Home office
Garages built during a certain era are often too small for today’s cars. Typically, these structures end up serving as sheds for bikes and landscaping equipment. Drywall, flooring and beautiful new French doors helped update this tiny garage in Portland, Oregon, into an inviting workspace. A beautiful paint job by Mr. Painter PDX completed the transformation.
Chic Command Center The custom desk in this Westchester County, New York, kitchen designed by Studio Dearborn is situated below a pair of windows with woodsy views. The lower cabinets feature a custom paint that’s color-matched to Rockport Gray by Benjamin Moore. The desk includes two in-drawer electrical outlets, one for charging phones and the other for a printer.
Additional Seating Your office may need an upholstered sofa or chair if you have clients visit or if you use the room for reading or studying as well. Chairs need a footprint of space that’s about 40 in. (102 cm) square, and a love seat could be 40 in. (102 cm) deep and 62 in. long (157 cm). You won’t need a great deal of space in front of extra seating, so allowing paths as little as 14 in. (36 cm) wide may work.
Filing Cabinets Filing cabinets are another item that can take up considerable space in a home office. A standard two-drawer letter-size file cabinet is at least 15 in. (38 cm) in width, 30 in. (76 cm) in height and 29 in. (74 cm) in depth. For two-drawer legal-size file cabinets, bump up the width to 18 in. (46 cm). Lateral file cabinets begin at 30 in. (76 cm) in width, 18 in. (46 cm) in depth and 32 in. (81 cm) in height. Investigate which type you will need while planning your home office, since these cabinets can be large relative to the space you have. A quick way to find out more is to look up the dimensions of the file cabinets you’re interested in buying online first.
Shelving Each shelf in a unit is most commonly 12 in. (30 cm) deep and 14 to 16 in. (36 to 41 cm) high. Built-ins are popular and can make your home office feel intimate, but you will need a hefty budget and plenty of space for this kind of setup. If you have a 10-foot by 10-foot room (304 by 304 cm), this configuration reduces the floor space to about 8 by 9 feet (244 by 274 cm). If you need more flexibility or plan to move within a few years, stick with freestanding bookshelves. Many sizes are available, but plan to have at least two pieces that are 36 in. (91 cm) wide and 48 in. (122 cm) high.
Computers Computer dimensions vary greatly and continue to change. Keep the area where you will place your computer as flexible as possible. If you wish to place it in a built-in, keep in mind that any new equipment will need to fit in that space too. The other important consideration is the position of the keyboard. You can get away with placing a keyboard on the desk surface, but keyboard trays set at 24 to 26 in. (61 to 66 cm) high are more ergonomic. Many people use only a laptop and don’t need room for a keyboard tray; they simply need a clear area in which the electrical supply can be easily accessed.
Drafting Boards Drafting tables are not as common as they once were, but some instances still call for them. The height is what is most important about a drafting board. Most are adjustable and tilt, but a standard one has a top that’s 36 in. (92 cm) above the floor and rises up toward the back. A chair with a coordinating height is required for this arrangement. Plan to allow plenty of space, since the footprint of drafting tables is significant. You can get them as small as 48 in. (122 cm) wide and 30 in. (76 cm) deep, but most are 60 to 72 in. (152 to 183 cm) wide and 36 to 42 in. (91 to 107 cm) deep. Light tables (surfaces with a glass top illuminated from below) can be similarly configured and need about the same amount of space.
Built-in Desks Built-in desks have the same basic dimensions as other desks but often provide more work surface, since you customize the design. The area underneath the desk also offers a place for trash cans, paper shredders and items that need to be tucked away. Built-in bookshelves surrounding the desk can hold books, file boxes and supplies.
A Tucked-Away Studio This detached studio space feels far away from the clamor of nearby London. The placement of the accordion doors provides lovely views of a shade garden. And the black siding makes the structure almost disappear when viewed from the house.
Q