I tried my best to provide information about where everything is from and detail the process, but if you have any questions about anything, please let me know. I’m more than happy to share!
Now let’s get to it!
Home Office Tour
Ryan was pretty laid back about our home office since I’m the one who works out of the space day in and day out. He pretty much stepped back and let me do my thing and while I think it definitely has a feminine feel, I tried not to get too carried away and still keep our office somewhat neutral. We both ended up feeling happy with the end result!
My color inspirations:
- Gray
- Soft mint green
- Yellow
- Hints of white and burlap
The walls in the office were already painted gray when we moved in. I debated painting them a soft mint green color, but in the end I decided to use mint green and yellow as accent colors since painting is a pain and I figured the gray walls offered a great neutral base.
At first I was concerned the room would look boring because the IKEA Hemnes office furniture we already owned was gray. Gray walls + Gray furniture = A lot of gray! Since we didn’t want to replace the furniture, I was committed to getting color into the room in other ways and began with a rug that instantly brightened up the space.
(As you can tell, Sadie followed me around for this whole home office photo shoot. The fact that I was able to snap any photos of the office without her in them is a small miracle.)
I know it may seem silly, but I had the hardest time picking out a rug. I knew I wanted something patterned but not overly modern or bold. Around this same time, I got an email from Wayfair.com offering to send me a few housewarming gifts. Once I started browsing around the site, it became increasingly clear that they have everything. Seriously. It’s kind of overwhelming but I searched for very specific terms and that helped me narrow my search a bit!
Since I was discouraged at the rug options I found in various local home stores, I figured I would turn my search online and searched Wayfair. The 3’6’’ x 5’6’’ Loloi Francesca Mist rug was like a breath of fresh air!
I knew immediately that it would add the perfect pop of soft color to the room and I am so grateful to Wayfair for gifting it to me!
Once I had the rug in place, I found it much easier to decorate the office since my color palette was coming to life. I already had two yellow vases on hand from when I decorated my previous home office in Ocala, so I simply went on a mad search at every HomeGoods I could find to fill in the blanks with more yellow and mint green accents. (The birdcage between the vases was actually used to collect cards at our wedding!)
I found these chairs and the Tainoki end table at HomeGoods in Charlotte and immediately loaded them into my car along with the yellow and mint green pillows.
(Yes, I set it all up in the store to make sure it looked okay before I purchased everything. I am a treat.)
I topped the end table with a Threshold lamp from Target and two candles, including one of my beloved Rewind recycled wine bottle candles in Spiked Cider.
As everything began to come together, I wanted to lighten things up a bit and then went on a mission to find a white chair for the office that was comfortable, functional and not a total eye-sore like most rolling office chairs out there.
Wayfair.com came in handy again and I ended up with the Boss Office Products High Back Caressoft Plus Exective chair that I accented with the Nellary Paisley Pillow (in ash).
Again, thank you so much to Wayfair.com for sending these two finds to me. I love them!
Next up on my home office decoration journey was my printer cart makeover.
I detailed this makeover in a previous post, but it was super simple thanks to a fresh coat of Valspar Color Radiance spray paint I bought at Lowe’s for $5!
I topped the printer cart with a tray I received from my friend Leah as a wedding gift and use it to hold important time-sensitive paperwork (removed from the current photo for privacy) and notepads. I also placed two super-cheap sea glass-colored jars from IKEA on the tray and filled them with pens and pencils.
Underneath the printer cart is a gold bucket that was once my grandparents’ that I filled with a pile of magazines that feature some of my freelance work and blog mentions.
After the cart makeover, I turned my attention to my bookshelf and did my best to strategically place books, mementos, picture frames and baskets on the shelves so it looked somewhat organized.
I added two baskets from my grandmother’s house on the top of the bookshelf which are still not full, but I’m sure I’ll be grateful for the extra storage space eventually.
To the right side of the bookshelf is a basket filled with race medals (topped with Snowball, my favorite childhood stuffed animal because I cannot bear to part with it). To the left is a decorative ceramic garden stool that is now serving as a quirky door stop!
I try my best to keep my desk mostly clear since I am often jotting down notes while working at my computer, but a few things made it onto my desktop, including an old photo of me and Ryan, a cork paper and pen holder (HomeGoods), a candle (placed in an IKEA dish), decorative mint vase (HomeGoods) and a pad of paper.
(And yes, you better believe I shoved some paperwork in a drawer before snapping these pics. A clean desktop is nice but oftentimes not entirely realistic.)
