A Gray Day

The day has finally come to choose the new paint color for my office!!

I decided to take the plunge and revamp my office after a rep for Dutch Boy paints contacted me a few weeks ago about trying out a sample of their Refresh paint line – woohoo!!  That was just the kick in the pants I needed to get me going!  I’m extra excited to be trying this paint line because it’s zero-VOC so I won’t be hurting my body or the environment when I use it {big props to Dutch Boy for that!}.

I’ve decided to go with gray walls {see this post}, but now the hard part – what shade??  After much deliberation I narrowed it down to four choices, and I think I finally picked a winner.

Route 66 in a flat finish – it’s a gray with a fair bit of brown in it so it should look dynamite next to the beige carpet and wood desk that I already have in the room.

I can’t wait to start the transformation!  Seriously, my office is in such a state that I can’t even bring myself to show you a pic right now – no joking.  I’m excited to take the first step into turning it into an office that I truly love to spend time in.  Hopefully I’ll have my new paint in a few weeks!

Do you have any room revamps on the horizon?  Or maybe you’ve just finished one!!  Fill us in on the details, or maybe send it in to Show Off Your Space!

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Design Advice: Lackluster Law Office

The decor in law offices is typically about as exciting as you would expect – tan walls, wood furniture, lots of files and papers.  Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you get a ficus.

Back in my lawyerly days I was mentored by an awesome attorney, one of the smartest chicks I know.  She recently switched firms and wound up in this glamorous office.

But there is a bright side – her firm actually encourages the lawyers to decorate their offices.  Imagine my delight when I got an email from my former mentor asking for a little design advice!!

Although she really wanted fun colors like hot pink, lime green and orange, she worried that such vibrant colors might be too much for a law office – so she requested a variety of options, some including the fun colors and others with more traditional “office” colors like warm reds, greens and tans.  Keeping a “traditional but not stuffy” design scheme in mind, her only other requests were for a lamp, some artwork and new, matching in/out boxes.

Design Quickies don’t usually include 10 options – not gonna lie, I got a little carried away!!  If you have the strength, check out the different goodies I whipped up for her:

Option 1: artwork 1, artwork 2, artwork 3, artwork 4, artwork 5, artwork 6, frames, lamp, shelves, trays (from See Jane Work, no longer available - try this or this instead).

The artwork in this design is a more affordable, somewhat DIY version of a very popular set of art from Crate & Barrel, as well as Ballard Designs.

{ You’ll notice that these floating shelves make an appearance in each design – they are super long and will look awesome on that long wall by the bookcase.  I would stagger them so that the upper shelf extends over the bookcase a bit, and the lower shelf is scooted to the left (towards the door) at least two feet.  That way there will be room to lean diplomas, add a narrow vase, personal photos, a book, etc. }

Option 2: artwork 1, artwork 2, artwork 3, artwork 4, frames, lamp, shelves, trays.

Option 3: artwork, lamp (from Target, out of stock – try this, this or this instead), shelves, trays.

{ This print is a steal as compared to an almost identical print from Ballard Designs. }

Option 4artwork 1, artwork 2, lamp, shelves, trays (from See Jane Work, no longer available- try this or this instead).

Option 5: bull dog artwork, basset hound artwork, lamp, shelves, trays.

{ Disclaimer: I definitely didn’t expect her to pick this option, but when I came across these quirky prints I just had to concoct a little design with them in honor of her bull dog and beagle pups. }

Option 6: artwork, lamp, shelves, trays.

Option 7: artwork 1, artwork 2, lamp, shelves, trays.

Option 8: artwork, lamp (base & shade sold separately), shelves, trays.

{ The Bed Bath & Beyond artwork is a an affordable alternative to the Z Gallerie piece. }

Option 9: artwork, lamp, shelves, trays.

Option 10: artwork, lamp (from Target, out of stock- try this, this or this instead), shelves, trays.

Whew!  Still with me after all that?  If you were redecorating your office, which option would you choose?  And speaking of offices, what’s your office situation?  Do you work from home, from a cube, from a corner office?  Or maybe your office days are behind you?  Do tell!!

Click on the following link to snag some design advice of your very own – Interior Design Services.

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A Tale Of Two Doors

I’m a total sucker for repurposing and salvaging old materials (like the crafty craft cabinet I told you all about here), so when Tonya wrote in about the DIY projects she conquered with a pair of old doors I was hooked from the start.

It all started when Tonya switched out the boring old double doors to her office with some gorgeous new French doors:

A Tale of Two Doors

Tonya really wanted an L-shaped desk for the office, but everything she could find was way more expensive than she wanted.  So, she took matters into her own hands and created a huge, functional (and affordable) L-shaped desk out of . . . you guessed it . . . the original doors to the office!

A Tale of Two Doors

Here’s what Tonya did and how she did it:

Materials – $80 total:

~ 2 doors (free with the house)

~ 2 filing cabinets (1 already on hand, another from Wal-Mart for $30)

~ 4 table legs from Lowe’s ($30 total)

~ black lacquer spray paint ($10)

~ heavy duty double stick tape

~ 3 table leg brackets ($8 total)

How-to:

1. Those old doors were spray painted a shiny black and became the work surface for the new desk.

2. The doors were laid in an L-shape, with the top of one door overlapping the other door.  Table legs supported one end of each door, and the filing cabinets held up the other ends – and the filing cabinets were secured to the doors with that double stick tape!!

3. Tonya used the old doorknob holes to her advantage, utilizing one hole to corral all the computer cords – the other hole was filled with a pencil holder and functioned as a built-in pen and pencil holder!

After Tonya got a few years of enjoyment out of her desk, she decided to sell her house – and she was able to get yet another use out of her old doors!  She turned the office into this gorgeous dining room  . . .

A Tale of Two Doors

. . . and made a kitchen table on the fly by cutting one of the old doors in half, adding a fourth leg, and draping the door with pretty material – voila, instant kitchen table!

Talk about getting some serious use out of two old doors!  I have a few old doors lying around and now I’m just dying to make a desk of my very own!  Have you guys ever made something cool out of old doors?

Want to see your DIY project or renovation featured on IGTBH?  Just send me an email at itsgreattobehome@yahoo.com and I’ll hook you up!

And don’t forget, the blog party for Inspiration Tuesday starts tonight at 10:00 p.m.!!!  Get your posts ready, grab the IGTBH button, and get ready to party!!

Blog Party: Inspiration Tuesday

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