Office Space

Sooo... you know how I had mentioned I'd just started a new job??  Well everything has been amazing so far!  It's all really fast paced, I LOVVEEE my coworkers (kind of helps that we were friends beforehand...) and I really feel like I'm getting into my groove.

Our office is downtown, in one of the oldest buildings on Montgomery.  I feel like a total grown up walking through the financial district every morning, and love looking up to the tops of the skyscrapers.

The entry to our building is stunning - really intricate tile floors, amazing stonework, and gilded elevators.  It's really hard to tell from this picture of the elevators, but between the gold are bits of really deep emerald green, and it looks so freaking amazing.  

The inside of our office is however... well let's just say it leaves something to be desired.

Woof.  The walls are painted in the same god awful off-white paint as my landlord had painted every single wall, cabinet, and crown molding in our apartment (it just looks DIRTY).  The beige carpet is as boring as it gets, and it comes complete with mystery stains, and don't even get me started on the faux wood desks and matching bookshelves.

For a building with tons of history and character, this office has NO character.

Luckily, I can see past the drab paint, and old carpet, and I have grand ideas for what I'd eventually like to do with my office - it has a ton of potential, with large windows letting in lots of natural light during the day, high ceilings, and plenty of space.

On my to do list, I plan on....

Bringing in Interest with a Graphic Rug!!

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Aside from covering up the mystery stains in the carpet, a big graphic rug will give some much needed visual interest and character to this otherwise colorless and lifeless space.  I'm thinking black and white or navy and white - nothing too jarring (orange anyone??) and something I will want to take with me if I ever leave.

Bringing in some lighting!!

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The lighting in any office building is awful .. those overhead fluorescent bulbs??  Aside from being unflattering, it also gives me a terrible headache, so I keep it off whenever I can. I love how the funky lamp on the desk here doesn't take itself too seriously, and that would pretty much solve the issue of overhead lighting.  I also love how the desk is turned to face the window... genius!

Styling (and painting) the Bookshelves!!

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A bevy of books make a big visual impact on this wall.  I have a few hideous bookshelves in my office, that if pushed together and painted a charcoal grey (with the approval of our office manager of course) could make a lovely statement.  It's a real talent to be able to style a bookshelf - Jenny of Little Green Notebook has written several very helpful articles organizing books.  I wish I could just take these built ins and magically transport them in here!

Bringing in some Art with Character!!

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Great art.  Perhaps the hardest thing to achieve, but it makes such an imact in a room.  It brings the walls to life, and inspires the work you do, and since I spend at least 8 hours a day at work, I want to feel inspired by the things around me.  With 20 foot ceilings, I'll be on the hunt for some larger scale pieces and interesting frames...  can we also talk about the chair??  What I wouldn't give to snag that!

Accessorizing, Accessorizing, Accessorizing!!

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Finally, what this space needs to make it feel like mine, are some small personal touches - a stack of books, a few candles, and a sweet little tray to corral everything together.

And that lamp??  Amazing.  Don't even get me started.

I Dream of this Wallpaper!!

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If I really had free reign over my office, I'd wallpaper it from top to bottom with the amazing Tanzania print from Thibaut Design.  It's busy for sure, but the small scale of the print makes it almost a neutral... no?  Every space I've seen it in, I die all over again.  One day - even if it's in my home office, I will have this wallpaper.