I also added a small glass dish I bought at IKEA and filled it with things I use every day: Hand lotion, lip balm and matches to light candles.
On the wall to the left of my desk is a picture of a flower from IKEA that I previously had hung in my old home office and a framed piece of burlap fabric that will serve as a dry-erase board featuring daily to-do lists.
The last project was, without a doubt, the most daunting.
The gallery wall!
I knew I wanted a gallery wall somewhere in our house and the office seemed like the perfect place. I wasn’t really sure where to begin, so I turned to Pinterest for some inspiration and quickly found myself gravitating toward a more uniform look with matching frames.
I’ll be sure to detail the entire gallery wall process in a separate post since I’ve receive a bunch of questions about it, but I love having so many fun pictures and memories hanging right above my desk. (All of the frames are from IKEA.)
And that’s it! I hope you enjoyed this little peek into our new home!
Up next: The kitchen!
***
Disclaimer: As stated above, Wayfair.com gifted me the items mentioned from their site but everything else was purchased by me. Affiliate links are included in this post that directly link to some of the items featured. As always, thank you so much for your support!
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LOVE this, Julie!!! I was seriously about to start typing up a “Home Office Dreams” post! Your office turned out great, and I can’t wait to see what awesome things you accomplish inside it 🙂 I’m sure Sadie appreciates having that nice soft, cozy rug on the hardwood, I imagine this winter that will be “her spot” 🙂
I love it!!! Like really love it. Totally my style! The rug is lovely and it’s all so nice and clean with room to organize real life office stuff. My hope is to have a dedicated office one day to work on my blog out of 🙂
Very cute. I love the pops of blue and yellow.
This looks awesome! I love the huge windows and how bright and crisp it is. It has a spa like feel, but the attitude that I’m here to work 🙂 Great job!!!
Thanks Gena!! I appreciate the “spa” comment b/c I think I was really trying to create a space that felt calm but organized and productive, too. 🙂
That’s a huge office! Looks great! My desk is a disaster – I can’t even work at it cuz there’s so much stuff piled up lol decorating and organizing are not my thing!
I definitely shoved some paperwork in drawers before snapping these photos. 🙂 I really prefer a clean workspace, but that isn’t realistic much of the time!
Love your office. I love the pops of color you added to the room.
Thank you, Marissa. 🙂
Oh I love this!! Tonight I have the final walkthrough for my condo and settlement tomorrow! I am so excited to be a first time home owner; this series will certainly be an inspiration! I love the grays, I am planning to do that in my master bedroom. When are you going to add interior decorator to your resume! You are so creative! 🙂
Yayyy for owning a home!! I know all the stress and headaches that come along with home-buying and wish you the best of luck!! Hope you absolutely love your new place, Katie!
Your office looks perfect! You did a fantastic job!
You’ve done such a great job with this room! It looks awesome! I love the gallery wall and the burlap dry erase frame – such a good idea!
Now I want to go to IKEA… 😉
Your office is beautiful!! It’s one of those spaces I see in Home & Gardens or HGTV magazine and only dream of perfecting myself in my own place one day! Well done!
While we miss you here in Florida, your new home looks beautiful! So happy for you!
Miss you guys, too!!! Hoping to make it back there for FLBlogCon one day!!
Looks pretty and functional! Though honestly I would have replaced those chairs with more cozy ones with arms. What do you plan to use that area for?
Oh that area is purely decorative. 🙂 Ha! I don’t really see us sitting there unless we want to hang out w/someone who is on the computer. We do most of our lounging in the family room. 🙂
Wow, Julie! Your office is beautiful! And those windows!!! I can’t wait to see more. It looks like such a beautiful home!
Thanks, Mary!!
I love your office Julie – it is so cute! We must have the same GREAT taste because I also just bought the blue glass lamp from Target and have the vanilla elixer candle and rewined Spike Cider candle!
I LOVE your office! I am seriously so bad at decorating but this whole space is my style. Want to come make over my house?
It looks AWESOME Julie! You did a great job! This is so fun seeing how your new home comes together. Thanks for sharing! Can’ wait for the kitchen!
Wow your office looks great! I love the gallery wall.
The office looks great! I discovered Wayfair a few months ago and seriously love them! I scored an awesome canvas picture for our living room that I had been searching for forever along with a rug that I love!
I know!!! They really do have everyyyything! Glad you were able to find some awesome thing!
I LOVE your office! It has a Pottery Barn feel to me! Don’t you love decorating a home you own? My husband and I bought a home last year in downtown Orlando and we love it so much! The freedom of doing what you want is so nice! I do the same thing when it comes to making home decorating decisions too. I have to arrange the items in the store before I decide to purchase. Your office looks wonderful, I can’t wait to see the kitchen!
