Office Painting

My Newly Redone Office

I’ve spent the last month working on redecorating my home office. I partnered with Sherwin-Williams, using the new HGTV® HOME by Sherwin-Williams color collections and paint and a $1000 budget. Want to see how it turned out?

I think it’s looking really cute. Let’s take a closer look at each of the issues I addressed…

The Rug Vs. the Chair

The existing zigzag rug stayed, and I managed to find an affordable used Eames Management chair. In pink, no less! I would like to reupholster it someday, but I can rock the eighties’ dusty rose for a while.

The Computer (and the Wall Behind it)

The old computer that was sitting behind my new one (a silly thing to do) is now in the basement, and I’ll be setting up a desk down there for it eventually. I cleaned up the cords beneath my desk and from the desk to the printer behind me as well.

I chose art to go above the computer that could actually be seen, and moved the mirror (that was half-blocked) to the adjacent wall. The bird painting is by Amy Ruppel, the portait was from Paul Ferney, and the wall sculptures were discussed here.

Storage and Organization

I had to empty the huge shelving unit to paint the wall behind it (what a pain in the rear that was). The good thing about that though was that it forced me to rethink the way I put everything back. I was able to go through a lot of the books and things that I had on the shelves, and I pared it all down. Then I added some matching baskets along the bottom to make the toys look nicer, and I didn’t need to do anything further to organize my things.

The Curtain as a Closet Door

The curtain is gone! A door was fitted and hung for the closet, which cost more than I had anticipated and took a third of the budget. I love it though! A curtain for a door is fine, and a lot of people like that solution, but a true door feels more polished and keeps the kids and cats out. I painted the door the same color (“Snowbound,” #SW 7004 / LL17, semi-gloss) as the rest of the trim .

The Window

I painted the window white as well and chose to hang simple curtains from IKEA that match the wall color. I also planned to add a sheer roller shade, but my usual go-to (Enje shades) are unavailable right now.

Painting the Trim and the Walls

I used the new line of paint from HGTV® HOME by Sherwin-Williams for the office. The walls are “Contented” (#SW 6191 / LL12, flat finish) from the Livable Luxe collection, and I painted all of the trim “Snowbound” (#SW 7004 / LL17, semi-gloss), a white from the same color collection. The wall color is that hard to define color between green, blue, and gray, and it seems to be popping up everywhere these days. The color was a bit of a departure for me, but as I narrowed down my paint swatches, I kept finding myself drawn to it.

Lighting

The old ceiling fan that came with the house had seen better days. I still love the Jonathan Adler light that I chose for my former studio (now Eleanor’s room), so I picked up another to swap the office ceiling fan out for.

A Place for the Kids

I spend a lot of time in my office, so I was sure to include space for Eleanor and August to play. The small table and chairs are light enough to move them out of the way, but Eleanor loves coloring or playing there.

There you have it!

I love the way the office turned out. The office in our old apartment was pink, and when Brandon and I moved here, I chose the exact same color to quickly get my office ready. After nearly a decade with a pink office, I’m still getting used to the new color but I’m loving the white trim and the closet door. It feels good to have the space freshened up.

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  • Yvonne
    August 16, 2011 at 6:57 am

    LOVE IT!!! There something about home offices that I love and yours is on my list now. I really love your chair, I think I need to copy that. Thanks so much for the inspiration xox Y

  • VikaMoka
    August 16, 2011 at 7:06 am

    All I can say is that it’s lovely!! I wish you the best of times with your kids in your new gorgeous office :D

  • Stephanie
    August 16, 2011 at 7:21 am

    Love, love, love the new office! The new wall color looks especially great. Do you know the name of the curtains you got at Ikea? Are they a bluish-gray?

    • Making it Lovely
      August 16, 2011 at 8:41 am

      They aren’t on the website, but they are called Ransby. Mine are blueish gray, but they come in three or four neutrals (a more greenish gray, taupe, and maybe a more pure gray too).

      • Stephanie
        August 16, 2011 at 2:34 pm

        Thank you!!

  • Andrea Howe
    August 16, 2011 at 7:30 am

    Love everything about it. Nice job Nicole!

  • Alli
    August 16, 2011 at 7:41 am

    Wow! I really love it! What is the style name of the curtains you bought from IKEA? Thanks :)

    • Making it Lovely
      August 16, 2011 at 10:10 pm

      Ransby.

      • Alli
        August 17, 2011 at 11:19 am

        Yeah, yeah. Thank you!

  • Giulia
    August 16, 2011 at 7:51 am

    Great job. Love the storage and your art, it all came together beautifully.

  • Katie
    August 16, 2011 at 7:55 am

    Lovely! Where did you get the round mirror?

