This little girl's room in Scarsdale, NY is the perfect combination of sophistication and fun. Full of color and patterns, the room has a youthful feel, yet the practical use of space will provide versatile functionality in the years ahead. Photography by © elkstudios.com

Jason Walchli
Home design - small traditional built-in desk medium tone wood floor home design idea in Portland with beige walls and no fireplace

We designed and built this beautiful home office for our client who wanted the room to look amazing and function really well. Maria had a lot of books as well a some pieces that she wanted to display so getting the most out of the wall space was very important. We custom built and finished it with our custom special walnut beachy color and it turned out great. We also built a two person desk so that Maria could meet with her clients.

Alyssa Kirsten
Study room - small contemporary built-in desk dark wood floor study room idea in New York with white walls and no fireplace

Example of a small trendy living room design in New York

Chicagoans find their closet has a different calling. After contacting CHP, these clients converted this space into a highly functional, out-of-the-way, home office. Open the doors and say, “Hello,” to your computer workspace. Close the doors and everything is out-of-sight — perfect for the those who have trouble keeping a neat desktop. Featuring two pedestals, the ample black work surface blends with the desk that is finished in Rain Cloud. Metro style, brushed chrome handles provide sure grips for drawers and doors. In this configuration, you will find cubby style shelves for books. Slots provide a home for pictures and other miscellany. Pencil drawers wait on each side of the desk to provide a home for those quaint leaded writing implements or for whatever really goes in your pencil drawers. The work surfaces, above the open shelving to the right and left, provide a place for things like a fax and a printer. Little touches, like grommets for wire management, are included in this CHP installation. If you don’t feel like organizing the work surface or the shelves, just close the door and no one will ever know the cluttered creativity that goes on behind those doors. If you are proud of your neatness, leave the doors open.

Diamonds Hanlon, Cherry, Chocolate Stain #Cabinets are beautiful in a #kitchen or #office space. This beautiful office layout is very functional for a husband wife duo or meeting with clients. The left wall cabinets are vertical lifting doors for maximum storage. The base cabinets also have a toe kick drawer for those items that need to be kept safe and flat like design plans.

The residents in this two-bedroom NoHo duplex designed by Raad Studio, are collectors -- from film memorabilia and vinyl records to toy robots. "We wanted to create a clean, warm space that would showcase these interests," said RAAD Studio, "whilst including as much flexible storage as possible." Not only is the Resource Furniture transforming, but the architecture of the duplex transforms too because nearly every surface folds, slides, or opens to reveal all sorts of new surprises. From a Penelope Murphy bed to a sliding bookcase to a closet that pops out from under the stairs, this place is full of space-saving tricks. With a little help from the Penelope wall bed, the second bedroom is extra versatile. When guests stay over, a portion of the desktop folds up to make room for a Murphy bed to fold down from the wall. The rest of the time, the space functions as a home office.

Mid-sized trendy attached one-car garage workshop photo in Boston

In the backyard of a home dating to 1910 in the Hudson Valley, a modest 250 square-foot outbuilding, at one time used as a bootleg moonshine distillery, and more recently as a bare bones man-cave, was given new life as a sumptuous home office replete with not only its own WiFi, but also abundant southern light brought in by new windows, bespoke furnishings, a double-height workstation, and a utilitarian loft. The original barn door slides open to reveal a new set of sliding glass doors opening into the space. Dark hardwood floors are a foil to crisp white defining the walls and ceiling in the lower office, and soft shell pink in the double-height volume punctuated by charcoal gray barn stairs and iron pipe railings up to a dollhouse-like loft space overhead. The desktops -- clad on the top surface only with durable, no-nonsense, mushroom-colored laminate -- leave birch maple edges confidently exposed atop punchy red painted bases perforated with circles for visual and functional relief. Overhead a wrought iron lantern alludes to a birdcage, highlighting the feeling of being among the treetops when up in the loft. Photography: Rikki Snyder

Inspiration for a transitional home office remodel in Chicago

The residents in this two-bedroom NoHo duplex designed by Raad Studio, are collectors -- from film memorabilia and vinyl records to toy robots. "We wanted to create a clean, warm space that would showcase these interests," said RAAD Studio, "whilst including as much flexible storage as possible." Not only is the Resource Furniture transforming, but the architecture of the duplex transforms too because nearly every surface folds, slides, or opens to reveal all sorts of new surprises. From a Penelope Murphy bed to a sliding bookcase to a closet that pops out from under the stairs, this place is full of space-saving tricks. With a little help from the Penelope wall bed, the second bedroom is extra versatile. When guests stay over, a portion of the desktop folds up to make room for a Murphy bed to fold down from the wall. The rest of the time, the space functions as a home office.

