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The Home Office Makeover Inspiration Board

by | Feb 23, 2012 | Decorating Inspiration, My Home Office

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The Home Office Makeover Inspiration Board

Mood Board: Home Office

So I’ve been thinking about my house a little more than usual lately.

I’ve been in a contemplating kind of mood.

I feel like I’m kind of rounding a corner towards what I really want this house to feel like. I’ve kind of felt confused a bit on what I really wanted as far as style and colors and vibe. I look around online, and then I look around my house. And I ponder some more.

I’m so impacted by how things feel that I’m not one of those decorators who necessarily looks around to see what everyone else is doing on Pinterest and feels like doing exactly THAT. Because THAT might look pretty in a picture but it still would not FEEL right to me in my house. Trust me, it would be SO MUCH EASIER to do THAT sometimes. I torture myself and make everything more difficult.

Of course, I like to incorporate current trends and all, but as I’ve said before, I really have kind of a weird aversion to wanting to follow the crowd too often. Because, I’m weird. No other explanation really.

The risk and the challenge of trying something different and maybe a little off the beaten path is part of the creative process for me. I am compelled to create a look all my own in order to feel it is really mine. And that does present challenges at times. Creating something a little different isn’t always easy.

I’m glad, though, that I really let my house evolve into something I will love hopefully for a very long time. Even though I feel like it goes through some awkward phases and things get a bit disjointed and mistakes are made along the way. In the end, I feel like things come together better if I just let things evolve.

I need to let it evolve because my house talks to me.

I need some time to understand what it is saying.

See? Like I said. Weird. Don’t worry, I don’t actually hear voices. Really.

Lately my house is implying to me that it wants to be full of contrasts and life. I’ve mentioned this before, but I really want to work on contrasting light with dark, color with neutral, textures that contrast with each other and a fresh blend of styles.

I have a long way to go to pull it all together, a loooonnngggg way, but I think I’m seeing a bit more vision now for what it will end up like. There will be some chaos around the house in order to get there. I’ll show you what I mean in coming weeks.

For now, I’m working on my office inspiration board!

See it above? It may or may not come together like that board but it is fun to start dreaming and pulling the pieces together. A mood board is just that, something to help you start to get the vibe! My walls are going to be NAVY. Or least I think they are. Yeah. I know I’m probably scaring the life out of most of you, but buckle up and hang on. Don’t worry. I think the whole transformation of my office and home is going to be fun! Or horrifying. Either one.

UPDATE: Come see how my HOME OFFICE finally came together!

The Home Office Makeover is here!

The Home Office Makeover Inspiration Board

PS. Fun newsI started a new trendy new “job” last week! I’m now a “pinner” for Better Homes & Gardens magazine! I know! Who would have thought five years ago I’d be a blogger, let alone a pinner. Oh the signs of the times. Crazy fun.

I have always loved Better Homes & Gardens so this is seriously like a dream come true for me! I’m pinning to these two boards for BHG, here and here, so be sure and follow all my boards on Pinterest to keep up with my crazy pinning ways! I’m still a baby pinner but I’m getting better.

Happy day, everyone!

60 Comments

  1. michelle starling

    Congratulations on the new job. Sounds like great fun. Sometimes I think you are telling my story, like in today’s post. I want to go neutral in my decor but I LOVE color too much. Sometimes I want to jump on the bandwagon of what is “in” and at other times I want to march to my own beat. I think I’ll stick with my own beat since it’s worked for me for ….well I won’t disclose how many years. Red is my color and I know that taupes, grays, and whites are in but I can’t get away from my heart’s desire. So I’m not fighting it any longer. And as for your navy office, I think it will be beautiful. I would love to do navy walls. I saw a picture of a sunroom with black walls and it was gorgeous. I just love color on the walls because the color itself becomes the focal point. Go for that navy room.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      I too get torn a lot between the options, which is why I think I need to take my time. Eventually, if I’m open, things just start coming together in spite of myself! When you go with your heart’s desire you will always be much happier in your home!

      Reply
  2. Mimi

    Congratulations on your new gig. I know you’ll pin some fabulous ideas for BHG,

    Reply
  3. Julie

    Who is scared of navy walls? I am sitting in my office that I just painted cobalt. Haven’t had time to pull together the rest of the look – so I am going to let myself be inspired by your board, it looks great!

