With the aim to turn this apartment into a truly luxurious gentleman’s private office, Juliettes Interiors was commissioned to design a working environment that wasn’t only practical and professional for Zoom and in-person meetings, but a space that was also strikingly beautiful and sophisticated. The option to stay late at the ‘office’ as well as provide an overnight base was also required, with a living-style zone added for maximum comfort.
Due to the apartment’s compact size, spatial planning was not an easy task, so Juliettes Interiors chose to introduce customised pieces of furniture to ensure the right flow was achieved throughout the space with each piece working in harmony together. In one small living space, Juliette and her team needed to create three zones: a living area, kitchen/dining and office.
With detail at its core, the design scheme needed to be cohesive. Dark tones and luxurious fabrics have been skilfully layered, paired with a variety of textures and bold brassware accessories – from the striking pendant light above the table to the dressing table in the bedroom. The large windows allow for plenty of natural light to flood the rooms, adding depth and interest to the dark décor.
The living area has been designed with a strong entertaining social element in mind, with a variety of different zones. Each zoned area was as important as the other. Bang & Olufsen equipment has been installed for a high-tech finish, ideal for meetings, and the client wanted a perfect backdrop from behind as a Zoom screen for international meetings. The office is set up in the living space at the centre of the apartment. A premium Italian leather desk and chair complement the dark wood and brass detailed designer desk, blending together for an incredibly opulent final product.
About Juliettes Interiors
Award-winning interior design studio, Juliettes Interiors brings a level of creativity and exceptional customer service to every project. As well as offering interior design services, the brand is a luxury furniture retailer - specialising in residential, high-end, luxury interiors and property. Offering both personal and trade accounts, services range from supplying a single item of furniture to full project management, new build and property development.
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The arrival of COVID-19 has brought with it countless changes. Within the world of interiors, home schooling and working from home has transformed homeowners’ priorities. According to a recent Home Builders Federation survey, two-fifths of Britons would prioritise space for a home office if they were searching for a new property. Unsurprisingly, there’s also been a huge rise in the number of people keen to convert existing space into new home office designs.
“There has been a real hunger to refurbish rooms that were formerly on the back burner,” director of Mark Taylor Designs Mark Taylor agrees. “People have had more time, fewer places to go – and in some cases, more disposable income. This has acted as a major incentive to embark on some home TLC. The ‘I’ll sort that one day’ rooms have become a priority.”
It’s fairly obvious why demand for home office designs has escalated since the pandemic began. Adults need a quiet place to work and talk to clients, ideally separate from where children are being home-schooled. But Mark maintains that the need for a specialist office space is fuelled by more than mere practicality. “Psychologically, many of our clients have felt they had to create a specific space to ‘go to work’,” he explains. “They need this in order to focus, and switch on and off effectively.”
Space certainly wasn’t an issue for this stunning study, which also doubles up as a home cinema and gaming room. The client, an IT consultant, wanted a ‘closed door’ space with plenty of storage, to help keep the area paper-free. “This room needed to work as both a home office and a family space, so we created bespoke pieces of furniture to allow this,” Mark explains. “We also incorporated wall lights from Jim Lawrence that didn’t make it look too ‘officey’.”
LED light strips at picture rail height complement the dark walls (painted with Farrow & Ball Stiffkey Blue). This versatile combination helps to create an atmospheric ambience when the homeowner uses the room for gaming and family time.
“The SMEG drinks fridge was something that the client specifically asked for,” Mark notes. “So, we decided to make it a feature rather than hide it away.”
Interestingly, Mark has noted demand for home office designs that will accommodate two people. Also, it seems study areas attached to bedrooms are becoming more important. And that, of course, is where bespoke manufacturers such as Mark Taylor Design excel. Bespoke furniture, combined with superlative interior design skills, are the key to making spaces work – whatever is required. Creating the perfect workplace involves many challenges: some obvious, some not.
“Bespoke furniture can fit the space,” states Mark. “Often, we have to carve home office environments out of small or awkward niches and corners. Home office areas within kitchens, dining rooms and bedrooms should take the rest of the space into account – not take it over. However, that can be difficult for off-the-shelf solutions.” He continues: “We design bespoke furniture to fit, in terms of size, shape, material and style. A well-designed bespoke desk and shelving area, built in sympathetically, means that less of the existing space needs to be adjusted.”
