As a lifelong extrovert (I'm an ENFJ-T; hbu?), this new world post-March 2020 has been an adjustment. I started out last year at an amazing collaborative office space with fellow creatives in the local wedding industry. It was the perfect place to thrive on collective ideas, swap wedding stories, and just have an office-mate to say 'hi' to each morning. I loved the possibility of it all, but the world had other plans!
When COVID-19 hit the wedding industry with the restrictions on gathering sizes, I knew that the outlook for the year was dire. Each day was a training in crisis P.R. as clients had to make the impossible decision to postpone or cancel their spring & summer events. Our county issued a stay-at-home order, so I packed up my monitor, my linen swatch book & a few files to work from home. I set up a makeshift office in my dining room, thinking this would be a short stint - maybe a few weeks. Flash forward six-weeks - I was still working from that dining room table with zero structure and struggling to stay motivated.
With so much uncertainty unfolding over those first few months, I made the extremely tough decision to leave my beloved space and come back home permanently (at least until further notice!). While I was heartbroken about everything - leaving the office, the decisions my clients were forced to make, the hit the industry took, and the loss of so much more in this world - I knew that I made the right decision for the business.
By the end of April, I decided to officially move my office home (in true millennial fashion is also my mom's home because did I mention I'm trying to run this business in the midst of a global pandemic? #rentfreelife), but I had no where to go with several accent chairs, too many fake plants from IKEA, a ring light and other more official office gear. So, I decided to take on a home-reno project because I knew I needed a functional & inspiring space to work in order to bounce back from the creative funk I found myself in.
Throwing my hair into a pony and doing my best Joanna Gaines impression, I got to work! The whole project took me about two weeks, starting with emptying out a spare bedroom/storage room/'junk room' (that's the room where things end up if you don't know where else to put them) and cleaning it top-to-bottom. From there, I slapped on a fresh coat of paint, installed a new light fixture and freshened up the room details like door handles & vent covers. Once all of my furniture and knick-knacks were in, it finally felt like home! (But, like an office...but, also at home, so it was homey - you get it.)
I need to come up with my own slogan like the "move that bus!" or "are you ready to see your fixer-upper?". Until then...
Check out the transformation below!
The before (after most of the aforementioned junk had been moved out.)
The after!
My favorite detail? The dirty computer screen.
In all seriousness, it's the small grey square around the light fixture to give some depth.
I also love this custom curtain with my MRE floral pattern for my storage closet (where I keep my extra files, inventory & emergency kits!) from Spoonflower - highly recommend their fabrics!
This storage cube shelf from IKEA is the perfect place to display some of my favorite items, but also have so much hidden storage for my art & office supplies, stationery samples, linen books & more.
I couldn't be happier with the little home-office oasis I have here. Missing from the above photos are my two cats, who apparently also have an affinity for velvet furniture...
Hope you've enjoyed peeking behind the (well branded) curtain of my home office sitch-uation! Can't wait to share more behind the scenes with y'all.
Until next time!
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