writing space. I'm planning to utilize it a lot when we start our homeschool year.

3. The window has blinds but I wanted a little color in the space. Because of the size of the room this office if part of, painting wasn't really an option. There was no good way to work it out. So I found some material at Hobby Lobby and asked a friend who sews how to make curtains. She gave me detailed instructions and a diagram (thanks, Lori!). Then another friend helped me with the nerve-wracking process of cutting the fabric and watching while I attempted to sew in a straight line. Thanks, Keri! Couldn't have made it that day without you! I love the curtains! As with everything I sew, don't look too closely but I'm thrilled with how they turned out. I love the color and pattern.






4. We got this picture at Hobby Lobby to bring in some more color. The bulletin board is from IKEA and I keep a few writing reminders, a Bible verse I colored (Jer. 29:11), and necklaces my daughter has made for me pinned where I can easily see them. The poster is from the Dollar Store but I loved the breakdown of writing. It's a great reminder for me and as my kids get older, we'll use it for writing projects. I found the "In all things give thanks" picture at Hobby Lobby in their discount section. It was 80% off and just the right color so buying it was a no brainer. :)

5. We also have file cabinets with household records, homeschool things, my writing supplies, paperwork. The copy machine/printer is within easy reach which is a first for our office. Usually I've had to run downstairs or across the room to grab my printout so it's been great to have it on the extra long desk.








I hope you liked this little glance at where I do the majority of my writing. I also try to do my Bible reading here. I can spread out the commentaries and notebooks I'm using and I can keep it all in one place. Once we start school this space will do double duty as my daughter will be taking some classes online. Tommy is still working on a way to contain all the cords under the desk so it's not so cluttered.
I'm debating painting the legs of my craft table. The red looks okay but I was thinking a nice blue to match the curtains. Thoughts? And any ideas on what to do with the extra curtain material? Any fun/easy crafts or decor projects you want to suggest?