Decorating Your Home Office

Having a home office is a necessity for home owners, even those who do not work in a home office. This room is your own little space, a private den of sorts, where you can go to balance the checkbook, plan out a budget, and yes... even play addicting computer games.

Regardless of what you do in your home office, it is important to keep this room warm and inviting. In most cases, the home office is where you will be managing important paperwork and stressful bills... so the more comfortable you feel in this room the less stress you will feel when completing frustrating tasks.

Therefore, decorating your home office should be a priority and you should pay special attention to the overall "feel" of the room.

When Decorating a Home Office, Be Sure to Avoid:

• A television set. These can be distracting and more inviting than the work before you, so it's best not to allow the temptation in.

• Over-decorating. Too much "stuff" can be another distraction, and this includes pretty little knick knacks or excessive pictures. Whether your home office needs to look professional is not as important as being professional... and that means focusing on simple.

• A mess! Unfortunately, the home office can be the messiest room in your house. This is where you file and store important paperwork and documents, so that just means you have to create a strict organizational method and use as many filing cabinets as it takes to have a clean office in your home.

That being said, there is much more helpful information found in the things that you can do when decorating a home based office.

Music

Although televisions pose a distracting threat; radios, CD players, or record players are something entirely different. Music is actually a good thing to have available in a home office, especially if listening to music helps you focus. Sometimes, you might have to put in music you don't usually listen to (such as classical music or an uplifting soundtrack) to step outside of the box, but the important thing is to have music available in the background. It's important to mention that playing music is only optional, but it's convenient to have as an option when it is needed to relax and focus on work.

Another option, of course, is to listen to MP3 music on a player in a docking station. You should avoid playing music on your computer while you work because this can slow you down.

Furniture

As mentioned before, organization is important so you should plan on having a large desk in your home office, not just a small corner desk for your computer. Choose a computer chair that is comfortable to sit in, with a high back.

You should also have at least 3 different filing cabinets, and use an organizing method that works best for you to quickly access something when it is needed.

Finally, if you are using a fairly large room as a home based office it might be a good idea to put in a comfy chair or couch. When you are working, you won't want to be disturbed but this comfortable seating area can be used to relax in with a cup of coffee or tea while you sort through bills, providing a nice change of pace from a desk without needing to leave the office.

Wall Paint

Focus on lighter colors when paining your home based office, or contrasting designs that spark creative energy the moment you enter that room. Remember that your home office should be a relaxing place to be, but not so relaxing that you feel sleepy. Avoid colors that are dull and boring... and yes that means you should avoid white and tan colors.

Finishing Touches

The part of decorating a home office that you'll find most enjoyable is putting in the finishing touches. While it is important not to over-decorate... it is just as dangerous to under decorate and leave your office feeling plain and dull.

The best way to decorate is to focus on decorative items that are also purposeful in a home based office.

Choose two calendars that suit your personal tastes: a wall calendar or large desk calendar where you can write in important appointments and due dates to track important information, and another smaller desk calendar that provides daily jokes, pictures, or inspirational quotes.

Of course you want to have a few of your favorite family photos available in a home office, because it is always nice to glance at these pictures from time to time while you are working.

A personal favorite decorative office trick is a little crafty, but easy and tons of fun to make. The end product appears to be a vase full of flowers, which are actually individual pens.

How to Turn Your Pens into a Pretty Vase of Flowers

Step One: You will need to have a box of pens, a wide mouthed vase, floral tape, scissors, and a few bouquets of plastic flowers (which you can usually find at the dollar store.)

Step Two: Remove the flowers from the stems with scissors (or sometimes you can just pull them off.)

Step Three: Use the floral tape to attach one flower to the bottom end of a pen (the opposite end of the writing point...) Wrap the tape tightly around the pen to tightly secure the flower and to create a green stem look.

Step Four (through ___:) Repeat with each pen until they are all topped with a flower.

Last Step: Insert all pens into the vase, flower side up, and arrange into a bouquet.

You can place this bouquet of flowers atop a filing cabinet, on your desk, or on the table by your comfortable chair or couch. The important thing is that you have a decorative item that is also useful.

Summary

While it may be helpful to read tips on decorating a home office, it is more important to put in your own creative touches. Your home office is your personal area, and you should take care of it and personalize this room to satisfy your own unique and individual needs. The bottom line is creating an office in your home that you enjoy being in.