Your Home Office

[Morris Zapp]

We are recent empty nesters and are moving some things around in our house.  I'm excited to finally have the space for an actual office -- rather than just a corner of the dining room table.
For those of you who have offices at home, can you describe your office including what kind of desk you have, bookshelves, etc.
Links to relevant websites where they sell furniture are much appreciated!
(I'm feeling really overwhelmed by the freedom to define my space and am also considering just buying a very plain dining room table for the space rather than an actual desk.  I'm a messy writer who works on lots of projects at once and I think a table might be better for my piles of paper.)
Also, I'm old school and still use a desk top all in one computer vs. a laptop.
How do you all set up and define your workspaces at home?

[craftyprof]

I'm trying to use less paper and I use a laptop at home, so maybe not what you are looking for...

But I bought a big IKEA Linnmon table top + legs and set it in front of a wall of Billy bookcases.  I like my piles as well, so there's plenty of surface area for current projects but I didn't bother with any filing cabinets or long term paper storage.

Adding doors to some of the bookcases and a fun rug (rugsusa has some good deals) made it feel a little less like dorm room furniture.

[Vkw10]

I use an L-shaped electric adjustable height desk. I bought it from www.upliftdesk.com where you can customize. I opted for power outlets in top, for desk lamp and computer.

I'm using wall-mounted adjustable shelving. It lets me store more books per foot than the typical bookcase, because I mounted shelves as high as I can reach. One section has several desk trays, one per project, since I like my working papers handy.

I have a short lateral file for business stuff. My notecards and good pens are displayed on top, since they're too pretty to hide in a drawer. The boring supplies are stored in a closet.

I have a large window with a view of dumpster, so I splurged on window treatment. Triple rod, sheers, tropical print, and solid drapes.

If we ever move from current apartment, I expect to pay a tidy sum for all the holes I put in walls by mounting shelves!

[aside]

Liking to work both standing and sitting and being rather tall, I splurged on a Varidesk model for taller folks:
https://www.varidesk.com/products/tall-standing-desk-exec?o=Size:40%20inch;Color:-%20Black

It has no hydraulics to wear out, or an electric motor to break down.  It holds my monitor and keyboard/mouse while leaving ample room to hold papers and books.  I have it on a table in an L-shaped arrangement with a regular desk for paperwork and handwriting, etc. I don't have enough bookshelf space for all of my many books, most of which reside in my office at school.  When I retire, this will be a problem!

[Morris Zapp]

For those of you with standing desks, how long did it take you to get used to working standing up rather than sitting down?

[aside]

For those of you with standing desks, how long did it take you to get used to working standing up rather than sitting down?

Not long at all for me.  For years before such things were readily available, I often would grade papers, fill out forms, etc., by standing in front of my filing cabinets. If one is keyboarding a lot, the trick is getting the keyboard at a proper height so that your wrists are at the proper angle and don't tire or cramp.  It is important to alternate standing and sitting, especially if you are not accustomed to standing for long periods.

Before I bought the stand/sit desk for home, I was able to try different models my colleagues have at work.  This was very helpful, as some of these adjustable desks are available only online.  Because they can be expensive, you want to be sure you're getting something that you will be willing and able to use.

[polly_mer]

For those of you with standing desks, how long did it take you to get used to working standing up rather than sitting down?

Not long at all for me.  For years before such things were readily available, I often would grade papers, fill out forms, etc., by standing in front of my filing cabinets. If one is keyboarding a lot, the trick is getting the keyboard at a proper height so that your wrists are at the proper angle and don't tire or cramp.  It is important to alternate standing and sitting, especially if you are not accustomed to standing for long periods.

This was true for me as well.  I love the really expensive adjustable desks my work provides.  One important consideration is getting a desk that goes the full comfortable range for you and is easy to make the adjustment.  When I changed offices, I inherited a desk that I spent five minutes cranking one day, but that desk didn't go high enough for me to actually stand comfortably and I'm only 5 foot 5.  I have no idea for whom that small range was intended, but my manager agreed I could replace that pitiful desk with one that went the full range necessary for me with more adjustable options.


For my home office, I have a roll top desk that we bought 20 years ago on sale at a Sam's Club.   That's where my big desk top computer goes and I use the pull-out side panels to temporarily hold the books/papers I'm using right now.

