The lovely, light-filled workspace of a blogger and nutritionist

How're you feeling today? If like me, you're in the middle of a looooong working week you might enjoy this inspirational home office in Northern Virginia, USA created by Carlene Thomas and her husband. The space was converted from a second story front porch into a beautiful office for Carlene to write her blog and work as a dietitian nutritionist. Three out of the four walls have french windows and it's a long narrow room which presented quite a challenge when it came to working on the layout. However, the clever use of a mirror and handmade furniture helped to solve the puzzle and the result is a beautiful uncluttered, clean home office. I could work from here today (especially with that little doggy curled up at my feet), how about you?!

Carlene Thomas / Heathily Ever After with kind permission

A quick guide to where a few of the items are from: vintage Eames chairs (there's currently a beautiful one in cream for sale here), antique mirror (find a similar one here). The black door is painted in Benjamin Moore Onyx. Black and white painting by Meg Biram. The floating desk was built by Carlene's husband. Bin from H&M home. Thonet chair. original Inslee watercolour. Anthropologie pencil holder.

See before and after pictures as well as more info about this space here.

For more inspiration you might want to make a pot of coffee and scroll through these home offices and studios. After all - if you find the right job and create an environment you love, you'll never have to do a days 'work' again! So they say...

....but no matter how wonderful work is, I'll always prefer travel and the great outdoors, how about you?!

Thank you so much to Carlene for submitting the images for today's post! If you have any images of your home / studio /atelier / outdoor space you'd like to share I'd love to hear from you!

Have a lovely day!

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Ordinary attic to a fab work studio in Holland

Do you see work as a necessary evil or hop out of bed like the joys of spring on a Monday morning (actually, does that person actually exist - I mean on a Tuesday yes, but a Monday?!). Either way, most of us have to put our heads to the grindstone for quite a few hours each week - so we may as well make it a happy place!  It was in this vain I decided to share the home studio of (the very lovely) Holly Marder from Avenue Lifestyle blog in The Haague. Holly recently transformed an ordinary attic room into a flexible, mutli-functional and inspiring modern space where she can sit and work and meet clients. Oh and did I mention it's packed full of Dutch and Scandinavian pieces, vintage finds and the odd French masterpiece?

All photography / design / styling: Holly Marder. Shared with kind permission.

It's really not surprising that Holly has created such a fab space, that girl is sooo talented (see her recent bedroom make-over here, and some of the homes she's styled here, here and here)! Even so it's incredible what you can do with an attic room....I might just have to set up a meeting so I can go and hang out there for a day or two...

Is this your kind of studio?

Tips on where items are from: wooden push pins (moodboard) / vintage persian rug / Natural rug / Iumi Steckdesign pendant light / IKEA Docksta table / side cabinet is BESTA from IKEA which has been souped up with doors, brass handles and top from Superfront / Buy similar hanging planters here (20% discount with code MSH20 right now) / Isaac plug-in Sconce task light in brass / Nude study oil on canvas (Henri Matisse) / ALEX desk storage.

Take a peek at the complete before and after. 

More lovely studios / work spaces include this industrial warehouse, a Danish / Norwegian space and and a entire moodboard here. And for the kids - I love this cute black and white creative corner.

Have a lovely day!

PS back by popular demand - the archive labels (to the left), I've realised over the past three years I've posted over 1200 home tours!! Crazy! 

PPS Thank you so much to Elegance magazine who listed me in their top ten favourite European design blogs!! Such an honour!

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The fab light-filled studio of Camille Styles

Happy Monday! Is there such a thing?! Well yes, if you work in a space like this. Designed by Claire Zinnecker  for Camille Styles, the studio is filled with natural light, pops of bright colours and lush greenery. There's also plenty of meeting / social spaces where I could see myself drinking tea and chatting - I mean, brainstorming- which include a fab sofa, round Tulip table and grey marble kitchen.  I'm sure I'd look forward to my Monday mornings would be if I worked in this studio, how about you?

 

Owner: Camille Styles. Designer: Claire Zinnecker. Shared with kind permission from the photographer: Jessica Pages

Is this your kind of work space?

Items I know and love: Eames DSR side chairs, kilim cushions/pillows, rustic wooden stool, Tulip dining table.

A lot of thought has gone into this space. Not only does it look great but everything is designed to stimulate productivity. Take the table -research suggests having items which are curved rather than straight create positive emotions which in turn stimulates creativity. Round tables also encourage people to work together (if ever there was an excuse to invest in a Tulip table).

In turn, research has shown that the presence of greenery can help employees recover from demanding activities, lower stress levels and reduce office pollution levels. Time for a little indoor gardening?!

See more pictures of this fab studio here. I also love this, this and this studio and all of these images for office/atelier/studio inspiration.

I also found this piece interesting about why large open-plan offices are so not cool.

Have a great start to the working week! 

PS Thank you so much to everyone who entered the weekend give-away - the winner will be announced here later today! 

PPS I am in the process of making a few improvements to my blog design, please bear with me! if you see anything strange it would be great to hear about it in the comment section. Thank you! 

