We’ve all seen images of beautifully decorated home offices, with chic furniture that’s designed to impress. But high-end home offices can cost a large amount of money. So, how do you create a stylish home office without spending a fortune? Here’s a few ideas:
Floors
These should be practical and hard wearing, but wood and floor tiles can be expensive. So, you could fake the look with a good quality vinyl or laminate floor instead. The cost of laminate flooring can be less than half what you’d pay for a solid wood floor. And many of these can be installed easily, without having to pay for expert fitters.
Walls
Designer wallpaper brands can be costly. And if you need multiple rolls, it can soon get too expensive. But new trends in painting techniques have led many people to ditch the wallpaper and go for more affordable painted walls instead. Stenciling, color washing and ombre styles are incredibly popular at the moment and can create a fashionable space for little cost.
Storage
Storage is important in any functioning home office. But it doesn’t need to cost very much at all. Open shelves are affordable and easy to put up yourself. And they can be loaded up with box files, equipment, and plants – and styled any way you fancy. Trailing plants will soften the hard edges of the shelves and box files can be easily up styled with pretty, printed labels.
Desk
Your desk and chair are also going to be important but can be the most expensive things you buy for your office. To decrease costs, you could buy a used desk and upcycle it. Or you could buy a basic, new desk and pimp it up. For example, you could spray metal legs in an on-trend copper or gold tone and change the drawer handles to match.
Lighting
Making sure you have enough lighting is another key element to include in your home office. And if you can’t afford a designer light fitting for your ceiling, there is a simple alternative. You could forget spending money on a lightshade and buy a showy bulb instead. LED bulbs now come in a range of stylish options, with shaped filaments and designer-looking glass. Creating chic lighting without needing to spend a fortune.
Décor
Some well-chosen décor could turn your basic office into a stylish workspace. For example, you could frame up some samples of expensive wallpaper to create swish yet simple artworks. Or paint up some plain plant pots with on-trend stencil designs.