What I don’t miss about a corporate office is having a standard-issue office that looks the same as everyone else’s office. When I was a corporate employee, my desk accessories were smoke gray, my desk with a return was tan and nondescript, and my guest chairs looked like something from my dentist’s office.

Working from home has changed all that. My home office has a mocha-color L-shape desk, a comfy animal print chair, family pictures and two bookcases.

One of the best parts about working from home is that your home office can reflect your style and taste. Just as you don’t have to wear a suit or dress to work, you don’t have to have a home office that matches your corporate counterparts. Instead, consider these four ways to make your home office reflect your needs and taste.

1. Bring your family into your office

Some companies don’t allow personal items anywhere in an office. When you work from home, adding artwork and personal photos can warm up and improve the overall look of where you work.

The perfect resource for artwork is right under your nose — just ask your children. Your budding Picasso or Annie Leibovitz can provide inspirational art and photos for every wall of your home office.

If you don’t have access to kid art, frame photos from your last vacation. The photos will add a bit of color and interest to your home office and you’ll always have a reminder of the great time you had on vacation.

To read the rest of my guest post on MichelleShaeffer.com, click here.

Clients don’t ever come to my home office. I’d invite them, but it doesn’t make sense for them to come over. Instead, I need to be able to see their home before I can design a home office for them.

Before you invite a client to meet with you in your home office, consider these tips.

Put your stuff away

No one (especially clients) wants to see laundry baskets overflowing with dirty clothes, toys all over the floor, and newspapers that haven’t made it to the recycling bin. If you’re in a hurry, shove stuff in closets until you can put everything away where it belongs. I’m not advocating disorganization, but sometimes last-minute client meetings require desperate measures.

Move your office to a space near your front door

A good way to avoid dragging your clients throughout your home is to convert your dining room or formal living room into a home office. Think about how often you use either room. If you’re like most people, you rarely use those rooms and could use this bonus space as a home office.

Create a space within or near your home office for client meetings

Make your dining room serve double duty as a conference room. If you followed the last tip and moved your office to the dining room, then problem solved. Within that space, consider adding a small kitchen area. A small cabinet stocked with a coffee maker, soft drinks, and water for meetings is all you need.

Hide certain rooms

Before a client comes over, close the doors to any rooms you don’t want them to see. A client may pretend that the mess doesn’t bother them, but it does. Years ago, I was going to hire a freelance designer to create some marketing materials for me, but after I walked through the front of her house and almost tripped on two laundry baskets and a few toys, I worked with a different designer. I was concerned that the chaos in her house was going to spill over into her business.

Make sure your family knows when a client is coming over

There are some things you can’t un-see. It took me a week to get over seeing a freelancer’s husband in his Speedo as he was walking to their pool during our meeting. I was more disgusted, than he was embarrassed!

When you design your home office or move it to another room in your home, keep your clients in mind. While you want to develop a good relationship with your clients, they don’t need to know about or see every part of your personal life.

Do clients visit your home office?

Before I started this blog, I rarely spent more than a couple of hours at a time sitting at my desk. As much I enjoy working on WorkingNaked.com, after several hours at a stretch, I have to admit that sometimes it’s a pain in the neck…literally. I’ve made a few changes in my office to give my back, neck, wrists and even my eyes a break.

If you’re feeling the wear and tear of sitting in front of a computer all day, there are a few simple changes you can make.

Use an adjustable office chair

If you’re reading this blog post while sitting in a chair from your dining room or kitchen set, considering making a chair change today. You don’t have to spend a fortune to get a chair that adjusts to the right height and reduces the strain on your body. Make sure that whatever chair you buy has a few options including:

1) Lumbar support to reduce the strain on your lower back

2) A waterfall seat where the front edge of the seat is rounded to help you prevent any problems with circulation and to reduce the compression of nerves behind your knees

3) Seat height and back height adjustments

4) Tilt mechanisms and tilt lock to reduce strain and fatigue of your leg muscles

5) Tension control that adjusts to your body weight for easier reclining. (Steelcase chairs are reasonably priced and usually fit the decor of any home office.)