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The creative studio of Katrin Bååth

Hello Monday! Back to work - woohoo. Or, perhaps not?!  Which is why I thought I'd kick off the working week with an uber cool studio! Katrin Bååth is a self confessed multi-tasker, describing herself as an 'art director, stylist, event coordinator, designer, creator and everything in between'.  She works out of her Jönköping studio in Sweden. And looking at how she has decorated the space tells us a lot about her sense of creativity and personal style,  I could work from here, how about you?!

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

Studio owner: Katrin Bååth. Photography: Sara Lanstedt with permission. 

I really love the neon lights. I'm often trying to think of somewhere I could install a set in my own home. Source individual neon letters to make up your own words here. I also love light boxes like this one (something for the entrance hall?!) or this one for the bedroom (sweet!).

Favourite office stationary and organisers of late (after all - it's all in the detail!): HAY scissors, notebook and box set, Normann pocket organiser,

You can see Katrin's wonderful portfolio here and follow her latest work on her blog.

Other studios / ateliers I love include an Italian designer space and a relaxed art studio.

Have an inspiring start to the working week! 

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The fab industrial style atelier of a creative

Good morning! I do love the middle of the week, although I've got so much to left to do before the weekend. How about you?! Speaking of graft, I'm often thinking about how important my work environment is.  I'd absolutely love to sit in an uber cool creative studio.  This industrial style studio bathed in light, belongs to Sara Bergman, children's book illustrator and creative force behind online shop and interior styling company Love Warriors in Stockholm. Exposed brick work,  vintage industrial finds, concrete flooring and rustic wood  combine to make up a space a space in which Sara can create.  

Sara N Bergman of Love Warriors. Residence magazine. Photographer: Kristofer Johnsson. Post inspired by Coco Lapine with thanks. 

Could you work here? I most definitely could! What a space?

Interestingly while the space is teeming with vintage finds, the desk space is made up of a few pieces from IKEA including the ALEX draw unit and FORSÅ desk light (which I also have in my home office). Etsy is one of my favourite sources for vintage industrial lighting (it's where I found my treasured scissor light). For pendant lights I like the black E27 suspension light from Muuto.

For more studio / office space inspiration I'm loving this, this and this one. Or if you have a small home office I love this work space of a Finnish blogger.

Before I shoot off I also wanted to introduce you to ReStyle Shop on Etsy. If you love Scandinavian mid-century or geometric prints you'll love this online shop selling art created by Czech Republic graphic designer Jan Skácelik. I especially love this one and this one.

I think it's definitely time for some Christmas inspiration tomorrow don't you? Pop back for some very cool Scandinavian inspired festive decorating ideas! See you then!

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Guest post: Dagný Björg, Feel Inspired

Hi there! I'm Dagný Björg from Feel Inspired Blog filling in while Niki's away. Hope you've had a lovely start of twenty-fourteen. Did you make any new year's resolutions? I make a few each year although they pretty much stay the same year after year. Mine include the classics like exercise more often, cook more at home, try out more recipes and get more organized. To stay organized I started off by cleaning out my office area. I had a shelf besides my desk that got cluttered very easily and so I stored all of that away so that the environment in which I study is calm and easy. I am still looking for the perfect little rug though, my feet get so cold on these tiles.

The desk and trestles are from IKEA, the box to store paper clips and other little things is from Ferm Living, I have my HAY spinning top right next to it. The calendar and stool were designed by me. Notebook, diary and pen I bought from Hrím. And what is a desk without a coffee cup? Mine is from Design Letters.

Thanks to Niki for having me over. Hopefully I'll see you over at my Feel Inspired Blog.

Dagný Björg

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The black and white workspace of a Finnish blogger

A few weeks ago I posted a beautiful collaborative workspace in San Francisco and it was so popular I thought I'd post about another inspirational office today (because we can't all be on holiday in the Philippines!). This black and white work corner belongs to the editor of Finnish blog Lily. One of the things I love most about this corner is that it totally blends in to the area around it (love the black leather sofa). I could certainly sit here and blog, could you work here?

Lily with kind permission

The space includes an Eames DSR chair (15% discount with code MYSCAN) and the Aröd task light from IKEA.

You can also see her mix and match dining space here. Love the way she's photographed it don't you?

I also love this Norwegian work space, this beautiful white and light wood work area and this art studio. How about you?

Have a lovely day!

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A fab work space with an industrial touch

A week into work after the new year my thoughts are turning to office space and how to make it as lovely and inspiring as possible. I dream of working in a collaborative work space, preferably in a converted warehouse or factory. The graphic designer, knitter and blogger Emma Dime's creative space hits the mark. Emma works in this corner of Jack London Square in San Francisco which was recently photographed for Rue magazine.

Emma Dime, photographer Eva Kolenko in collaboration with Euro Style Lighting for Rue magazine

I absolutely love the huge windows, original wood flooring, moodboard, Eames DAW chairs (15% off with MYSCAN), Sony headset and green plants. I could definitely imagine myself working here everyday what about you?

Read the full interview and see more pictures here.

I could also work in this Norwegian home office, this fab work space in a converted workspace and this collaborative work space in Brooklyn. Although I'm fairly happy with my home office too. Would you change anything about yours?

Have a lovely day!

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