    Reply
  4. Jen

    I totally know what you mean when you say your home speaks to you, I feel like I think about my home and how it runs and visually how it feels a whole lot. I also am someone who likes pinning, but I want to decorate my way, I almost try not to be influenced by pins. I just finished my office makeover and I’m so happy with it! I’ve included it below if you want to check it out : )

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Jen, it looks awesome! So many great details! You must love hanging out there!

      Reply
    • JustMe

      Jen,
      Just visited you AP2CH, loved the file boxes, binders, and the Mason jars of clothes pins and safety pins. Thanks for posting!

      Reply
  5. Peggy

    Congrats on the new job!
    I love your inspiration board…….it is difficult not to be influenced by what we see in the blog world. I can enjoy hours of looking at beautiful white rooms with white furniture and neutral acessories. But I have found I can’t live in those rooms. I love color, I love pattern. The fabric you’ve chosen for your windows and that pop of orange with the navy walls as a background are FANTASTIC! The room speaks, it has energy! I can’t wait to see you pull it all together. aHve fun with this new project!

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Thanks Peggy! I know what you mean. There is definitely a room you can enjoy looking at but often another type room you not only like to look at, but you adore living in. I do feel like I need to live in a room with life and energy, especially since this is a new house it is lacking some of that “history” I used to feel in an old house. I guess I am feeling I want to add that energy on my own!

      Reply
  6. Heather

    “Pinning” professionally! Sounds like the perfect job to me!

    Reply
  7. Anne

    Your office board is lovely. I especially liked your chair. I’d hope for one like THAT, but as you said, it’s lovely, but it may not go with my house. I know exactly what you’re saying. I consider all the options before I do something new with our house. Besides, we haven’t been here very long and I’ve got to see what works with the seasons and the different lights.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Yes, that is so true. You really need to see your house in all seasons before you know what feels right!

      Reply
  8. Susanne

    Good Morning Melissa. Congratulations on your “pinning” position with BHG. Although I’m not sure what that entails, you sound enthusiastic and happy about it and that’s what matters. If you going to “pin” what better place to do it for than BHG. They are lucy to have you. I love the fact that your style is a reflection of exactly who you. As it should be. Can’t wait to see your finished “metallic” paint project. Enjoy!

    Reply
  9. Karen

    Melissa,
    Congratulations. How fun.
    I like your office board and can’t wait to see what you finally decide on. I agree with, each house/home is different and serves it’s family in unique ways. I too have to live with rooms before launching an idea. I find when I’m patient enough to actually do that I make fewer mistakes.
    xo,
    Karen

    Reply
  10. Linda Stoll

    Congrats! Sounds like you’ll have a ball!

    Gotta go check it out … you’re opening new doors for your readers!

    Reply
  11. owieking

    Congratulations on the BH&G gig! How exciting! I am new to blogging and still trying to figure out my “niche”. What encouragement you gave me this morning.

    I love you home office board, classy and fun.

    God Bless!

    Reply
  12. missy june

    Congrats on the new job! I can’t wait to see what all the things you like!

    Reply
  13. Kim

    I don’t think you’re crazy; my house speaks to me too. Each house that I’ve owned has had its own vibe. They are all different, yet still me. We’ve lived in our current home for a year and a half, and I’m still trying to figure out what it’s telling me.

    I think navy walls would be awesome, but that’s coming from someone who has a red tv room and is about to paint the office dark grey.

    Congrats on the new job! Sounds like fun.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Thanks Kim, it is true with me too, all of my homes had their own vibe but I feel like they were all my style. Every home does call for something different, I think!

      Reply
  14. Robin

    I looooove your color board! That floral print is just awesome, was it your inspiration? I think navy blue is definitely underused right now. It’s such a great neutral, and bright colors against it just look gorgeous. I love the bright orange chair with the curtains. I also think lime green and hot pink would be beautiful accent colors here.