Avoid back strain

Keep frequently-used equipment and supplies within reach to avoid straining your back. Rather than play a game of Twister to grab what you need, store items logically and within reach. You can add shelves above or near your desk, or a desktop holder to keep supplies nearby.

Choose the right lighting

A good way to reduce eyestrain and fatigue is to use one or several types of lighting. Your options include ambient or general lighting, natural lighting, and task lighting. The type of lighting you use depends on the tasks you’ll be doing. Use one or a combination of these types of lighting to give you the right amount of light for your home office.

Find the right tools

You’ll reduce the risk of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome by using an ergonomic wrist rest, mouse, and adjustable and articulating keyboard. Wrist and mouse rests — Fellowes is one of my favorite brands — are made from foam-like and gel materials, and are available in interesting colors and patterns. If your monitor is too low, use a monitor riser to bring it to a more comfortable level.  The first clue that your monitor or laptop are at the wrong height is when you feel a constant pain in your neck.

Along with making ergonomic changes to your home office, take breaks throughout the day to give your wrist (and your entire body) a break from being in the same position for a long period of time. After all, working from home is supposed to be pleasurable, not painful.

What do you do to make working from home more comfortable?

Home offices are notorious dumping grounds for furniture that doesn’t fit anywhere else (either style-wise or physically). Whenever someone remodels their home, the odd chair or wobbly table usually ends up in their home office. Most of the time the extra furniture is in the way and leaves little room to move around. Sound familiar?

The right furniture, combined with a little creativity (and the right tips), can help you make the most of your home office space.

source: Hooker Furniture

1. Use modular furniture. With the exception of one home office, I’ve used modular furniture in all of my home offices. Modular furniture is easy to move around and lets you change your office as your needs change. When you use built-ins, you limit your options. The exception to built-ins is when you’re using a non-traditional space, for example a dining room, for a home office. While the cabinets and drawers in a dining room could be designed for home office use, the same cabinets and drawers could hold dishes and anything else someone may use in a dining room.

source: The Container Store

2. Add more storage. Sturdy shelves or tall bookcases can make a big difference in a home office. One of the biggest problems I see in home offices is not enough storage. If you don’t have a closet or a cabinet to store supplies, books and sales materials, most of that information gets stacked all over the floor. When you move everything off the ground and onto shelves, you have more room to work and you don’t risk tripping over something in your home office.

source: Grandin Road

3. Make one piece of furniture serve more than one purpose. The top of a lateral file cabinet can double as an extra surface for an all-in-one machine or an extra stand-alone printer. Look in your garage, attic, basement or storage room for a dresser you could hold use to hold extra supplies in drawers or behind doors. Even a simple bench with storage below can give you extra home office seating along with room to hold files or supplies below.

source: Pottery Barn

4. Be creative.  Need a new desk? Use two file cabinets with a board across them. If you need more workspace, add more cabinets and a board. This trick used to be reserved for starving college students, but I’ve seen expensive home offices furnished this way using high-quality file cabinets and durable surfaces. This is an inexpensive, yet stylish way to create a functional workspace.

When you work from home, it’s important to be flexible with your time and schedule. Why not do the same with your furniture?

Being an event planner takes organizing skills, a good design sense and loads of creativity. Event planner Bill Robertson’s home office reflects those skills and more.

A few years ago Bill bought a home, and as part of the renovation he added a home office. His contemporary home office includes a functional U-shape workspace. He uses the surface to the right of his desk to hold his printers, and the shelves below to store extra paper. Behind his desk is a long credenza with plenty of file drawers and supply storage. The exposed, yet painted brick behind his credenza, blends in well with the overall design.

Across from his desk is a seating area that includes a few chairs and a sofa to meet with his staff. One of the best parts of his office is the row of windows that overlook his three-acre backyard. On nicer days, Bill works on his patio surrounded by beautiful landscaping.

Bill plans to expand his staff this year to handle his growing number of clients. Sounds like a good plan.

