When you work from home, there are many challenges which immediately present themselves. Firstly, where is your office going to be? Is it going to be separate enough from your home, so that it doesn’t encroach on your time with your family? How are you going to connect with those you need to connect with? Do you have the necessary equipment?
There are many questions and challenges coming your way at the very start, but one of the biggest is about space. Where are you going to put everything? How are you going to store everything safely?
You need to think very carefully about your office storage solutions, so you don’t end up turning your home more into an office than an actual living space. There as to be a balance, an even line which ensures neither part of your life edges out over the other.
Whether you think you’re going to be paperless or not, the chances are that you are going to need to store something, so how can you do that and keep everything tidy at the same time?
Let’s check out a few home office storage ideas you might like to incorporate into your space. Remember, keeping your work life and your home life as separate as possible is very important, and your office decor needs to be different to the rest of your home, to create the right frame of mind when you walk in there. Throw in a few tub chair choices, perhaps some glass office desks, and you’ll soon get into the right head space for work.
Storage Boxes
These are super-cheap and you’ll find them in every stationery store. Box files and other types of storage boxes come in a huge range of different colours and designs, so you can easily get them to fit into your decor. If you don’t want your office to be very modern, and you want a more homely look to it, you’ll easily find a design that ties in with that too.
Of course, storage boxes can also be stacked, which saves space from the get-go.
Box Shelving, And Shelving in General
Shelves mean that you can get the things you need to store off the ground, and work upwards. This is a great space saver, and shelves are also very easy to put up too! You could look towards box shelving. This is basically a shelf which has individual sections within it, almost like boxes. Within this, you can be more organised and keep items separate. Of course, it may be that you just want regular shelving, and you can easily separate your files with the odd home decor piece, to make it look less clinical.
Built-in Storage
Storage which is built into your wall means that it is hidden away in many regards, and it is a huge space saver. In addition to this, this type of storage looks very efficient and is ideal for a home office, because it doesn’t look too overtly modern or minimalistic. When you design a home office, you need to find office storage units which bridge the gap between home and office, not only in decor but in usage too. This type of storage choice does that perfectly.
Funky Filing Cabinets
Filing cabinets don’t have to be metal, steel, and boring! You can easily spray paint a second hand filing cabinet, add a few magnets, change the handles, and make it look the part! This is the ideal home and office combination, because we all know that filing cabinets are extremely useful in an office; they organise papers and keep things secure, but they don’t always look that attractive to the eye. When you jazz it up a little, and put your own spin on it, you not only keep its functionality, but you also add in the attractive decor side of things too.
Mobile Storage
Storage which can be moved around is ideal, because if you decide to change your decor around, and perhaps mix up your office space, or even change rooms entirely, you simply need to wheel it around, without any stress or hassle! This type of storage often has a flat top section also, so you can add things on top, such as box files, or you can cover it over and make it look more homely, if you’re trying to avoid the full-on office appearance.
Glass Jars and Mugs
Yes, really! For small items, you can easily make use of those empty glass jars or spare mugs that you no doubt have lying around your home. Not only does this save money, but it gives a funky, minimalistic, and unique look to your home office, which bridges the gap between professional and home at the same time.
These are just a few ways you can incorporate office storage into your home office, without it looking too overbearing, but whilst still doing the job it is designed to do. It’s not easy to bridge that gap we were talking about earlier, and whilst it is definitely a must do to keep your office and home life separate. Your decor is a way you can do that, you also need to ensure that you don’t move from room to room and think you’ve left the house entirely! It needs to blend, so perhaps tying in a little of the other rooms into your office is a good way to do that. Think funky accessories, like the glass jars or mugs we mentioned, or spray painting old filing cabinets in pastel colours.
Kitting out your home office needs to be a careful process, and you need to find furniture which is not only comfortable, but which is functional too. You can check out office furniture London choices online on websites like Calibre, where you’ll be able to peruse the ranges available, and check out prices to fit in with your budget.
There are many options when it comes to ensuring you have enough storage in your home office, but if you think outside of the box a little, you can make your office a comfortable space, as well as a functional one.