    Also, I totally get your need to have your own style. I think that’s part of what being a designer is all about. I am interior design student, and I love seeing what other people are doing, but when it comes to my own house, it has to be all mine. It has to reflect my own personal quirks and style,even if that’s not the trend. I don’t want it to look like all the other Pinterest pins (by the way, I’ve been following the BHG pins for a while and didn’t know you did that! Love them!). Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this!

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Thanks Robin! I was totally thinking about lime green too, at least somewhere in my house. I just love it and always have. I don’t even have any orange at this point so that may or may not happen, but yes, the curtains definitely were a great jumping off point.

      :-)

      Reply
  15. Gina

    Wow!! Talk about a dream job!! ;) I love the navy walls and the orange chair…I am a University of Virginia fan so I like the color scheme. =D I just started pinning a few home office photos myself because my husband just started working on some things from home. Off to check out your boards. ;)

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Thank you Gina! We’ll see if the orange ends up happening once I start pulling together my furniture, but it is a fun fresh combo!

      Reply
  16. Simple Things

    Love the idea board and congrats on the fun new job! It is always a bonus to do something you enjoy!

    Reply
  17. Barbara (WA)

    Were you reading my mind, lol? I was just sitting here thinking about a bathroom I pinned recently, how much I love it and wondering if it would look out of place in our house, wondering if it would “fit” into the rest of the house. I am supposed to be choosing flooring for my bathroom but want to make sure I have a vision of what the whole remodel look like. Since I have a strong visual learning style, I need to see/copy some of the details. But I also want anything new to fit in with what we’ve gathered over the 24 years living in this house. Hey, have fun pinning for a living :o)

    Reply
  18. debi CA)

    congratulations on what sounds like a dream job…as for the navy walls, go for it! i love it! it looks like beautiful inspiration! too many times we are too afraid to go bold! you can always paint it over if you’re not happy…but i think you are going to LOVE it!

    Reply
  19. yby5

    Love your color scheme…it’s fun and fresh. Congratulations on your new job-how awesome!

    Reply
  20. shelley.

    I can’t believe pinning is a real job! I’ve been saying for a few months that my dream job would be to get paid to be a pinner! What a crazy world we live in. Kudos to you. Hope you have a blast…how could you not, right?

    Reply
  21. ange

    Congrats on the pinning “job” I’m sure you will find great pins for us all to drool over and pin at least once but probably twice. I love the office moodboard, I just painted our master bedroom navy with coral nightstands and I’m LOVING it! Can’t wait to see the moodboard come to life!

    Reply
  22. Laryssa

    Congrats on the new fun job!

    Reply
  23. Liz

    If you don’t mind, what’s the source on those curtains (or fabric)? I’ve been looking for fabric for our living room curtains, and this looks so fabulous. I went about the room completely wrong and painted first, but these just might fit in perfectly with what we’ve got going on!

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Oh yes, sorry, I meant to add a source. The curtains are from Anthropologie. They are kind of spendy but I bet you could also find some great fabric to get the same look!

      Reply
  24. Diane

    I love the blue with the white in your office plans.

    Pinning for BHG…what a great job! Are they hiring anyone else? I would love that job…I didn’t know jobs like that existed!

    Reply
  25. kelly

    I love the way that magazines and bloggers are joining forces a lot lately! Congrats on your cool new pinning Job!

    Also, I love Navy walls! Although I’m terrified to go that bold in my own house….lol….I love to see other people do it. I’m going to live vicariously through YOUR navy walls, okay?

    Reply
  26. Diane

    I love the new office inspiration board. Classy. Colorful. Whimsical. Love.
    And….oh my…I am envious. Pinning for BHG! Way to go girl!!! How fun!

    Reply
  27. Angela Burns

    Melissa,

    Love those navy walls you’re contemplating. Actually, all the colors are so warm and dynamic. I would love to work in a space so vibrant. Oh, and don’t get me started on “professional pinner”… if only they would and “and wine drinker” to their job discription, I’d be all in.

    Best,
    Angela

    Reply
  28. Jo

    I love the cheeriness of your mood board, and the light/dark contrasts. How do you make a mood board like that? Congratulations on becoming a professional pinner!

    Reply
  29. MarySue

    I. love. it. Love contrast! These are beautiful colors you’ve put together! And thanks for the word about the bhg pinboards – I’m following them now!