  • Candice
    August 16, 2011 at 7:56 am

    Gorgeous! My favorite part is the “beauty” banner and all going on under it. What are those cabinets underneath the banner? They are great. Thanks for sharing.

  • Katie
    August 16, 2011 at 8:00 am

    So lovely and amazing! It looks fantastic! xo

  • dg
    August 16, 2011 at 8:14 am

    what are those black cabinets with the white doors?

  • Tequila b
    August 16, 2011 at 8:17 am

    The office chair? where is it from? i must have it.

  • lisa
    August 16, 2011 at 8:20 am

    love it! where did you get the starburst on the wall and the rotary phone? i keep looking for one but can’t find one in good shape!

  • Mary
    August 16, 2011 at 8:28 am

    LOVE the wall color, and all of it, really. When did August get so big?!?

  • Christi
    August 16, 2011 at 8:35 am

    It looks fantastic! How on earth did you manage to hide your computer cables?

  • Kristin
    August 16, 2011 at 8:36 am

    It looks so beautiful, what a great place to spend the day working and playing!

  • Rebekah
    August 16, 2011 at 8:54 am

    Neat screen saver! Where can I find it?

    • Hayley
      August 16, 2011 at 3:22 pm

      I’d like to know too – it’s funky!

    • Making it Lovely
      August 16, 2011 at 10:23 pm

      You can grab it from Veer.

  • katie
    August 16, 2011 at 8:55 am

    So cute! Working from home can be lonely at times…having such a lovely space sure makes a difference! Great job.

  • Amanda @ Our Humble A{Bowe}d
    August 16, 2011 at 8:56 am

    I really love the new paint color. It it different than the rest of your home, but not so drastic that it doesn’t flow. I thought about a similar color for my office, but it was too washed out, so I chose a chocolate brown instead. I love it paired with tons of white: http://ourhumbleabowed.wordpress.com/2011/05/18/a-finished-office/ I also love your more organized bookshelf. I don’t know if you store magazines in your office, but I love to keep mine organized by month: http://ourhumbleabowed.wordpress.com/2011/05/24/magazines-by-month/ It looks much cleaner and I can find them quicker.

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:46 am

      So nice. I love all of the white in there too.

  • muriam
    August 16, 2011 at 9:00 am

    can you post where you got the lamp and phone from? Love it!

  • Melanie @ Mailbox Journey
    August 16, 2011 at 9:03 am

    I love it, you did a really great job.

  • bethany
    August 16, 2011 at 9:04 am

    That looks lovely and calming!

  • Sarah
    August 16, 2011 at 9:05 am

    I love how your office turned out. I am especially loving the lamps on your desk and on the low cabinet unit. Where are they from?

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:48 am

      They were from Crate & Barrel (“Frida” lamps).

  • Senja
    August 16, 2011 at 9:11 am

    I love everything about it! It looks so warm and calm – really great! :)

    One of my favourites are the chair and the decorations on the cabinet.

  • puck
    August 16, 2011 at 9:30 am

    I have the same Adler light in my living room. :)

  • Amber
    August 16, 2011 at 9:35 am

    Beautiful! Where are the kids table and chairs from?

  • MariaBen
    August 16, 2011 at 9:37 am

    i love your BLOG & i love your style…very inspiring…

  • Amanda
    August 16, 2011 at 10:05 am

    I love this room; the colour, the curtains. Glad you finally showed us! :D

  • Kristina
    August 16, 2011 at 10:10 am

    The wall color is fab! It seems to compliment the wallpaper in the dining room too, no?

    PS: Still jealous of the mirror! Any clue where it can be found now?

  • Jules
    August 16, 2011 at 10:14 am

    It looks great, Nicole! I love how the office looks with the wallpaper in the dining room.

  • Dariela
    August 16, 2011 at 10:24 am

    Very pretty! You make everything so stylish and clean, I’m always learning, love it!

  • Mefi
    August 16, 2011 at 10:31 am

    Lovely!

  • Emily
    August 16, 2011 at 10:31 am

    Congrats! It looks perfect! It’s so warm and inviting I almost forgot it’s in your basement. :)

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:51 am

      No, this is a separate space. The studio is in the basement, but my office has always been on the main floor in what used to be one of the house’s original two bedrooms.

  • Erin
    August 16, 2011 at 10:38 am

    Such a great space! I could definitely work in there. :) I LOVE the color on the walls. We recently painted our master bedroom a similar color.

  • Jenny G.
    August 16, 2011 at 10:42 am

    LOVE it! I’ve got your rug bookmarked for someday in my house. I actually think that the pink chair looks amazing as-is in there! You’ve got a fantastic style mix of retro and modern. Come do my house? =)

  • NicoleD
    August 16, 2011 at 10:57 am

    Beautiful!! I love how it all came together :) I must pin that light fixture, so cool.

