I’m in the process of planning my basement office space. I have a small work space for my corporate job in my living room thanks to my secretary desk, but the Janery office will be in the basement TV room.
For now my office has just the farmhouse desk I built and a file box, but there is more to come. These are the aspects I’m working on because I don’t have a full plan yet:
Desk
My plan has been to build a new desk, something large, with one solid board for the top and simple legs.
I built a farmhouse style desk for my old office, but after 2+ years of using it I’ve learned more of what I’m looking for in a desk. No drawers, because I want more leg space under the desk. A longer surface, so that I have room for my computer, but also room to spread out and work on papers.
I’m also considering making two identical desks so that I have an L-shaped workspace. I’m not sure if it’s necessary, though. For now, I’ve taped out the space the L-shaped desk would occupy. The first desk, against the wall, will be built so that the L-shaped desk plan can be used if necessary.
I taped out the space the two desks would take up, just to get a feel for the layout:
Wall Color
I’m planning on repainting the walls. They’re currently painted a sort of eggshell white; it certainly shows up very yellow in the photos. I think plain white walls will simplify things, and if I want to get colorful, I may put some fuchsia paint on the small triangle wall against the stairs.
Wall Shelves
I’ve installed Elfa shelf hardware from the Container Store (during the annual sale), after realizing I wanted wall shelves for storage. Installing this system saved me from having to drill holes and anchor every single shelf, which would not be ideal since this is a rental.
I’m going to add solid wood shelves just like I did in the nursery. I’m debating whether they will be painted white or stained medium brown to match the desk I will build.
Storage
In addition to the wall shelves, I’d like an under-desk, rolling filing cabinet for paper storage. Filing cabinets are really expensive! I’m considering this one from CB2 since it’s cheaper than most on Amazon, and it has small item storage in the top drawer.
Rugs & Baby Play Space
The final consideration in all this planning is space for the baby as she grows. We’ve essentially divided the long basement into halves, with one for my office and one for our TV area. Right now we have the pack-n-play between the back of the sofa and my office corner.
I’d like the space between sofa and desk to become the baby’s play space as she grows. Therefore I think I need a rug large enough to cover all the way from my desk to the back of the sofa.
In the next few weeks, I’ll be making decisions on shelf colors, the desk style, and storage. The rug will come last.
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