Office Progress

The office is SLOWLY but surely coming together.  Let's start with a few BEFORE photos.

After creating my mood board, which you can find in this post,  I started the design process with changing the walls from plain paint to having a decorative paneling.  This will take the small room and give it some architectural interest.  We have a wonderful carpenter who has done most of the woodwork details in our home, but this paneling would be so easy to DIY if you had the proper tools.

Above the white wood paneling I decided on using grasscloth wallpaper.  I love wallpaper, and I think grasscloth has a sophisticated feel to it, which is perfect for an office.  I was debating between a lighter cream color and a more camel, tan.  I decided on the darker shade to balance out the white on the walls and other lighter touches in the room.

The wood work on the walls is finished, the wall paper is on order, and the furniture arrived.  Oh the joys of putting together furniture!  This was a job for the hubby! Emersyn helped too:)

After seeing the wood tone of the desk on our wood floor, we decided a rug was a MUST!! It gave a softer element that the room needed.  We found this great cream and gray rug on www.rugsusa.com.  This is the BEST website for rugs!  They always have sales, so select your rug and WAIT until a sale happens!! We got this rug for 75% off!  That's the thing about designing a room, unless you have all the money in the world, you are normally on a budget.  You have to take the time to search for those deals because they are out there!  Although I am super excited about everything from the walls to the furniture and rug, no room is complete with just the big items.  It is normally the small accents and decor in a room that can make the largest impact.  This is also where you have to have time to shop and an eye for items that will work in the room.  I think this is when hiring a designer can be crucial!  Lucky for me I love design, but I also have a sister who is an interior designer and with me for most all shopping trips.  So if you don't have time to jump around stores looking for deals or maybe you get into a store and have a hard time deciding what to buy, then hire someone to help you.  Better yet, hire my extremely talented sister, who has an eye for design way beyond my own!  Find her at: Jessica Stout Design.  When shopping for decorative pieces you have to be willing to shop at many different places and look for a good mix of old and new items.  Here's a picture of just some of the items I have picked up so far and where they are from.

Don't forget about sopping online.  This can be hard for some, me included.  I like to see the item I am purchasing in person.  However, there are websites out there that have great quality items and you can find great deals.  The original sunburst mirror I wanted was from Crate and Barrel and it cost $199.00.  I found this similar mirror on the website Joss and Main for $100 less!  So sometimes searching online design sites can really pay off.  Below are some books for decorating the bookcases and they are from Goodwill.  I always get books for decorating rooms from Goodwill.  I wait until the first Saturday of the month for when the whole store is 50% off, so each book is only 1 or 2 dollars.

I found this lamp which was so similar to the one from my mood board, it is from Home Goods.

This is an old corbel found at Carmel Design, which is also where I ordered the wallpaper.  I plan on using this corbel in the book shelves as a bookend for some old reading books.
So we are now waiting for a few key items (wallpaper and side chair) to arrive before we can put this room together.  I am still searching for wall art and a small console table for the entrance.  Excited for the next steps!!  Stay tuned!