  • dawn
    August 16, 2011 at 11:23 am

    this looks absolutely amazing!!! super job nicole!

  • Stephanie
    August 16, 2011 at 11:59 am

    You always do an amazing job balancing a clean, functional space with personality. You truly have a gift for decorating. In love with your phone and those are my favorite Anthropologie knobs.

  • Rachelle
    August 16, 2011 at 12:26 pm

    Love the new office! And I really love that you worked with the color of the Eames chair. I am dying for one but my husband would never be ok with a pink office chair.

  • Jaclyn Van Den Berg
    August 16, 2011 at 12:40 pm

    ABSOLUTELY LOVELY! I may have missed it – but did you make that banner? If not – where did you get it? Also – Love the white owl … where is that from. Everything is picture perfect … great job!

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:52 am

      I wrote about the banner on Babble, and the owl is a vintage cookie jar from eBay.

  • Lauren
    August 16, 2011 at 12:44 pm

    Love it all! We have the light in our kitchen.

  • Tiffany
    August 16, 2011 at 1:29 pm

    I love everything about this office. It’s very inspiring.

  • jina
    August 16, 2011 at 1:39 pm

    Are the kids’ table and chairs from Ikea as well? It’s all very cute.

  • Kahli
    August 16, 2011 at 1:58 pm

    This is all just very lovely! I really love that white ceramic owl too!

  • Rebecca @ beautiful square feet
    August 16, 2011 at 2:05 pm

    Love the new office! Also love the wall colour with that rug! Good choice!

  • Miss B.
    August 16, 2011 at 2:08 pm

    So neat, wish my desktop on my computer was as organized. The color on the chart looks sagey but in your photos it looks more taupe either way you did a beautiful job as always!

  • Wrenaria
    August 16, 2011 at 2:09 pm

    Where did you get that adorable owl? I am pretty sure I NEED it.

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:55 am

      It’s a vintage cookie jar that I found on eBay.

  • Jenn
    August 16, 2011 at 2:10 pm

    Absolutely love it! Where can I find the screensaver? Thanks!

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:56 am

      The screensaver is called “Wish You Were Here” from Veer.

  • Claudia
    August 16, 2011 at 2:33 pm

    Gosh, I love your owl. Is it vintage ? Haha, I see just that Wrenaria thougt the same.

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:56 am

      Yep, vintage. It says “PoppyTrail” on the bottom.

  • Peden
    August 16, 2011 at 2:42 pm

    This looks great! Very pretty – a little more grown-up, but still very fun.

    I would love to know more about how you tidied up your cords!

    • Making it Lovely
      August 17, 2011 at 8:57 am

      I wrote about tidying up the cords here. That’s an older post though, and they look even better now.

  • LisaInIllinois
    August 16, 2011 at 3:11 pm

    Love everything about this space. I mixed leftover paint from various projects and actually created something very close to your wall color. It is in my guest bedroom and beautifully soothing.

  • ellen patton
    August 16, 2011 at 4:18 pm

    Wow – very cool! And I love the phone.

  • Annika
    August 16, 2011 at 5:01 pm

    Well done! Very nice colormatchings!

  • Alison
    August 16, 2011 at 5:36 pm

    I love it! I have cats myself (four) plus a long haired dog, and I always stay away from curtains that puddle on the floor simply because they accumulate sooo much fur. Do you have any tips on keeping the fur off? I vacuum constantly (literally every day), but fur still seems to cling to floor-touching curtains. I usually have to use a lint-remover to get it off. WIth my current house I’ve backed away from puddling curtains altogether just for this reason.

    • Making it Lovely
      August 16, 2011 at 9:20 pm

      I think it’s all in the fabric selection. Plain cotton curtains and simple woven fabrics tend to be OK and not accumulate much fur. Velvet curtains (though I love the look) would be a nightmare.

  • Wendy
    August 16, 2011 at 6:28 pm

    love your office make over! fabulous!

  • jbhat
    August 16, 2011 at 6:37 pm

    It looks sooo pretty. Love your style.

    jbhat

  • scs_68
    August 16, 2011 at 7:02 pm

    Looks great! Can you tell me where you found the desk? Also, how did you make the two-tone cabinets? Thanks.

    • Making it Lovely
      August 16, 2011 at 9:21 pm

      The desk was from west elm and the storage cabinets are IKEA Effektiv units with glossy white doors.

  • Rose
    August 16, 2011 at 7:14 pm

    Looks great! Remember you can cross off “painting your office” from the 30 before 30 list now!

    • Making it Lovely
      August 16, 2011 at 9:41 pm

      Oh, you’re right! At least I did it before I turned 31 (next month).