No matter how you interpret what Working Naked means, it doesn’t mean that your desk has to be bare. The picture below inspired me to find out what other people have on their desks that have nothing to do with work. A desk that’s all work and no play, can make any home office desk dull.

source: Tom Newby Photography

“On my desk is an 18″ tall Suzuki Harmonica Bluesman. Every time I sign a contract for a speaking engagement, sell a book or CD, or otherwise make money, I push the button and let the blues man dance and blow his harmonica for a minute or two. It’s basically my end-zone dance for a successful day in the office!”
—Steve Gamlin

“Iced tea in a canning jar with a glass straw! Seriously!”
—Cheryl Newcomb

“I have a 1-ft tall skeleton that holds an Italian Flag and wears badges from dance conferences I’ve attended. This was a study aid when I was in Exercise Science classes and it still has some clay “muscles” I had to make for a practical exam.”
—Mahin Sciacca

“I have a pen holder on my desk that my wife gave me on Valentine’s day.”
—Gaurav Sharma

“I keep at least one harmonica on my desk. Hohner Special 20, key of G if it matters. I find it relaxing to play some music and it works a different part of my brain.”
—Chris Rovin

Other things on other desks:

“As a die-hard Boston Red Sox fan, one of my prized home-office items is a past Christmas gift: Fenway Park infield dirt! It sits right on my desk in a small trophy case! In the cold winter, it’s a reminder that spring will come!”
—John Goodman

“On my desk is a paper ornament with a photo of a rescued moon bear living at the Animals Asia moon bear sanctuary. Seeing that bear (who looks like he’s smiling!) always brightens my spirits.”
—Melissa Dinwiddie

“I keep a little token given to me by friend and fellow publicist Megan Lane of a white little Asian cat that means luck and wealth on my desk. She brings me all sorts of wealth in my inbox- ha! This was a gift from a recent trip overseas and reminds me how lucky I have to work with such great and giving people.”
—Stephanie Krol

“My cat! Seems that the busier I am, the more the cat wants to strut around on my desk and keyboard! She could care less about being sociable when I’m ready to take a break though.”
—Jim Smith

“Something I’ve always had on my desk is a large (unfortunately fake) diamond. I occasionally use it as a paper weight, but it’s mostly just my ‘fidget toy’. When I’m on the phone or re-reading an important email it’s nice to flip through my hands to keep me focused.”
—Josh Weaver

“When I was first married at 33 years old, on my wedding day my father gave me the last piece of my baby blanket that I carried around. He had it put into acrylic with an engraved plate, “Gail’s Meow.” To this day I can still remember crying when he told me that there was nothing left after its last washing. It’s the most important thing on my desk.”
—Gail Mayhugh

On my desk are … barf bags. Yes, really.
—Steve Silberberg

“I love to have a container of newly sprouting seeds on my desk. Each morning, I am excited to see how much they have grown overnight. As they grow I switch them out to a fresh batch to care for.”
—Krayl Funch

What’s on your home office desk?

What do you do when you don’t cook or eat at home, but you need to set up a home office? You may do exactly what entrepreneur and author Mandy Williams (aka Black of Red & Black) did, and convert your dining room into a home office.

Mandy isn’t your traditional author or business owner and doesn’t take a conventional approach in her personal and business life. Her approximately 15.8′ x 15.7′ home office is the perfect example. She could have converted a spare bedroom, corner of a family room, or a formal living room into her workspace, but how conventional would that be?

Mandy’s well-hidden home office is still disguised as a dining room, thanks to the wall of wood. Unless you opened the cabinets, you’d never know that behind the Wenge wood doors are several file drawers along the bottom, a slide-out printer stand, and open shelving for storing loose-leaf binders and  various office organizing boxes/sorters. She also has cubbyholes for paper, notepads and envelopes.

Her gorgeous custom-designed, glass-top table with a leather base looks like a dining table but can be used as a conference table or desk.  Not unlike many dining rooms, Mandy’s office is filled with natural light (often the best in the home).

Not eating or cooking at home seems to be a good trade-off for a stunning home office.

