With many of us working out of a makeshift home office at the moment, the sweltering summer season makes it harder to keep calm and carry on—seriously, why does it feel like a sauna in here?
Keep your cool by looking to our pragmatic (and chic) design tips! If you needed an excuse to splurge on a brand-new modern home office setup, this is it.
Lighten the load on your AC with plants!
Many modern office buildings appeal to biophilic design, which invokes elements of the great outdoors to satisfy an innate, human need to connect with nature.
Not only do potted plants usher in a natural aesthetic, but they are also proven to purify the air and are believed to diminish stress. Because of these benefits, real plants—instead of faux foliage—on top of your modern home office furniture, console tables, and surrounding shelves are encouraged.
To cultivate a more modern look, we recommend low-maintenance plants like golden pothos (the ones with the heart-shaped leaves!) and miniature succulents for furniture surfaces. If you have floor space to spare, we recommend tucking a majesty palm or snake plant in a corner of your room or propping one or two next to your desk.
Regulate sunlight with curtains
Summer-proofing your windows ensures you’re not uncomfortably hot at your desk.
For the most part, natural light is nice. After all, the naturally occurring fluctuations of daylight enable a stable sleep schedule and provide spurts of thermal comfort. This is why we recommend semi-transparent or sheer curtains: to maximize the sunlight that emits through your window; however, we suggest installing a blackout roller shade or blinds in addition to your pretty drapery.
Depending on how hot it gets in your neck of the woods, engulfing your room in a blackout is necessary for cooling your modern home office without employing your AC—just make sure you have enough electric light sources to power your workday.
Paint your ceiling white!
Painting your ceiling white might sound like a stylistic choice, but it surprisingly doubles as a way to cut your energy costs while cooling your modern home office and keeping your AC from being overworked.
Light colors, such as white, bounce light (e.g., heat). In the context of your home office, this means sunlight is reflected, and not absorbed by, the white paint. It is said that white paint can reduce the overhead temperature by 30 degrees.
Those in the know recognize white walls as a fixture of minimalist interior design, as they provide a neutral backdrop for other trendy elements like rattan furniture and brushed-brass accents. To ride this wave of style and sophistication, why not paint your home office accordingly?
By the same token, a very light color on your ceiling can create depth and, thereby, the illusion of a larger space. And we could all use a workspace that evokes a breath of fresh air.
Control air circulation with a fan
Speaking of air, a fan is a no-brainer for any work-from-home setup you inhabit in the summer.
A ceiling fan is optimal for reaching every inch of your modern home office, but an oscillating tower fan will do. For a true cooling effect, your ceiling fan should run counterclockwise to circulate the air downward, providing a wind chill as you’re working at your desk.
In addition to keeping you pleasantly cool, oscillating tower fans double as a white-noise machine, which can soothe and heighten productivity amid a distracting work environment.
Keep your décor light and airy!
In the spirit of elevating your mood and boosting work performance, take heed to the following suggestions for furnishing the ultimate modern home office.
For one, keep your modern home-office furniture to light colors. To reiterate our point about white paint on walls, light colors make a room appear more open and less constricted. By that logic, lightly hued wood furniture of the oak, cherry, maple, and sienna varieties provide a soft backdrop for potted plants, thoughtfully scattered photographs, and nature-inspired décor, like a desktop waterfall or a framed pressed frond.
Ultimately, less is more when it comes to designing a modern home office. Clutter stimulates anxiety, so make sure your décor pieces are scanty and not a collection of tiny knick-knacks—opt for statement pieces instead! An anti-clutter design principle, the Cantaloupe Rule, stipulates that individual decorations are not to be smaller than a cantaloupe. For peace of mind, we’d abide by that framework.
For more modern home office ideas, look through our furniture catalog for inspiration, or give us a call! No matter the latest décor trend, we believe excellent customer service never goes out of style. Call our store today!