    Reply
  30. Jan P.

    “I’m so impacted by how things feel that I’m not one of those decorators who necessarily looks around to see what everyone else is doing..”
    Spoken like a true artist. Love it!
    Congratulations on the new “job”. So glad you’re doing what you love. :-)

    Reply
  31. Anne

    Ooohhh… I LOVE those drapes!

    Reply
  32. Debbie

    HI Melissa, I am crazy about Pinterest. Now following you. I’ve gotten so many ideas, I’m actually starting a notebook so I can keep track…of myself and what I have already accomplished this year! Crazy fun. Say goodbye to procrastination…there’s not enough time for it. I just made some shelves out of a pallet, and on my way to another pallet project all because of things I’ve seen on Pinterest. I need to live longer just to get all this stuff done! Hahahaha.
    Have a blessed week.
    Debbie

    Reply
  33. {darlene}

    Melissa! I LOOOOOOVVVEEE your board! LOVE!

    Reply
  34. Sherri

    Love it! We have had navy rooms in our previous two houses and we loved it! However, this house does not “speak” to me in navy, so we’ll wait for the next one. This house is only 11 years old and it lacks the large white moldings that came with our previous 100-year-old homes :)

    Reply
  35. Sarah

    Congrats!! So excited, can’t wait to follow your BHG boards.
    ~Sarah

    Reply
  36. Sandra

    Great news!! You have a great eye for design-they picked the right person!Enjoy your journey.

    Reply
  37. jessica

    Your mood board rocks! The tangerine chair and drapery are beautiful! I have seen that fabric (I can’t remember where?) and LOVE it. You definitely have the right blog name. You are inspiring for sure :) Checking out your pinterest stuff also. congrats, that is a cool job!

    Reply
  38. karen

    I painted my dining room navy 12 years ago. I had planned on a large, round table and blue willow china, but we sold the house soon after we moved in, so we didn’t get around to it. Oddly (atleast to me), nobody that looked at the house liked the navy! I’ve always loved navy as a neutral. Since brown and black have come and gone, I thought for sure navy would be next, but in comes grey. It’s okay though, because I really don’t want it to become trendy.

    Reply
  39. Lisa

    I’m new to your blog and am loving it so far. I feel like I could have written this post about choosing items that you know just feel right in your home vs buying them because everyone else is. I’ve also felt “weird” when it comes to some of things I choose for my room. For instance, today I was looking at using Myalar as a lampshade cover. Then I thought, “If I blog about that will people think I’m weird?” Sad, but true. Congrats on your pinning job. I love looking at pics from BHG and I get their mag too. Keep up the good work on your blog.

    Reply
  40. Linda

    Congratulations!!! I was wondering if you could share the program you used for your inspiration board? Thanks.

    Reply
      • Linda

        Thanks so much! I am working on decorating my craft cottage and I thought the inspiration board would be helpful. Too many ideas and only one room to decorate…

        Reply
        • Ann

          Linda: I think this is what must have happened to Martha Stewart! She had so many great ideas and inspiration that she had to buy other houses just so she could decorate them all, each one differently, so that all of her creativity could be expressed. I have started the craft room in my little condo (it was the spare bedroom, for guests I presume, but alas I never had any guests so it just became dusty and outdated). I have so many ideas! It will be impossible to include them all in that craft room. So I will be forced to, hate to even say this word, but I will be forced to EDIT.

          Reply
  41. Jamie

    Would you mind sharing what rug you used for your inspiration board?

    Reply
    • Melissa

      I’m not sure I remember what rug was on the board, it was just similar to my carpet! Probably found it via polyvore? If I can figure it out I’ll let you know!

      Reply
  42. Kelly

    Hi Melissa,
    I’m in South Africa and wanting to start a Decor Inspired blog for my business…
    I did the google ” how to create a blog” for the first time this evening…and must admit, got the living daylights scared out of me !!!! So much to take in…and where the heck do I start ???? I love to inspire and do constant uploads to my facebook page…but I have been told that blogging is the way forward…..HELP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Reply
  43. Rebecca

    love love love this!!!

    Where did you find your shelves?

    Reply

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