How To Create an Office Space in a Small Home

It’s not easy working from home when you’re short on space. In fact, if you’re working and sleeping in the same room, you will be spending a disturbing amount of time in one room (just without the prison sentence). And finding a professional backdrop for your remote meetings can be awkward when trying to re-angle the camera away from the laundry basket or ironing board.

Luckily, no matter how small your home is, there are clever design solutions that will help you to create a productive working environment. So if you’re wondering how to create an office in a small home, take a look at these ideas for some inspiration. 
 

Turn an underutilised corner into a workspace

It helps to have a dedicated desk with a neutral backdrop when working from home. But if you have a small home, it’s likely that you can’t use a whole room for your office. Instead, look for a corner, hallway or landing that has enough space for a small desk. Often, these areas will be underused because they are awkward areas to fill, but they can be the ideal spot to squeeze in a desk. 

The area underneath a staircase or a sloped ceiling can often be overlooked as there’s no standing room, but this isn’t needed for sitting down at a desk. To make it a separate workspace, you can put up contrasting wallpaper on the wall the desk sits against. 

If you have a spare alcove — perhaps an inset on the side of a chimney breast —  you can buy an alcove desk and shelving unit to slot right into the recess. If you have a larger budget, you can get the unit bespoke-made and professionally fitted. The shelving provides lots of storage space so that the alcove office can be multipurpose — a place to catch up on admin or to help children do their homework.
 

Create a compact cupboard office 

Another location for a home office might be a cupboard (really!). The latest WFH trend is a ‘cloffice’ (closet-office): basically a desk in a cupboard. If you’re finding it hard to comprehend the possibility of such a bijoux working space as a fully-grown adult, it’s actually the opposite — some properties, particularly period properties, have very large built-in cupboards. These old-fashioned cupboards often run across one wall in a living room, bedroom, dining room or kitchen. These cupboards are perfect for converting into a home office space. Simply remove the cupboard doors and you now have a deep recess (much deeper than an alcove, for example). Alternatively, you can keep the cupboard doors and simply close them on your workstation when you aren’t working (particularly useful if the room has a second purpose). 

You can paint the interior of your cloffice a contrasting colour to the rest of the room. Consider restful colours to help you focus on your work, such as a calming pale green or blue to evoke nature. If you’re removing the cupboard doors, you can add plants to the desk and shelves. Grouping pieces of artwork, sculpture, vases or photo frames on the shelves will also add to the style. It’s important that you’re working in an aesthetically pleasing environment as it will help you to feel professional in the home. 
 

Turn your kitchen into a home office space 

There are so many advantages to creating a home office in your kitchen. A kitchen is a very functional space, with lots of light and storage. A small home will often have an open plan kitchen where a wall has been knocked down to maximise the limited space. But where to begin? Take a look at our tips for designing a kitchen office: 

• Choose the location. Look out for an empty bit of wall or an area you can clear. Even a galley kitchen layout can often squeeze in a compact desk at the end of the run of units (take a look at some very stylish examples on interior design apps and websites). 
• Repurpose some kitchen shelves or drawers. You’ll need space for office supplies.
• Use the kitchen walls to help you organise your work. A contemporary, framed pin board to keep your environment looking smart. Avoid putting pens in mugs, paperclips in cupcake trays and paperwork in wine racks (some not-so-useful WFH ‘hacks’ out there) or there will be too much overlap and it’ll become messy.
• Make a hot drink using your hot water tap. Save some work surface space by removing the clunky kettle and get quicker cups of coffee in your hand to fuel you while you work.
• Use a kitchen island as a boundary. Visually separate the office and kitchen if you can.
• Call in an electrician. Add more power sources for your office equipment (don’t overload your kitchen plug sockets or an extension lead or it could overheat and start a fire).
• Fix your computer monitor on the kitchen wall. This will also help you to gain as much surface space as possible.

Get some more inspiration for your kitchen office here.
 

Attach a floating desk to your wall 

Many people are quick to purchase a traditional desk when they first start working from home. But a large, bulky desk just doesn’t work in a small office space. So what’s the alternative? Try a floating desk. Rather than some kind of wizardry, this practical solution will attach to the wall, saving a huge amount of floor space. The desks can either fold down flush against the wall or they can permanently ‘float’. 

The floating desks which don’t fold away are very stylish, rather like having a piece of art in the room which draws the eye. And these desks can be multi-purpose in a small home, doubling up as a place to eat, go through the household bills or an evening bar area (you might want to combine those last two). 

Some floating desks have drawers, secret compartments and hidden storage in the back frame. And there are many styles to choose from: industrial metal and wood; Scandi light woods like ash, beech and pine; minimalist white; modern black; or 60s-style teak to name a few.
 

How to make the most of your small office space 

To make the most out of a small office space, you need to think about the purpose of the space from the outset, considering what is most important. It has to be a comfortable, healthy working environment with room to store all the equipment you need, enabling you to be as productive as possible. 
 

Smart storage solutions

It pays to be smart with storage solutions when creating an office space in a small home. Here are some ideas:

• Wall storage to keep your tech safe. You can buy holders for remote controls, mobile phones and tablets that simply stick to the wall with strong adhesive. Alternatively, mount a wire rack on the wall for a trendy look. 
• See-through caddies. You can grab what you need at a glance. 
• A timeless Bisley filing cabinet. This iconic storage solution will be useful under your desk or close at hand. They’re slim and compact for a small office space and come in a choice of many colours. 
• A mobile storage unit on your desk. This allows you to charge various devices while you work, but keep unsightly cables hidden away. There are some good-looking wooden mobile storage units on the market. 

Collapsible and convertible furniture

Those who don’t have room for a desk might be found working on a sofa, or worse, a bed. Sitting hunched over a laptop like this can lead to back pain, problems with posture and eye-strain. Folding desks and chairs provide a solution to this. They're ideal for creating an office space in a small home by day and then hiding it away by night. Gone are the days of wrestling with a trestle table only to get your fingers pinched; today’s slim-line desks are easy to take up and down swiftly. You can just pop your home office under the bed or behind the sofa when you finish work. 
 

Integrate your workspace seamlessly into your home 

To integrate your workspace into your home, you need to shake up what your traditional ideas of an office look like. You aren’t trying to recreate the typical corporate office in your home (and you wouldn’t want to!). You can do better. There are endless solutions for desks, chairs and storage that will allow you to create a unique space that looks stylish and where you can work productively. 

You don’t want your office to encroach upon your home, or vice versa, so it takes careful planning. With a small home, you’ll often be working and living in one room, so reflect your own personal style when choosing a chair for your desk — explore different textiles and materials and enjoy tailoring your small office space to suit your needs.