Oh my goodness! Your house is SO charming! I’m definitely swooning over this office space. It’s just so calming and peaceful, and looks like a great place to work.
Can’t wait to see the rest!
My living room is gray and yellow, so I’m clearly a huge fan of that color combo. I think you did a great job at making it gender neutral and I love the photo wall!
Wow, you did a great job! Now I’m wishing I could give my office a makeover, but sadly it’s not a home office so I don’t really have a lot of control.
What an incredible home space! I almost want to come sit in one of those chairs and work, myself!!! 🙂
I love the super low windows! And your taste is very comfortable and charming. Well done on your decore choices! I adore the furniture (desk, shelf and bench).
So … when can you be in Michigan to decorate my home? 🙂
Good job!
Super cute office!! Love it!
I totally believe you had a hard time picking out a rug because it took me 6 months to decide on a rug for our living room. Even the Mr was looking and he couldn’t decide either. It seems when you’re not looking for yourself you can find at least 3-4 you like but when it’s actually time to shop for yourself, they all disappear. 😐
Exactly!!!!
I LOVE those colors! I want mine to look like that. The photo wall is my favorite!
Your office looks wonderful! I love the hardwood in your home as well. I’m definitely excited to see what’s in store for the kitchen and the rest of the home 🙂 So glad to see that things are coming together!
Julie, I LOVE it!!! You did a wonderful job with it.
SO beautiful! I agree with the comment towards the top that it definately has a spa-like feel. And those huge windows! Gotta love the beaufitiful views and natural lighting. House envy going on over here… 🙂
Natural lighting was on my “must have” list when we stared looking for a home! And thank you!!
LOVE the colors! It looks beautiful!
Wowww!! Those windows and the wainscoting and the floors!! It’s beautiful!! Love your style!
The office looks great! I LOVE the gallery wall. I’m obsessed with those right now, but it can be so hard to find the right space for one. I think putting it in the office was a great idea.
Wow, you did such an amazing job with this home office! If I were you I’d be ecstatic to work in here everyday 🙂 Can’t wait to see how you decorate the rest of your new house!
This looks so great Julie! I can’t wait to start shopping for little decorative items once we buy another house. I just wish Ikea was closer to Cary! Looking forward to seeing more 🙂
Julie, I love the office! It’s got such a great feel! And the lamp is perfect for that window!
This is my dream office, no lie. Your color choices are exactly what I want when we have a house, and I love the thought of putting accents of yellow! And your office chair?! I’m already dreaming of it!
Looks great Julie! Can’t wait to see the rest!
Looks Awesome! We picked that same rug for our foyer and I’ve been looking for paint inspirations in the same color scheme (grays, greens, and yellows). Thanks for sharing…this helps me with the look I’m going for.
So cute! Love the colors!
YAY I love these types of posts, because I’m nosey obviously haha. Your office is AMAZING! I would give anything for windows like that in my home, like every single room! Great job, can’t wait to see more.
Where is the bookshelf from?? I really like it!
IKEA! It’s part of their Hemnes collection. 🙂
All I can say is, WOW!! I hope that when I have my own home someday I can decorate 1/2 as good as you did!!! It looks beautiful!
i just love your style! mint green is one of my absolute favorites, so i love the pops of color throughout your home office. i’ll be moving into my own apartment soon, so hopefully this post will inspire some decorating ideas. =)
Absolutely beautiful! I love how big it is! The lighting is awesome, too. Those big windows make it all look so homey and just amazing!
beautiful wall color!
I can’t wait to decorate a home office of my own. You’ve just added to my mental list of ideas! Very cute!
Love it! I struggle with knowing where to begin when trying to plan a room…. we are in the process of buying a new house and the idea of the blank slate scares me a bit! Thank goodness for pinterest 😉
Pinterest definitely helps with inspiration! I found it much easier to bring everything together once I had the rug. Sometimes all it takes is one piece to pull everything together and give you a starting point!
Looks great Julie! I dream to have an office this organized and pretty someday!
Wow, that is a HUGE office! You did a nice job using the space and making it look clean and uncluttered in the process. How much time a day would you say you spend working in your office? I think I would spend a lot more time in my office if it looked like that! Great job and love the colors.
What a beautiful office! I’m looking at revamping our home office soon and definitely want to steal some of your ideas!
I love it! It’s so bright and light filled! I love all the yellow accents.