When a 7 year old Brooklyn hip-kid is also an animal lover, you get this woodland boy's room, designed to grow and maximize storage. This small kid's bedroom features a storage bed, wall shelves, a spacious desk hutch, and a storage ottoman to accommodate ample toys and books, as well as a custom designed closet to suit a growing child's needs. Hipster Animals removable wallpaper is fun for a 7 year old, but still cheeky and cool enough for a teen. And while woodland animals abound, they are balanced by mature decor elements like neutral colors, dark blues, boyish plaid, and chic wool and leather textures meant to grow with child. This room is one of our favorite small space designs - it's fun, personalized, and makes the space look bigger--while also providing storage and function. Photo credits: Erin Coren, ASID, Curated Nest Interiors

Diamonds Hanlon, Cherry, Chocolate Stain #Cabinets are beautiful in a #kitchen or #office space. This beautiful office layout is very functional for a husband wife duo or meeting with clients. The left wall cabinets are vertical lifting doors for maximum storage. The base cabinets also have a toe kick drawer for those items that need to be kept safe and flat like design plans.

Largely designed by the homeowners, with adjustments by me for functionality and appearance, this home office built-in features a large hidden storage capacity with 18" deep doored upper cabinets. It also has a visible pencil drawer in the desk section, and four pullouts in the base units that are all custom sized for specific purposes, and include a letter-size file drawer. There are even doors covering a 3" deep space underneath the desk area to cover up the electrical and data cables. Existing crown molding is run across the top to tie it in visually with the room. There is vertical "fluted" trim, but without the flutes.

Closet converted into a beautiful functional kitchen storage center and work space

This custom Cherry executive desk was designed for a client in Brighton, Michigan, who had been searching for the right desk for their home office but simply couldn’t find what they needed anywhere else. Crafted from solid USA-sourced Cherry hardwood, the desk was custom dyed and stained to complement the existing finishes in the room, creating a warm, cohesive addition to the space. Functionality was built directly into the design. Grommets integrated into the desktop route cords to a hidden cable management shelf inside the desk, allowing everything to connect discreetly to an electrical outlet located in the floor below. The result is a clean, uncluttered workspace without sacrificing everyday convenience. The substantial waterfall-style sides and clean lines give the desk a refined executive presence while allowing the natural character of the Cherry to remain the focus. This project is exactly why we build custom furniture: when the right piece doesn’t exist, we create it around your space, your needs, and the way you want to use it. Unlike mass-produced desks made from particle board, laminate, or veneer, our desks are handcrafted from genuine solid hardwood. Every slab is individually selected for its grain, character, and natural beauty, ensuring no two desks are ever alike while providing exceptional strength, durability, and the ability to be enjoyed for generations. As a custom furniture maker we specialize in building furniture that is entirely unique; 100% custom crafted; We are furniture builders that design pieces that fit to your space and vision, and it all starts with a conversation.

ELITE DESIGN AWARD WINNER 2016: This academic professor works from home, and decided to come up from the basement to take advantage of the natural light on the main floor. We turned this playroom into a fully functioning multi-person office space that allows customization and flexibility no matter the task. His research is far from square and boring – so we came up with a unique curvilinear countertop design using Maple desktops from Décor Cabinets, which truly add a touch of whimsy to the everyday. Against his wife’s preference, his creative process requires access to many types of material at once, so solutions like bi-fold cabinets and the large aluminum tambour doors allow him to organize loose papers, but shut away the mess when the day is done. Mixing a few different finishes creates enough interest so that staying in the same room for long periods is far from boring, and the acid etch mirror inserts give a frosted glass look without showing any of the mess inside. With this design, the move upstairs was a benefit for everyone.

We had the pleasure of crafting this bespoke modern, painted home office for our client’s residence in Reigate, Surrey. They had decided it was time to invest in a fresh, inviting and dedicated workspace where they could be more productive. The desk, which fits seamlessly into the space, features a full stave prime oak worktop finished with a protective oil to provide a superior long-lasting surface. The custom desk cabinetry has been flawlessly spray finished Little Greene Sage Green, which contrasts beautifully with the attractive, natural oak wood desktop. The soothing, muted green paint colour and tailored storage creates a calm, uncluttered setting, perfect for a focused workspace. Customised and crafted for comfort The right storage was vital for our client and this made to measure desk features integrated drawers and a double cupboard putting work essentials right at their fingertips. Every drawer and door functions effortlessly and quietly thanks to the best quality Hafele ironmongery and soft close mechanisms. In this home office design, we also incorporated two matching oak wall-mounted shelves which follow the angle of the ceiling and a low-level built-in bookcase which fits perfectly under the sloped ceiling. Made to measure curved corner desk The curved corner desk has been constructed with integrated drawers, cupboard space, cable management tray on the underside, and an open bookshelf unit to one side. Having a curved corner desk in front of the window is a strategic decision that combines ergonomic comfort and enhanced use of space. The curved shape brings the workspace closer to the body, allowing for a more natural, wraparound working experience that pairs well with the natural light and views from the window. The design also delivers additional comfort, thanks to the spacious full depth leg room underneath. A curved L-shape design also makes the desk feel less dominant than a traditional straight desk, preventing the room from feeling cramped while still providing ample workspace. Solid prime oak work top The desk’s beautiful solid prime oak top provides a stable, heavy surface for working. It also offers exceptional strength and durability. While oak resists dents and scratches, it can be sanded and refinished, when necessary, to restore its condition. Real wood surfaces, such as oak, have natural antibacterial properties, which can help maintain a cleaner working environment too. A full stave worktop is a premium one-piece surface made from a continuous oak plank (stave) that runs the entire length of the worktop creating a luxurious, linear, and consistent appearance and showcasing the natural beauty of the timber.