How We Actually Made A Beautiful & Practical Home Office

How We Actually Made A Beautiful & Practical Home Office

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My husband and I intended to create a home office perfect for us since the start of 2020.

I had begun to invest more time in my personal brand, Baydian Girl, and my husband had begun to frequently participate in overtime projects at work.

Too often our laptops took over the kitchen counter or wound up next to us in our bed.

So it was clear that we needed a space dedicated to work.

 

Where We Decided To Put Our New Office

The first question we had to answer was, “Where were we going to create an office?

We had just moved to a 2-bedroom apartment, and there was no way we were going to try to squeeze a table and chair into our living room.

We began to evaluate our apartment layout, and all of a sudden, it clicked!

Let’s transition our dining room into an office,” I suggested.

It was perfect!

Our daughter used a highchair to eat her meals and we always sat at the kitchen island to eat.

That left our dining room pretty empty, plus we didn’t have a dining room table anyway.

So why not?

My husband agreed and that was the beginning of our home office journey.

 

How We Created Our Beautiful & Practical Home Office

First, I looked for inspiration on Pinterest!

I wanted a general idea of what color scheme and supplies would look great together in our home.

Just because we were creating an office in a small space, didn’t mean it had to be ugly!

Utilizing Pinterest’s secret board feature, I started pinning away and found great ideas like the photo below from a blog called 2 Ladies & A Chair.

Home Office Refreshed — 2 Ladies & A Chair

 

Next, I looked at what office furniture we could use that was already in our home.

Since we had recently moved, we did have some furniture and decor that was out of place and needed to be repurposed.

Luckily, the most useful pieces for our plan were two(2) bookcases.

One we had previously used in our bathroom for storage, and the other used to be a part of our living room.

They weren’t even but they would work!

Plus the imperfection would add a more creative flair to our space.

After placing them next to each other, we began to fill the shelves.

We used books that we owned, family photos, and our collection of stationery to start.

I even added some pineapple decor that I had kept from my tropical baby shower.

From there, I got filler items like motivational signs, a mini-globe, and pen holders from Walmart, T.J. Maxx, and Goodwill.

Home Office Decor from WalMart, T.J. Maxx and Goodwill - Baydian Girl  Bookshelf Decor For Small Office - Baydian Girl

Filled Bookcase for Home Office - Baydian Girl

Lastly, to complete our new home office space, I purchased a sturdy table and ergonomic office chair for us adults.

Followed by an adorable kids table and chair set for our daughter.

You can see it all in the home video below!

 

 

How Much Did It Cost?

Our Beautiful & Practical Home Office - Baydian Girl

Overall, we spent approximately, $480 to set up and organize this home office.

That’s a lot of money! At least for us 😉

But what I’m most proud of is that we created this office in stages, and remained mindful of our budget along the way.

Looking for a full breakdown?

Keep reading!

 

Where We Bought The Furniture & Decor For Our Home Office.

Here’s a detailed list of where we got our purchased items with links!

  1. South Shore Smart Basics 5-Shelf Bookcase – Walmart // $89.00
  2. Furinno 7-Cube Reversible Open Shelf, White – Amazon // $33.27
  3. sogesfurniture Large Office Desk, 47 inches – Amazon // $115
  4. Mesh Ergonomic Office Chair, Black – Walmart // $64.99
  5. Delta Children Kids Table and Chair Set 4 Chairs Included – Target // $79.99
  6. Oval Seagrass Basket – Walmart // $5.98
  7. Better Homes and Gardens Decorative Table Top Globe – Walmart // $9.88
  8. Better Homes & Gardens Geometric Tabletop Sculpture, Medium, Gold – Walmart // $9.94
  9. Pineapple – Hobby Lobby // $6.99 (We spray painted them gold but you can also get gold ones at Walmart here.)
  10. Metal Pen Cup + Metal Magazine File – Staples //  $3.67 + $9.34 (We originally got them from T.J. Maxx but they’re temporarily closed due to COVID-19)
  11. You Are Gold Motivational Sign + Glass Bottle + Silver Pen Holder – Goodwill // approximately $15
  12. Picture Frames –  Amazon // $9.99 (Originally from T.J. Maxx, our travels to Barbados, and Virginia)

 

And that’s it!

That’s how we created our beautiful and practical home office space for under $500.

Save this post for later!

How To Create A Beautiful & Practical Home Office For Under $500

 

Tamara Sykes
Caribbean-Born Gal. Always Plottin' My Next Hairstyle. Encouraging women with a creative spirit to color outside the lines and live a life they love.

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