I also have an eight-foot folding table to the side with a setup for my laptop from work that includes an external monitor, external keyboard, and external mouse so I can have the benefit of the portable laptop, but the comfort of a desktop set up.  The rest of that table has my stacks of in-progress materials.  I have one bookcase for my books that I only use in the office for the current projects (we also have a library room where most of the books go), a baker's rack for other office supplies that I need readily available that don't fit nicely in the rolltop drawers including printing supplies, and four old-school metal 4-drawer filing cabinets we picked up at auction years ago for the paper articles I'm still carting around.  The printer sits on one of the filing cabinets.

We took the doors off the closet and put free-standing metal shelves to hold the mountains of office supplies we buy when they go on sale.  I have several dozen plastic containers with labels so I can find the right supply immediately to replace the active use singleton in a drawer or the baker's rack as necessary.

[sinenomine]

My spare bedroom is almost wholly converted to a study. I picked up shelves in various places -- some hand me downs and some from Staples. The desk and chair came from an office supply company; they were relatively inexpensive, since they were returns from a company that was upgrading to newer furniture. The only non-academic things in the room are my digital piano and a concert-sized xylophone. I love spending time in there, since it's always either scholarship or music related!

[mamselle]

Piano AND xylophone!

Cool.

M.

[AvidReader]

My "office" is the spare room, so there is a guest bed in the middle, and the perimeter is bookcases, with a little gap for my desk and another gap for my spouse's. I wish I had room for a table, but it could only go where the bed is.

For my home office, I have a roll top desk that we bought 20 years ago on sale at a Sam's Club.   That's where my big desk top computer goes and I use the pull-out side panels to temporarily hold the books/papers I'm using right now.

I bought this exact desk on Craigslist a few years ago, and I love it, especially the pull-out shelving. Since the room serves several functions, it is great to be able to pull the rolltop over my work when we have guests.

If we were not renters, I would use the wall-mounted shelving Vkw10 mentions. At the moment, we move too often for that to be practical, so I buy IKEA Gersby bookcases (~$30) and re-use them until they are no longer worth moving. The shelves were not originally adjustable, but I've gotten good at adding new peg holes. I prefer narrower bookcases because the shelves sag otherwise.

AR

[fast_and_bulbous]

Piano AND xylophone!

Cool.

M.

Totally, especially if you can play both at the same time!!


(hee hee)

[pigou]

I have a GeekDesk adjustable height standing desk: https://www.geekdesk.com/
A 28" 4k monitor: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00YD3DBOC
And a second 28" 4k monitor that I rotate to portrait mode: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BYU0GVC/
A Microsoft Surface Keyboard: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/surface-keyboard/8r3rqvvflp4k
And a Microsoft Surface Mouse: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/surface-mouse/8qbtdr3q4rpw

I use a Surface Book laptop, so I also picked up a Surface Dock: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/surface-dock/8qrh2npz0s0p

This is $75 on Ebay; paying $200 is insane. The mouse and keyboard are usually cheaper on other websites, too.

When I come home, I just plug my laptop into my dock and it's like working on a desktop. With the added benefit of not having to worry about syncing things or updating two machines.

For those of you with standing desks, how long did it take you to get used to working standing up rather than sitting down?

I got rid of my office chair and it didn't take long after that.

I also got this mat for the standing desk and stand on it barefoot... very comfy, even after a couple hours. Though I usually move around to get some coffee or just to think about what I'm going to write/do: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005UA2WO2

In fact, the ease of walking around for a few seconds is what I like most about using a standing desk.

[Vkw10]

For those of you with standing desks, how long did it take you to get used to working standing up rather than sitting down?

The first week, I only stood when I set a timer to remind me to change position. By the end of the first month, I switched positions as automatically as hit turn signals when driving. I used to get stiff and sore when involved in a major project, because I didn't move enough. I haven't stiffened up from hours at computer in a couple of years.

[glowdart]

I have three table surfaces, six bookcases, and a nice chair. It is all IKEA, Staples, yard sales, or hand-me-downs from people who moved out of town. I find it crucial to have a dedicated workspace.

[ohnoes]

I got my desk from a local school for about $20 and refinished it.  It's an old oak double pedestal deal and I am immensely pleased with it.

Bookcases and file cabinet are also oak and stained to match the desk.  These three things were outrageously expensive but are lovely.

I have a cheap IKEA desk chair to "encourage" less time at the desk and a quality leather recliner for reading and resting my eyes.