home life – office

I was planning to share before and after pictures of my kitchen with you next. But the past few days have been cloudy and I want to post sunny after pics! Plus I’m super excited to share my shiny new home office with you. So today is all about the office. Which contains lots of official Office merchandise. Shocker, I know.

Before moving on up to the East Side, I lived in the West Village for nine years. There is nothing like the energy of the West Village. I’m determined to move back there one day. When I have, like, a bazillion dollars. That’s the only way to afford a West Village apartment with space, light, and views. My old apartment was tiny. Natural light was sparse. Views were quaint, but I longed for big sky. So I was thrilled to find a place with lots of windows and southern exposure. I immediately knew that this area to the right would become my home office:

Writing near the windows with intense natural light and fresh air and sweet views all day is beyond amazing. I really needed the change. Trying to write on a “charming” West Village crooked floor while my chair kept wanting to roll away from my desk was not my idea of fun times. Nor was trying to write while my downstairs neighbor snored and coughed and yelled into his phone all day. Ah, memories.

Walls were skim coated. New floors were installed. I was very specific about not wanting wires showing in my office. Exposed wires bother me in general. To create a streamlined look, my electrician rewired the area so that the phone jack and eight outlets were all positioned together:

I had this fantasy of moving in and immediately working in my new home office the next day. That fantasy kept me going over the extra month I had to spend at my old place, counting down the days until I’d be immersed in my peaceful writing oasis. Did I move in and start working the next day as planned? Not exactly.

This is how I worked for about three weeks after moving in. I had strategically taken my sexy iMac to Shiny Happy Apple World for a check-up the day before I moved. When my contractors explained how much dust and plastic and drilling I’d be living with over the next few weeks, I asked the Apple friendly neighbors if they could take care of my computer until things settled down. Being made of awesome, they agreed. I worked on my MacBook Pro. Well, I tried to work. Finally being free of Mr. Snore was a huge relief. But living with a team of contractors while on deadline? Challenge accepted.

All of the drama was worth it. After the renovations were completed, my office settled into its current state of Zen retreat:

The original plan was to create a separate room for a home office. But my architect insisted that we keep the space open. I am so thankful for his expertise. Putting up walls would have blocked the light and views. And this apartment is all about the light and views. Instead, I positioned the modules on the right to create a sense of enclosed space. Headers from my Barnes & Noble floor displays are on the wall. I also put up prints from book cover photo shoots. It’s still a work in progress, but I love my office so much. I can breathe. I can write. These are good things.

Keep on breathing and writing…