Designing Smart Home Office

Remember back in the good ole’ days when many of us begrudgingly woke up early morning, spent time commuting to our offices, and dreamt about working from home? Nowadays we seem to have an opposite issue: the entire world is stuck at home due to the pandemic, and trying to make the best out of makeshift “home offices.” COVID-19 has not only imposed different working conditions, but also a new mindset that is focused on physical distance combined with the importance of smart interior design.

At Jarret Yoshida, Inc., we are seeing a demand for smart home office design from our clients with solutions ranging from decoration to construction-related. As Zoom calls and virtual working habits are not going to end soon, the importance of a well-designed home office is therefore easily understandable: workers show a basic need for inspiration, calmness, comfort, and privacy—rapidly revolving around the central role of furniture, features, and patterns.

An ideal home office has to address specific requirements: a quiet environment provided with good lighting (ideally with natural light), comfortable seating arrangement and eventually a nice background.

The first step when providing clients with our WFH interior design services for your new home office is an in-depth assessment about work habits and preferences. Many people don’t necessarily need a work-dedicated room as much as in the past, so their current itinerant office is usually settled in the living room or wherever is peaceful and comfortable in the house. This becomes a bit trickier for those families with children: having a private working environment, close enough to watch your little ones, becomes essential for focusing.

So, whether your home office is in a small corner or in a separated room, here are a few suggestions a successful workspace:

Lighting
Functional AND beautiful lighting is an absolute necessity because, let’s face it: you need to look good on camera these days. Make sure you are not backlit, and little details like yellow light bulbs will make you look, well, yellow. Natural lighting makes everyone happier and more productive compared to the artificial kind—but of course when natural sunlight is too strong filtering it through curtains is strongly suggested.

Furniture
Furniture selection is essential for those who need to spend many hours per day sitting in front of the desk. We all have our preferences for “comfortable seating,” ranging from designer ergonomic chairs to kitchen stools. Adjustable desks are strongly recommended as this feature makes them versatile for different working purposes. Another suggestion is to add multi-prong plugs close by the desk to easily charge computers and phones to avoid long extension cords. Office furniture used to mean a spare dining chair, but Covid-19 era selections should mean an eye-pleasing textile selection and soft lines, avoiding hard sharp angles, in order to provide a sense of gentle flow and effortless harmony.

Sound
Make sure your room has good soundproofing with minimal echoes, especially if you are often participating in virtual meetings. Acoustic tiles and window treatments, such as sound-absorbing honeycomb shades, Roman shades or the old functional window shutters, are good ways to eliminate extra noise while you concentrate on work. Even books and wall-hangings are a great way of dampening echo.

Vibe
Apart from all the technical aspects, the general aesthetics of your work from home space should not be taken for granted. A beautiful, inspirational, and pleasant place to be productive for the whole day beats a room that is bland and boring. Something as simple as having the right colors and patterns can be mood and energy boosters. For example, research has shown that natural landscape patterns are effective in enhancing a focused atmosphere for work. Simple yet smart storage solutions such as decorative boxes and wooden trays are functional and bring the room together.