This fabulous study, which forms part of Mark Taylor Design's extensive Riverside Home project, is a case in point. “We created this for one of our clients who wanted space to work from home. This would become an area they could work in at least once a week away from their office,” explains Mark. “Obviously, things have changed somewhat since the arrival of COVID-19!”.
He continues: “The design brief was simple: to create a working space that was as efficient as being in an office environment, but blended within the home. We created a tall unit behind the bespoke desk, which has a huge capacity for filing drawers and storage. The large panels with decorative lights also house a printer, reference books and office supplies.”
Mark adds: “The open shelving, with subtle lighting, creates a perfect space for showcasing decorative objets d’art, to soften what is essentially an office space. The elegant blue velvet day sofa offers a perfect seating alternative when the client doesn’t want to be behind the desk.”
The best home office designs are created to fit the space you have, not the reverse. “Force fitting furniture is like wearing shoes that don’t fit,” Mark observes. “After a while, you just stop using them. A badly designed/fitted desk means that people will migrate back to the kitchen table. So, you end up with a piece of unwanted furniture that nobody uses.”
Conversely, the best bespoke solutions can create a room. “They feel natural to be in and work at,” notes Mark. “They encourage you to stay. We always aim to create as many spaces as are needed, so every household member can work in comfort.” Adaptability and flexibility are also vital. “We can create permanent home office designs for those clients who want to make these spaces permanent,” Mark confirms. “Or we can make everything removable or changeable for those who want life back to normal once lockdown is over.”
The team at Mark Taylor Design produced this moveable desk for a client in Hertfordshire, which illustrates clever design solutions perfectly. “The client brief asked for an office space within the kitchen and dining environment,” Mark explained. “But it needed to be hidden when entertaining. So, we designed a desk on wheels, that could be pushed away neatly under part of the kitchen peninsula. This suited our client, who liked to leave everything out on the desk, and simply tuck it away when necessary.”
Detailed communication is key to ensuring a home office design suits a homeowner’s individual needs. “As with any project, we spend time speaking with our clients,” Mark explains. “We find out what they do, how they like to work, what sort of noise levels they anticipate. Do they prefer working solo or with others, how big a desk area do they need, and how many monitors will they use? We assess their preferred seating (for example, flexi- or standing desk) and what sort of lighting will protect them from eye-strain. We ask about storage and equipment, too. Only when you understand every element of a client’s working day can you create a truly relevant bespoke solution for them.”
Of course, not all home office designs have a stand-alone room or spacious area to accommodate them. Luckily, Mark and the team are resourceful and adept at considering all possible options. “We look at garages, annexes under the stairs, room corners, cupboards that can be converted, even landing spaces!” Mark confirms. “The end result is up to the client, how they work best, the space itself and what’s available. Making desks, units, shelving and lighting useful beyond their primary purpose is always worth considering. If desk heights can change, they can be used by children, as well as mum and dad. Adjustable lighting makes night working easier. For multi-use rooms, shelving units with fronts, which can be closed, are much less intrusive.”
This under-stairs space, created for a residence in Marlow, illustrates exactly what is possible with vision and skill. “We designed the whole space in this house, and looked everywhere for home office options,” Mark explains. “As we were modifying the staircase, it became clear this was the perfect area. Because we wanted it to fit with the rest of the house, we padded the walls with fabric. We also used lighter colours, to relieve any harshness, and added LED strip lighting to counter darkness.” He adds: “We utilised every inch of possible space for storage – and not only for office stuff. They store the Christmas decorations there too!.”
The practicalities of home office designs are just as important as the aesthetics. “We look carefully at power and heat sources,” notes Mark. “Nobody wants to work in a cold corner of an unused room. Creating warmth with an added radiator or under floor heating makes a work space much more appealing.” He adds: “Wires and plugs are also important. Trailing laptop leads are a trip hazard (and household pets can view them as a chew toy). We work hard to eliminate disincentives to work in a space. We even include places to put cups and bowls in a work desk. That means fewer spillages – and a safer environment for expensive laptops and PCs.”
Projects photographed are undertaken by Mark Taylor Design Ltd.
About Mark Taylor Design
Mark Taylor Design is a British manufacturer of bespoke furniture, cabinetry, specialist joinery and interior design. Craftsmanship, attention to detail and superlative service are central tenets of the business. The company is renowned for its use of innovative materials and for transforming clients’ homes into truly extraordinary spaces.
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Work life, and the commercial landscape as we know it, has changed immensely. In as little as five months, the corporate world experienced a mass exodus of workers, who retreated to the safety of their own homes in response to lockdown.
