Uninspired

Part 1 of 4

One of the many lessons of 2020 is the importance of family/home, and how they collide with our professional life and obligations. Everyone knows the name of your cat, for one thing.

For many, working remotely has surfaced challenges in dedicating a physical space to "work." It has exposed the relationship your physical space has to your mental space. And how that relationship can impact your professional productivity and happiness.

Whether you already had a dedicated office, or you've repurposed the kitchen table, you've likely spent a fair amount of time "optimizing" your WFH lifestyle. Everything from how you manage your time, Zoom etiquette, work attire, and the background for client video calls are all suddenly part of your cognitive load.

Uninspired

Part 1 of 4

One of the many lessons of 2020 is the importance of family/home, and how they collide with our professional life and obligations. Everyone knows the name of your cat, for one thing.

For many, working remotely has surfaced challenges in dedicating a physical space to "work." It has exposed the relationship your physical space has to your mental space. And how that relationship can impact your professional productivity and happiness.

Whether you already had a dedicated office, or you've repurposed the kitchen table, you've likely spent a fair amount of time "optimizing" your WFH lifestyle. Everything from how you manage your time, Zoom etiquette, work attire, and the background for client video calls are all suddenly part of your cognitive load.

It's precisely this predicament our client brought to us. The client was lucky enough to have an existing office space. Still, as he put it, "it was never meant to be my primary office. I never thought much about how the light would reflect off my screen in the afternoon or that there wasn't much separation between my office and our kids' playroom or our exercise area. As much as anything, it's just not a very inspiring space to get work done."

Up two flights of stairs, in what could be the attic, is a large room, broken into the areas defined by the gables in the roof. On one side (the largest) was the playroom filled with kids' toys, dollhouses, and art projects. On the other side was a workout area. Sandwiched between the two was a generously sized, though not particularly optimal, home office.

The client did their best to create some separation. He placed the desk directly at the intersection between the three interconnected areas. Aside from exposing the cable nest that lives behind most modern desks, it created unmanageable screen glare in the afternoons and a challenging backlight for video calls.

The client expressed the importance of a "more professional-looking backdrop" for video calls. Storage was necessary, but the client did not want their "clutter on display for everyone to examine."

Finally, the customer returned to the theme of feeling inspired and invigorated while working. "This space was always a carelessly thrown together place to get some work done in the evening or an occasional day away from the office. I'm hoping it can become an office, but more…" the client paused for a moment, searching for a word, "elevated," he said finally. "A place I can feel creative and productive."

It was that idea—an Office: Elevated, that inspired this series. It even inspired some brand new products, like the Mt. Abraham Desk Shelf.

Over the month of March, we'll take you through our consultation and design plan, invite you into our workshop to see how we hand built each piece of furniture, and ultimately created the space he needed, an Office: Elevated.

OFFICE: ELEVATED

A jaw-dropping home office transformation

OFFICE: ELEVATED

A jaw-dropping home office transformation

Uninspired

"It was never meant to be my primary office... As much as anything, it's just not a very inspiring space to get work done."

Uninspired

"It was never meant to be my primary office... As much as anything, it's just not a very inspiring space to get work done."

Inspiration

With every Virtual Design Consultation, we endeavor to uncover more than simply what furniture a customer is interested in, but how they want their space to make them feel.

Inspiration

With every Virtual Design Consultation, we endeavor to uncover more than simply what furniture a customer is interested in, but how they want their space to make them feel.