  • Sarah
    August 16, 2011 at 7:49 pm

    It looks really great – clean and simple and I LOVE that phone! where did you get it?? ;-)

  • Maria @ Orchard Bloom
    August 16, 2011 at 8:08 pm

    Lovely office! I’m digging your phone!

  • Viktoriya
    August 16, 2011 at 8:09 pm

    The space looks AMAZING, you should be very proud!! It’s so personalized, open, and comfortable. I love how you’ve included items that invite your kids into the room. Great job!!

  • Adventures In Babywearing
    August 16, 2011 at 9:03 pm

    Love the chair!!!

    Steph

  • Lianne
    August 16, 2011 at 9:34 pm

    I can’t believe August is sitting up on his own! i have a little boy a few weeks younger than him and he’s not close. We need to get practicing.

  • Karl
    August 16, 2011 at 9:53 pm

    What is the beanbag / footrest, and where’d you find it?

  • Nikki
    August 16, 2011 at 10:38 pm

    Where did you get the banner? It’s adorable.

  • Krishann
    August 17, 2011 at 9:11 am

    It looks great! I love the touches of pink throughout the room and the white trim and accessories oh and the wall color! It looks like a great workspace that you and your little ones can utilize and really enjoy :)

  • Amy
    August 17, 2011 at 9:21 am

    The kid’s table and chair is an awesome idea! I love that!!

  • Edyta
    August 17, 2011 at 9:28 am

    It turned out so pretty! Love the gray and pink combination! I bet it feels so nice to work from there now :)

  • Kasey
    August 17, 2011 at 9:36 am

    How lovely! I would love to have a work space like this.

  • Kathryn
    August 17, 2011 at 11:03 am

    Love that screen saver! Where did you get it?

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  • Kristen
    August 17, 2011 at 12:50 pm

    Looks beautiful! Where can I get your screensaver?

  • Sandra Yeong
    August 17, 2011 at 1:17 pm

    Lovely Office. Do you wear shoe in the house?? I always wonder how everyone keep clean of the floor when there is pets running around and toddler crawling with fur around… some more with carpets… I am always shy away from Carpet with pets around.

  • Kari Shimmel
    August 17, 2011 at 5:43 pm

    Great job on your new office! I love the subtle touches and fully agree with you about the closet door. It provides a perfect level of sophistication. Thanks for sharing – I adore your blog!

  • Emma
    August 17, 2011 at 10:41 pm

    I love your owl! (cookie jar?) Great work on the redecorating!

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  • Gill
    August 18, 2011 at 10:05 am

    Just Lovely! x

  • Jacqueline
    August 19, 2011 at 12:25 am

    Absolutely LOVE IT!!! What a gorgeous color palette.

  • Marcelle Rebelo
    August 19, 2011 at 11:08 am

    Hi, I am a librarian and English teacher and I am looking forward have my home office ready. Your ideas are inspiring. I shared them in my blog http://biblioideias.blogspot.com and it will be posted by tomorrow. Thanks for the inspiration! The Braziliam people will love your ideas!

  • Nikki
    August 19, 2011 at 5:10 pm

    In the first photo, the wall to the left of the curtains (between the curtains and the bookshelves) looks to me to be blue. Is that just my screen? If it is different, can you please provide the color name? Thanks!

  • CBO
    August 19, 2011 at 7:27 pm

    Please don’t reupholster that chair ever!! It’s gorgeous. Beautiful space. Bravo.

  • Mary G
    August 20, 2011 at 9:15 am

    Hi Nicole,
    Love your blog. Can you tell me where you got the sweet kids table…looks metal..is it?

    Thanks

  • Sil
    August 20, 2011 at 9:32 am

    Wow, I looooooooooooooooove it!
    I want that chair, too! Where did you find it?

    XOXO
    Sil

  • Sarah
    August 22, 2011 at 5:44 am

    Great choice of color – often home offices look so cold and stark, but this is a room you want to spend time in.

  • Melissa
    August 23, 2011 at 9:09 am

    Jordan just announced on her site (ohhappyday.com) yesterday that Paul is offering The Commission Project again this year. His painting in your office is stunning. Thought I’d send you a head’s up in case you were eyeing another one.

  • Natalie
    August 23, 2011 at 4:10 pm

    This looks fantastic!! You truly did a wonderful job. Very chick, yet still livable. Well done! :)

  • Kimmie in Fort Worth
    September 4, 2011 at 12:45 am

    Gorgeous! My favorite part of the room, by far, is the rubber band around the cabinet knobs to keep out curious toddlers! ;)

  • Susan Miles
    September 9, 2011 at 12:33 pm

    Belevation Mom loves a great decorating job! This one is truly impressive. Terrific for Mom and Kids to safety co-exist in a neat,organized, beautiful space like this one!

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    Really lovely, Nicole. Thanks for sharing!

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