Throughout this time, cloud communication has enabled businesses to continue operating remotely with relative ease. Indeed, many who were formerly reticent about the merits of working from home, are now reconsidering the future of their own workspace environments in a post-pandemic world.
With employees arguably communicating with each other more than ever before through virtual means, it raises the question – can employees still feel part of a team, when physically apart?
This is something employers need to consider before deciding how they recalibrate their offices. For whilst remote working offers verbal, written and oral communication in abundance, it does not offer us the wide spectrum of non-verbal ques that are essential to promoting productivity, imagination, and positive workplace culture.
Facial expressions, body language, gestures, touch, and physical presence are all fundamental parts of the communication mix and if we cut these out completely by working solely from home, then it’s only a matter of time before employees start to feel disengaged, uninspired and demotivated.
The solution is simple. We need to give employees the freedom to work from home or in the office, depending on which is safest and the most productive for them.
For some employers, like Portview, lockdown has presented the opportunity to take stock of work priorities and adopt a more holistic approach to workspace design. Far rather than causing the ‘death of the commercial office’, the pandemic has prompted us to reimagine a new one – one where employee wellbeing, community and culture is the central focus.
Whilst for now it’s important to navigate our way through the pandemic safely and responsibly, Portview has decided to take a leap of faith and invest £2.5 million into new corporate headquarters, which together, we will design, build and fit-out ourselves.
This not only signifies the dawn of a new era for us, but also gives our team something to look forward to during a time of uncertainty and displacement. It's about empowering our team to collaborate and come up with innovative ideas that will help shape and build the new Portview.
In truth, it’s still too early to know exactly what the ‘new normal’ for office environments will be, but one thing we are sure of, is that a happy employee is a productive one, therefore, organisations must focus their efforts on elevating the workspace experience through thoughtful design.
By providing a functional, comfortable and visually appealing environment, employers will instil a positive workplace culture that employees feel safe, comfortable and proud to work in.
From our perspective, we will incorporate many biophilic elements into the design of our new offices. This includes an external terrace and balconies, glazing, rooflights, and plenty of indoor plants and foliage, to help connect employees to the natural environment – a method that has proven to reduce stress and enhance creativity.
In addition, the new headquarters will feature a nurse’s office for private consultations, and a large state-of-the-art gym, complete with treadmills, spin bikes, training equipment, showers and changing facilities.
The extra square footage will enable us to come up with an effective space planning strategy that will give employees the space they need to follow physical distancing rules. When the regulations are lifted, our team will then have the freedom to work collaboratively in one of one our many formal or casual meeting rooms, breakout zones or creative hubs. For those who wish to work from home, they can easily connect with colleagues through video conferencing facilities.
Each team will have their own office with glass wall partitions to help create a sense of community, openness, and transparency, whilst still maintaining a safe level of privacy and structure.
Research by the Sax Institute shows that replacing one hour of sitting with standing, can increase an employee’s lifespan by at least 5%.
With this in mind, we will be introducing seating options that are more supportive, adjustable, and flexible, in addition to adjustable desks that will allow employees to sit or stand at their workstation. These ergonomic solutions will promote better posture and physical wellbeing.
Carefully crafted, contrasting materials and textures often prompt engagement and productivity amongst employees by adding visual weight to a space and giving them a unique environment to work in.
However, it’s important to remember that high-quality, statement pieces need to withstand the test of time. Choosing the right materials and how to mix them - whether it be reclaimed wood panel installations, exposed concrete or woven fabric - is key to ensuring longevity and achieving an overall polished look.
A bright creative workspace can also make employees feel more productive, lower stress and increase wellbeing. Therefore, we will be looking to enrich our new offices with vibrant graphics to help stimulate the minds of those who visit and act as key points of interest.
Whilst the safest thing for us to do right now is either stay at home, or return to an office with stringent COVID-19 precautions in place, we believe that in time and with the right design sensibility, the office space will make a comeback.
For offices have a much greater purpose than offering employees a desk and computer screen to work from. It’s a social environment that reminds us that we’re not alone in this experience, for we're surrounded by the same people, working towards the same goals, at the same time, in the same place. We can see, hear, feel and sense kinship all around us through face-to-face interaction and the quieter periods of productivity in-between. Offices give us the freedom to share a coffee with our peers and tell them of our plans for the weekend.
And that's just something virtual communication can't replicate.