A guest room is ideal when family, friends and relatives stay with you, but what about the rest of the year when it sits empty?  Depending on how often you have overnight guests, a guest bedroom can be the perfect room to set up a home office.

The three home offices below are small, but have enough space for a desk, a file cabinet or rolling file cart and a twin bed or a double bed. Throughout the years that I’ve been designing and organizing home offices, I’ve learned that size doesn’t matter. A 20’ x 20’ home office is just as functional as a 10’ x 10’ office. It’s all in the way you use the space.

This guest room, complete with a full bath, leaves little room for a desk and file cabinet, but the small closet within the room is large enough to store supplies. With the bed so close to his desk, the owner can always grab a quick nap. Another way to save space in a home office is to do away with a traditional desk, and instead use an “office in a box” for storing equipment and supplies.

If your guest room is going to do double duty, you may want to invest in a day bed, a hideaway bed, or a Murphy bed. This day bed with a trundle below leaves enough room for a desk and a rolling file cart. A dresser opposite the window doubles as clothing storage for guests and office supply storage for the owner.

The double bed in this guest room takes up most of the space, but there’s enough room for a compact desk. The small closet in the room provides extra storage for supplies, product samples and files.

It doesn’t matter whether you use a guest room as a home office or a home office as a guest room. What matters is that you put a rarely-used room to work.

Is there a rarely-used room or space in your home that you’ve turned into a home office?

One of my favorite parts of this site is the All Dressed Up page. I feature all types of home offices to inspire you to change, update or tweak your own home office. The only problem with sorting through all of these photos of home offices that I’ve designed and others have designed, is that they make me want to change my own home office…often.

So, I’ve redesigned my home office again.

I started my home office makeover from the ground up, by adding a new rug with circles in different colors and sizes. Whether you pick an area rug, wall-to-wall carpeting, or keep the floor bare, keep sound reduction in mind to avoid the “cave effect” when you’re on the phone.

Normally, my next step would have been to pick out furniture, but since my furniture is fairly new I used the desk and bookcases I already had in my home office. My desk with a return gives me plenty of room for my laptop, external hard drive, all-in-one and lamp. I use the keyboard drawer to hold extra printer paper, and the cabinet that was meant to hold a CPU is perfect for storing extra supplies.

I bought two chairs at my favorite commercial furniture store. One is an animal print chair for reading, and the other is a tan desk chair. Behind and next to my reading chair are an iron floor lamp and a small round table.

I had installed the woven shade last year, but to soften the room I added striped drapery panels. The artwork that was next to the window was boring, so to add a bit of color and interest I found a print from a site that features works from independent artists. Rather than buy the print already framed, I had it framed locally.

Next, I replaced my ceiling fan (it came with the house) with a beautiful pendant. Then I added a few more things to my desk including a multi-circle frame and three jars to hold paper clips, rubber bands and markers.

My new home office is exactly the look I’ve wanted for awhile. It suits me perfectly for now, but I may need to stop looking at so many home office photos!

Some people think that if you’re creative, you can’t be organized. Watercolor artist Laura Trevey proves them wrong.

Her perfectly organized yet creative art studio/home office includes a custom island designed by Laura, with shelves wide enough to store 26” x 40” watercolor paper. Most of the time the island is in the center of the room, but casters on the bottom of the island make it easy for Laura to move it anywhere.

It isn’t uncommon to create an inspiration board or wall, but one made from pegboard is ingenious. Laura installed a 5 ½’ x 8’ pegboard to showcase her inspiring watercolors, both framed and unframed. The pegboard, painted the same color as her walls, is framed with white trim.

On the wall across from her desk is a row of cabinets that she uses to store supplies. The floors of her art studio/home office are a light wood and are easy to clean, especially in the case of spilled paint.

Next to her Ikea desk, created by using two trestles and a glass, beveled edge top, is a rolling drawer unit that serves double-duty as a printer stand. Above her desk is one of her stunning, original watercolor paintings.

The next time you think creativity and organization don’t mix, consider Laura’s advice, “An organized office is a happy one.”