Getting ready to set up or redecorate your small home workspace? If so, you probably can't wait to get started. And that's natural. Either you're excited or desperate to make a change. That's especially true if you've been struggling at home for months with an unsatisfactory working situation.
On the other hand, rushing to buy the first cheap home office furniture you see can lead to poor choices and an unworkable office setup, especially when you only have a small area to use as an office. Here's what you need to know, how to plan first and how to make the smartest home office furniture decisions for your small office space.
Assessing Your Home Workplace Situation
Before you rush into buying office furniture for your home, It's essential to figure out precisely what you need. If a spare room or attic space isn't available for your office, carve out a workspace in the corner of the living room or along a wall in your living room, bedroom, or family room.
Next, consider what home office suite furniture you need to accomplish your work comfortably.
You'll need home office desk that's large enough to hold all your productivity tools. Your desk will need to be at least 24" deep to accommodate your laptop or desktop computer. To decide on the width of your home office furniture desk, do this experiment. Lay out everything you will need within easy reach to do your job. Place all this on your dining table or even the floor. Then, measure the width and get a desk at least that wide. For the desk chair, consider how long you will be sitting in that chair every week.
Now, think about the other office equipment you need, such as a printer. What are its dimensions, and where will you put it? Also, consider the office supplies, books, and files you need to keep handy. Then, be sure you choose home office storage furniture with enough space for them or plan to add shelving above or around your desk.
Now, consider the home décor style you want for your office space. Whether you're putting your small home office furniture sets in the same room with other activities or in its own dedicated area, you need to make sure the entire room's design style works well together.
Choosing a Desk for Your Small Office
Whether you choose your desk first or not, take some time to explore all your options. Here are some home office furniture ideas to consider when choosing your home office desk.
Desk Type to Suit Your Space
You can choose from a variety of desk types, each with its shape and features. Here are the main types of desks available in home office furniture collections.
For Nooks and Crannies
If you’re fitting your desk into a corner or a small wall space, you’ll need a desk to suit that space. These desks can fit in places other desks just can’t squeeze into easily.
- Folding desk – Great choice for a tiny apartment where you need to put away the desk at the end of your workday.
- Ladder desk – Has shelves that step up from the desktop to shelves above in a ladder style formation.
- Corner desk – A triangular desk that fits neatly in a corner to maximize space when you don't have a separate room for your office.
Custom Desks for Unique Spaces
Creating an office space in a small home can be a challenge. And, you might end up with a space that wasn’t exactly designed perfectly to place a desk in it. But with these types of desks, you can customize your office furniture to fit any space you have.
- Floating desk – attached directly to the wall, so the floor space is open and free for other things.
- Built in desk – Built in home office furniture includes desks that are already built into walls or that you add later as floating or drop-down desks.
- Modular desk – Modular home office furniture offers a way to put together just the pieces you want. The modular desk fits in well with the other components, such as storage and shelving. You can even get modular home office furniture collections with enough workspace for more than one person.
If You Have a Separate Room for Your Office
If you’re lucky enough to have a separate room or a large area of your basement or attic to work with, you can go for a larger and more impressive desk. Here are a few examples.
- Traditional desks – Much like a table but may also include shelves and drawers.
- L-shaped or U-shaped desk – An L-shaped desk has two joined sides, while a U-shaped desk has three. This is usually a relatively large desk, but it packs in a lot of storage and workspace.
Desk Styles to Match Your Tastes
Along with the general décor style, you can find a variety of desk styles to consider. Here are the most common styles.
To Pamper Yourself and Impress Guests
Everyone wants to feel like they’re living and working in the lap of luxury. Even though you may not have a lot of space, you can choose the smaller versions of these desks to create an elegant office space for yourself.
To Keep It Simple and Practical
For the smallest rooms, you need a desk that doesn’t overwhelm the space. Keeping it simple helps you create a calming, low-stress environment. A writing desk or a small computer desk will accomplish your purposes without overloading your room.
- Writing desk – A simple desk with a desktop and legs but usually without any storage space. Ashley Furniture desks for home office selections include many small writing desks.
- Computer desk – Any desk that has features for computer productivity, such as cable management systems.
What Kind of Chair Suits You Best?
Often, people start their search for furniture for a home office by looking at desks. But your desk chair is arguably the most critical part of your office space to get right. Without a comfortable, ergonomic chair, you'll not only be miserable, but you’ll struggle to accomplish anything!
Before you stuff the first chair you see into your virtual cart, consider whether the chair is ergonomically sound. It would be best to look for small home office furniture sets with a desk and chair setup that makes you feel comfortable and prevents aches and repetitive motion injuries. For that, you'll need an office desk set where you can sit comfortably with your computer screen about twenty inches away with its top edge at about eye level. Your elbows need to be level and your feet flat on the floor. The chair needs to be just deep enough that the backs of your knees are at least two inches in front of the edge of the chair.
Chair Quality
Getting quality home office furniture is essential, especially when it comes to your chair. Fortunately, you can get discount home office furniture if you know where to look for home office furniture online. Some high-quality chair features that improve comfort include:
- Lumbar support that adjusts to fit the curve of your back
- Adjustable seat and arm height
- Breathable fabric
- Reclining seatback
- Sturdy, stable, easy-rolling wheels
Chair Types
When choosing a chair to go with home office furniture sets, you'll also want to be sure you have the right chair for your needs. Sometimes, all you have space for is a folding chair you can put away when you finish working. However, folding chairs aren't very comfortable and can lead to back strain and other aches and pains. So, if you can fit in a better chair, do so. Here are several types of chairs to consider.
For Light Use
If you only work a few hours at a time, these types of chairs should work fine. Simple task chairs make sense, because they’re inexpensive, ordinary, padded office chairs. Even folding chairs will do in a pinch. But if you must use a folding chair, place a cushion on it to add comfort. Also, consider placing a moveable piece of wood beneath the chair only to raise it if your feet don't rest flat on the floor or it puts you too low in relation to your desk.
For Occasional Office Guests
Reception chairs, such as an accent chair, are primarily a decorating choice. Reception chairs are fine if you sometimes have business visitors in your home office. They might also be adequate for your desk if you don't work very long at a time.
Comfort for the Long Haul
Ergonomic chairs are task chairs with adjustable features that allow you to tailor it to your size and height. These are the best chairs if you have to work for long hours sitting at your desk. A drafting chair is an upgraded ergonomic chair with additional comfort features designed for comfort while working long hours.
Executive chairs also support you for long hours of comfort. They’re well-cushioned chairs made to impress, with high backs, often covered in leather and usually quite expensive. Executive home office furniture is best complemented with an executive chair.
Storage Options for Your Tiny Office Space
Even in a small office – maybe especially there – you need to have places to store books, manuals, files, paper, pens, and many other office supplies. Buying storage furniture from your tiny office space should be no problem at all. Many desks have storage built into them, including bookcases, shelves, drawers, and cubbies.
What about Complete Office Furniture Sets?
Buying complete office sets makes a lot of sense. First, the price is often lower when you buy furniture as a set. Second, if you want home office modular furniture, you will need to buy all the pieces from the same furniture set. Finally, the best home office furniture is often found in complete sets, such as Ashley Furniture home office, which is excellent designer home office furniture. For instance, you can sort through a contemporary home office furniture collection and create your own set with all the pieces you need and want.
Whether you choose individual pieces or a right-sized complete set of elegant home office furniture, be sure it fulfills all your practical needs as well. You can then create a custom home office furniture setup that works for you and helps you enjoy your work time more than ever before.
A beautiful, efficient workspace starts with the best home office furniture.
