This was a couple who wanted a complete makeover but were working with a limited budget. I knew that in order to give them what they wanted, we would have to gut the whole thing and start over,…but how to do that on such a small budget?
She was a huge Fixer-Upper fan from HGTV, and so I knew exactly where to go for inspiration. Both husband and wife needed ample work space, and we needed to accomplish that without giving up storage, so I immediately thought of Ballard Design’s Original Home Office line. It allows you to customize your space without breaking the bank. We used Ikea’s butcher block counters to top them, giving the clients huge space to work, with unified design as well as these desk chairs from Ikea.
We decided to put his desk against the Stikwood wall because it felt more masculine, while her desk was closest to her craft supplies in the closet. We collected cute organizational pieces from Cost Plus World Market, Michaels and Homegoods for the desk and wall for a more collected look. We used two milk crates from Michaels mounted on the wall as shelves to display treasured items.
For the wood wall we used a peel and stick reclaimed wood product from Stikwood which is a really easy DIY project, and there are so many ways to use their product. Their website has a ton of inspiration. If you can use a level and a saw, you can do this project!
I used a soft gray from Dunn Edwards paints called Miner’s Dust DEC786 for the walls. It’s one of my go to colors because it’s so soft, and the perfect neutral. Not too blue and not too brown.
One of my favorite features of this office is the wall shelves that are made from lumber from Home Depot and plumbing pipes! It is 1/2″ plywood that I had them cut to size there at the store, brushed with some matte finish stain, then simply mounted on top of plumbing pipes screwed in to the wall. Easy Peasy and so stinkin’ cute, dontcha think?
