The home office was the room the clients were least sure about. They knew they needed one — they both work from home regularly — but they weren't sure it should feel as designed as the rest of the house. Functional first, beautiful if possible.
I pushed back on that framing gently. A room you spend eight hours a day in shapes how you feel and how you work. It deserves as much intention as any other room in the house. Possibly more.
The Mural: Winter Trees in Soft Sepia
The room is fairly small. Small rooms benefit enormously from a single strong idea — something that gives the space a distinct character and stops it from feeling like a leftover corner.
The hand-painted mural of winter trees in soft sepia tones was that idea. It wraps the room in depth and atmosphere without adding visual noise. From the desk, you feel surrounded by something quiet and seasonal. It changes how you feel to sit in the room — less like you're working in a box, more like you're working somewhere specific and intentional.
For this room, we chose a mural for its continuous composition. The trees create a sense of depth across the walls, giving the small office a distinct character while keeping the palette quiet.
The Custom Desk
We designed a custom desk with a concrete-look surface and a walnut and steel base. The mineral finish brings a subtle contrast to the warmth of the walnut, while the slender steel structure keeps the desk visually light.
The proportions were drawn generously. A desk should feel like a good surface to work on, not a piece of furniture you're trying to fit work into. We gave it depth for dual monitors, width for spreading out documents, and a clean edge profile that doesn't visually clutter the room.
The View Toward the Living Room
One detail we were careful about in the Briar House office: the sight line from the desk. From where you sit to work, the view extends into the living room beyond. That connection to the rest of the house — to a space that feels warm and lived in — makes the office feel less like a closed-off room and more like a quieter corner of the same home.
In open-plan renovation work, sight lines are as important as the rooms themselves. What you see from a space is part of how the space feels.
Planning a home office that feels considered, comfortable and connected to the rest of your home? Explore our interior design services.