About the Author
Established in 1975, Portview is a fit-out specialist that works with the world’s leading brands in retail, hospitality, sport and business to create award-wining interiors.
SpeakEasy with Geoff Wilkinson
Following on from Geoff Wilkinson's first appearance on the SpeakEasy podcast, this episode revisits the topic of garage conversions with Building Inspector and managing director of Wilkinson Construction Consultants, as Vanessa Brady presents key questions submitted by SBID members.
Converting a garage into a usable home office sounds simple enough, but there are considerations you must bear in mind before you start picking up the power tools and knocking down walls! Geoff offers his wealth of expertise in the construction industry to answer a series of follow-up questions on the topic of garage conversions, addressing some of the more technical considerations from plaster boarding, air conditioning and effective energy supply, to window applications, security systems and insurance.
Tune in to the whole conversation to discover more.
Remote working is far from a new concept and has been rapidly on the rise for the past decade. In fact, according to Global Workplace Analytics, 80% of employees want to work from home at least some of the time and over a third would take a pay cut in exchange for this option.
Although many of us may already be familiar with working from home as a part of our regular work-life routines, most companies have been forced to test-drive remote working on a mass and unexpected scale (where possible). As working from home now becomes the ‘new normal’ under these very abnormal circumstances, we start to wonder what this means for the future of flexible working and how this could alter the landscape of the way workspaces operate.
Looking to the future with great uncertainty and wondering what life will be like post-lockdown, both employers and employees may be considering if working from home is a viable practice for them moving forward, and we may see even more companies adapting this operational flexibility into its business model with a more long-term view.
Cheng Sheng Interior Design
Whether an increasing number of us plan to continue working from home on a full-time or part-time basis after the lockdown has lifted, our daily lifestyles will have a significant impact on the interior design industry in many ways. For interior designers, consumer lifestyle trends are a significant influencer on how they design and curate interior environments for their clients. Is there likely to be an increased necessity for incorporating home offices into the designs of our homes? Will carving out space for study areas become an essential part of our new interior requirements? A report on the ‘State of Remote Work’ by Buffer showed that though remote workers have location flexibility, 84% of respondents still choose to stay at home as opposed to using co-working spaces, coffee shops or libraries.
From a dedicated office space to the corner of a bedroom, home studies can come in many shapes and sizes, and like most environments, there is an art and expertise to designing an effective workspace to suit your home, meet your needs and inspire productivity. The impact that social distancing measures will undoubtedly have on business and lifestyles is far reaching, but how we embrace remote working when the lockdown lifts - only time will tell. In the meantime, we pulled together a selection of inspirational home office designs from previous SBID Awards finalists to help keep you feeling inspired and start planning for a potential rise demand for home offices post pandemic.
Elicyon / Chiltern Place Apartment
INNEST Art Design / Foshan Green Island Lake Villa
Douglas Design Studio / Ravine View Home
HBA London / Piramal Aranya Pavillion
JOI Design / Der Öschberghof Hotel
Melanie Hall / Drayton Manor
BLAINEY NORTH / 666 NEW SOUTH
Ricky Wong Design / Noble Mansion YI Residence
Win Win Design / Glory Mansion Villa
LIYICHONG & ASSOCIATES / Fortress Villa
Morpheus London / The Lodge
Nu Infinity / Opulent 30
YoDezeen / Art Filled Apartment
NATIVE LAND / Holland Park Villas
Goddard Littlefair / The Lowry Presidential Suite
The SBID International Design Awards 2020 is now open for entries, visit www.sbidawards.com to find out more!
Cover image credits: Ippolito Fleitz Group / Chromatic Spaces Show Apartment
As we all adjust to a lifestyle of remote working amid the coronavirus outbreak, confined to our own homes, we begin re-evaluating our new working environments. SBID Accredited Designer, Katie Malik, founder and creative director of Katie Malik Interiors offers her expert advice for how to make home offices work for you or your clients, no matter the space or size.
Many of us face the challenge of the limited spaces we inhabit. In addition to this, our needs usually change with time as our jobs, likes and family life continues to evolve. This means we might need to transform an existing space to ensure it is suitable for new activities that have to take place there. This brings us to the current situation, while a lot of us are facing the reality of remote working. So, I'm sharing my tips for designers and homeowners, to help us create working spaces as efficient and as pleasant as possible, even without a dedicated 'office' room.
When planning a home office, we must consider a few important factors:
1) Position - where is the best place to make office space; consider distractions, surrounding noise etc.
