When you live in a small Victorian end of terrace with 2 bedrooms and you work from home there is always going to be an element of compromise when planning your work space. I didn’t want to feel shoehorned into a corner but with space being an issue I didn’t want to permanently take over an entire room either.
Home Office
This is the room where I spend the most time. Easily. By a long shot. But because it’s a small house the space has to double as an occasional guest bedroom. The solution? We’ve created a multi-purpose space that houses all the tools of my trade (along with a few essential boy toys and knick-knacks) but also incorporates a sturdy sofa bed, soft furnishings and space for guests to unpack so that they feel at home, rather than still at work!
Some of the less glamourous office essentials, such as box files, staplers, reams of paper and a laser printer have been hidden away inside drawers and cupboards so that the space never feels too corporate. On the flip side guest bedding, pillows and blankets are stowed neatly away within the sofa bed built in storage. As a result the room feels uncluttered and equally suited to work or play.
The colour scheme echoes The cheltenham House master bedroom which you can see here. Farrow and Ball Purbeck Stone has been used on the fireplace/desk wall and has also been used on the skirting. The furniture is a mixture of old and new, I bought the desk off eBay about 10 years ago and I think I’ll probably have it for life. The architects unit is from Garden Trading and handily doubles as storage for guests as well as a worktop for creative projects. The sofa bed is a few years old and was from sofa.com however it looks like it is no longer available but you can get this one from Made which is very similar. The big cactus (which is real) was an absolute bargain find at IKEA.
You’ve probably noticed there’s quite a lot of artwork leaning against walls… I had a pipe dream of creating a full gallery wall but never found the time to plan it properly… Now the artwork has been leaning for so long that it kinda feels at home where it is. Some of you may remember that 90s phenomenon of just leaning your artwork (check out any Grand Designs episode from that period), well I’m bringing it back kids!
Do you have a dedicated work space in your home? What compromises between space and comfort have you made?
You can see more images and other features on our home by searching The Cheltenham House on Rock My style or by following @thecheltenhamhouse on Instagram
This is such a great room! I need help with mine!
We have recently moved house which has resulted in much more working from home. We have made a study in one of the bedrooms but need it to double up as an occasional guest room too. Unfortunately the room also has to house a large cupboard which is out makeshift airing cupboard/linen store, and this means that there is not enough room for a sofa bed. We could squeeze in a chair or something that opens into a single size bed/mattress. Anyone had any good experiences with these?
Hi Sarah, would a double size bed fit in the space when it was required? I was thinking you could go for a blow up option…
https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/indybest/house-garden/best-air-beds-for-camping-2016-a7107776.html
There are options here for single and double beds in various price points… The one with the metal frame looks crazy but gets a good review…
Oh wow that does look crazy!!
What about a futon?
Beautiful and masculine, whilst also still being stylish. Love the little letters on top of the mirror. Harris Gin is the best around isn’t it, tastes just as good as the bottle looks! Although how do you manage to work comfortably sitting on that chair?!
Hi Bunny, thanks for the comments, you can get the letters via ETSY – just click on them in the ‘steal the style’ section above.
I’ve had a variety of padded office chairs with tilt/swivel functions etc… The Oak chair I use now was actually originally bought for the dining room but it is surprising comfortable so I stole it for the office. It also helps with my seating posture as you have to sit in the chair properly for it to be comfortable and supportive 🙂
Love this room. I know the struggle with a guest room/office. I am also in a two bedroom terrace and although we have pretty good sized bedrooms trying to make the room work for two purposes has been challenging. We had a much older version of this https://www.johnlewis.com/innovation-recast-sofa-bed-with-pocket-sprung-mattress-dark-leg-blue-nist/p2087416 but the way it folded down wasn’t practical and it was pretty heavy, so we ended up just leaving a double bed up all the time. The desk now just faces the window so I don’t have to look at the rest of the room.
Fingers crossed I will be moving house soon and one of the bedrooms there is perfect for an office. My husband will use it more than me, so I’m looking forward to trying a more masculine scheme that will suit us both.
This is great, so many bits to steal. Etsy here I come. Also a fan of the picture lean…some may call it ‘style’, some may call it ‘havent quite got round to actually making a decision’ . I chose the former and deny the latter.
It’s looking really good – you’ve done a great job! Victorian terraces may be small but they are lovely and have a lot of charm. Did you ever feel any pressure to go with a period-style design in your home? Or are there parts of it that you’re not allowed to renovate if it’s an older building?
Hi Sophie – We don’t have any restrictions in place on our property (which was actually built in the 1860s) but we have had some interesting opinions expressed! We had a builder who told us it was impossible to remove an internal wall downstairs… Turns out he just didn’t think we should.
I personally am a champion for mixing styles and periods, we’ve kept some original features and got rid of others. Our furniture is a mix of period with mid century style touches too. I feel that mixed approach works for our house anyway!
Just gorgeous! Could I ask where your clock is from… and whether it has a loud tick? My husband has a real thing about clocks ticking but I’ve found some supposed silent sweeps to be even noisier than the tickers!
We sourced our clock from the vintage wall but there is one similar for sale here https://www.opumo.com/lifestyle/homewares/clocks/only-once-industrial-1960s-rft-clock.html
It is a vintage clock with a modern movement added so there is an amount of ticking on mine! IT could be upgraded though perhaps.
Great, thanks so much!
Hi! Could I ask where your ‘meow’ print is from? Love this space!