Expert Advice: 5 Ways to Create a Productivity-Enhancing Home Office

The members of the Remodelista Architect/Designer Directory have designed thousands of offices among them. Who better to share tips on creating a functional yet beautiful workspace?

1. Natural Light

More than any other factor, our architects emphasized the importance of natural light in the workplace. “Natural light is the most crucial contributor to a contented and productive office space,” says Lindsey Theobald of Feldman Architecture in San Francisco. Andrew Curtis of Robitaille Curtis in Montreal agrees: “Daylight is critical,” he says. But keep in mind this caveat from Alan Ohashi of Bay Area–based Ohashi Design: you’ll want “a combination of direct and indirect bounce lighting, which is good for computer work.”

Michaela Scherrer House in Pasadena Photograph by Matthew Williams — Above: Ample natural light in her home office was a must for interior designer Michaela Scherrer, who mixes her own white paints. (See DIY Paint: Designer Michaela Scherrer Mixes Her Own White Paints.) Photograph by Matthew Williams.

2. Everything in Its Place

The second most emphasized point was the importance of managing your stuff. “Clutter is the enemy,” Curtis says. “Having a clean, calm workspace is critical to staying on task and to maintaining clarity of purpose.” Says SF interior designer Alison Davin, to tame the mess, “customized storage is key,” noting that she designs individualized storage solutions for each of her clients. “When everything has a home, it can free you to work more effectively and increase productivity,” she says.

Shelves in SCDO Partners Charleston Office — Above: In the office of design group SDCO Partners, Ikea basics—floating shelves, Kallax bookshelves, and white Kuggis bins—offer ample storage and organization opportunities. The white desks are from Blu Dot. (See Exotica at Work: 13 Ideas to Steal from a Historic Office in Charleston.) Photograph courtesy of SDCO Partners.

3. Somewhere to Look

Seattle architect Nils Finne suggests adding some exterior inspiration into the mix with a large picture window and view. After all, he says, “Our best ideas can often come precisely when we are not trying to be productive.” Feldman Architecture’s Theobald echoes the sentiment: “Ultimately a view makes for an ideal workspace, and we try to orient office space to achieve that in as many workspaces and areas as possible.”

Above: MW Architects designed this home office for a London author who wanted to have more time in his garden. (See A Light-Filled Writing Studio for a London Author.) Photograph by French + Tye.

4. High-Quality Task Lighting

Yes, natural light is the top priority, but sometimes that’s just not possible; work still needs to get done after dark. According to Curtis, “high-quality task and uniform ambient lighting” is of equal importance. In their own Montreal office, the firm used Tolomeo task lamps at each workstation and carefully placed LED spotlights around the perimeter of the ceiling.

Above: For each of her home work stations, Danish ceramicist Grethe Meyer installed a separate task light. (See the rest of her house in Required Reading: Scandinavian Modern.) Photograph by Andrew Wood.

5. Ample Surface Area

“I recently realized that the key to success for me is having more surfaces to spread out on,” says LA interior designer Natalie Myers of Veneer Designs. In her own home office, she uses a small table for her laptop, a low cabinet for storage that doubles as an extra work surface, plus another table for sitting with clients or just piling on books and materials.