2) Comfort - how to make the space as comfortable as possible.
3) Lighting - how should the space be lit; consider working hours and access to natural light.
4) Overall Look & Feel - how to make the space still look and feel like an extension of the home.
Ideally, you would have a separate dedicated space which you can lock at the end of the day. However, many of us, don’t have that luxury and need to think ‘outside of the box’. First of all, if there isn't a spare room we can convert into a home office, we need to be realistic about where we can fit everything we need in order to be able to work. Do we have a big screen or maybe even two? Can we work on a laptop? How much space are we going to realistically need? This is a number one question that’s going to determine a lot where you can or should position a home office.
The next big factor to take into consideration is where you can actually afford to ‘spare’ some space for a desk? By desk, I mean any form of desk, which doesn’t need to look like a traditional top with four legs. If you have any flexibility here, it's advisable to choose a place in the back of the house, or the place where people tend not to flock to all day long. This could be part of the living room or a corner of a bedroom. For some of us, it might be a guest bedroom or other part of the house. We’ll develop this point further, but whenever possible, chose a space with plenty of natural light; filling the space as much natural light as possible is better for your eyes and mental well-being. We have designed small home offices where they were either part of the joinery and disappeared when they had to, or were freestanding multi-functional pieces that blended in with the surroundings.
Asking questions will help you understand what is needed to make the space comfortable and fit for purpose. Ask questions like; Do you have a comfortable chair to sit in? Can you regulate the chair’s height? Does the chair have the armrests? Do you have enough space on your desk to put all the essentials out without being disrupted or creating the mess?
I would say planning and organising space is one of the most important factors. Make a list of everything your client needs and then think about what would make them happy working there. Is it having something on the desk, such as a photo that brings back nice memories? Or maybe you just a few pens and a coaster for a cup of tea? Do they need a pinning board to pin ideas/reminders etc? Knowing these things can help you plan and execute the right space for a home office.
Apart from ambient lighting, a task light and informed light selection is a must. Opting for a flexible energy efficient LED reading light is ideal for use as a task light for specific areas. A type of lamp with dimming features is also suggested, so the strength of light can be regulated for different purposes / times of day. Look for lamps which produce natural white light (especially if your access to daylight is limited). Another handy tip is to use a lamp with a base or shade that can rotate 360 degrees to facilitate more flexibility over the positioning of the light, allowing it to be directed wherever it is needed.
Especially if it’s part of a bigger space. In this case, consider blending the working area as much as possible with the existing design of the room; think similar finishes, colours, shapes etc. If you use completely different pieces style and colour wise, they will stand out more, and probably become an eye sore with time. Whenever we have designed a home office space, no matter how big or small, we would always blend it in as much as possible so it looks natural in its surroundings.
Solution 1:
The client purchased a beautiful one bedroom flat in Cambridge and wanted a space where he could occasionally work from. Due to space constraints, we proposed a small lean-on desk with shelves that blended in beautifully with the rest of the room.
Solution 2:
The clients didn’t want a home office, but still needed a desk space and a filing storage facility. We proposed a desk in the entertainment area, directly overlooking the views of the sea. Behind, we designed clever joinery for A4 files, that blends in with the kitchenette design. When not used for remote working, it’s a perfect entertainment room width adjacent terrace.
Solution 3:
The clients were in need of a multifunctional space, which would cater for many functions, one of them being able to work from home (doing homework to be more precise). Their daughter loved doing homework while her parents were watching TV or reading, and because the room we were designing was pretty small, we found a way to incorporate the desk into the built-in joinery with a clever solution; using a pull-out drawer, the desk could disappear completely when it was no longer needed.
Solution 4:
The client needed a space for working from home and for playing and studying music. The challenge was not only for this room to be designed in a way that caters for these activities, but also, not to feel as office. We suggested incorporating a foldable desk with clever built-in bookshelves to house a large book collection, and a seating bench which doubles up as housing for his amplifiers.
To support the community, Katie Malik Interiors are now offering FREE design consultations for those struggling with the design and organisation of their home office during the Coronavirus pandemic to help us find/create suitable spaces to work from home.
To arrange your consultation, drop an email to [email protected]
Katie Malik is the creative director and founder of Katie Malik Interiors; an award-winning Cambridge and London based interior design studio, specialising in private residential, developments & hospitality interiors. Katie’s aim is to bring authenticity to each project.
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