After 7 months in my office … I have finally decided to get to decorating it! So far, I have been working on the end of an old desk, with no proper storage and no curtains in my westward facing windows. I guess I have been a little taken by sharing with you all the beautiful décor in other people’s home and offices to worry about my own. Well that’s that! Enough of looking with envy at well put together offices, this year I am attacking the decor of mine and it starts now!

Although my office is in an office building and not at home, I want to give it a homey feeling

Inspiration

My first step in any design projects is always to find inspiration. It is to easy to simply “get” pieces to fill the void, but at the end of the day, the look is just a miss-mash of stuff. I am a bohemian at heart, and my office will reflect that. Vintage and new will co-mingle in a gentle mess… just the way I like it.

Chair

In terms of seating, EXIT goes the standard pleather office chair on 4 wheels. There is no good reason to push myself to such drastic ends, I started my own business exactly for that reason… to be able to do things the way I see them fit. So, I found (in my neighbour’s garbage) a beautiful old office chair from the 70′s. You know the one with the five wheels chrome base and wooden arm rests? After packing it up in a leaf bag for a few days to make sure there were no mites of bugs of any kind, I brought it to my Greek upholsterer in Laval and had him cover it in white velvet with a nailhead detail along the back seam. The result is… gorgeous!!! Forget dark denim jeans on it though, it will stain, but hey I am ready to compromise for such a cool chair!

Moodboard

I LOVE moodboards!  I love them because they tell a story. They show what is going on in your life at this present moment and they are in constant evolution. I hung a large one behind my desk, but I might have to give it a little love with some spray paint or cover it in fabric (to add to my DIY list!)

Floral delicacy

Flowers! Any room anywhere is not complete without flowers. A plant will do too, but flowers are more decadent. Fresh or silk (nice quality please) they enliven a space and, I believe,  increase the happiness factor by ten folds. So flower it is.

Window covering

I found on sale a pair of grey linen drapes with grommets on top. Simple, casual, somewhat elegant… and a bit boring too. On my DIY project list I will also add to paint them with a quirky chevron print. All it takes is fabric paint, painters tape (the Green Frog one is great!), and a small roller. Oh and patience too as the taping will be the longest part. But that should give my curtains the pizzazz they need.

 The basics: 

Here are a few of the elements I already have for my office… a Saarinen tulip based chair, a GORGEOUS Leigh Viner “Cricket” fashion illustration whom I discovered on Bijou & Bohème’s delightful blog recently, 2 gorgeous lamps from Buk & Nola an Ikea red metal cabinet , a pair of vintage desk chairs that I had reupholstered, a few Hermès boxes just for colour (and because they make me smile!), A Royal Dux Cockatoo which I love (I named it Charlie, but don’t tell anyone!!) and a few red rubber buckets for storing all the odds & ends. (here is an Olioboard I made for the occasion)

What now? Well here is my shopping list: Bookcase, rug, proper working surfaces (I’d love to find a pair of old vintage doors to transform with a glass top), and plenty of additional storage for my magazine cutouts, my i-everything cables and wires, and all that jazz. The next few weeks shall be interesting. Will you follow me in the “Damask & Dentelle office makeover ” adventure?

Meet "Charlie" sitting proudly on my red cabinet and looking forward to nicer surroundings!

sources: Decor8, Pinterest, Rue Magazine,  the Style Files