An overhaul on the color of your home office can bring new life into the room and spark creativity and productivity. Whether your home office is currently a neutral beige or a color you don’t like, repainting the walls can be a small, inexpensive way to change a room drastically.
There are a few questions you should ask yourself before you get started.
- Consider the kind of mood you want to set
- Do you want something bright or something more subdued?
- How much natural light do you get in your office?
- Do you want a bright, airy space – or something dark and moody?
Also, it’s essential to ask yourself whether your walls will act as a backdrop to many video calls. Having a color that looks good on camera is a delicate balance.
Color Inspiration
Making a color choice seems like a daunting task. But reflect on how much time you spend in your office and how you want to feel when a particular color surrounds you. Your home office should be a room where you feel inspired, productive and a space you enjoy spending time in.
Make a Mood Board
If you already have a color family in mind, you can build on that. There are so many different shades to a single color, so search through Pinterest and see what you naturally gravitate towards.
Google image search can also be an excellent tool for finding the right color. When you’re looking colors up in Google, be sure to try filtering the results by selecting “Tools > Color” to help sort the options.
If you’re uncertain about what color you want, try looking at many colors and see what you like. Even if it’s a color you wouldn’t usually choose; you may be surprised at what you find.
Consider Your Existing Furniture
What pieces of office furniture do you already own? Do you want to keep them and incorporate them into your freshly painted office? If you don’t want to do a furniture and décor revamp, try to select a color that will match the things you have.
If you want to keep your existing furniture but don’t fit into what you envision your new office color scheme to be, you can try to refurbish some of the items. Whether you paint your desk to match, reupholster your chair, or cover your filing cabinet in contact paper, depending on the time investment you want to put into it, the possibilities are endless.
Select a Color
When you’re finished collecting all your inspiration and have things narrowed down, you can begin the selection process. Sherwin Williams offers interactive tools like their digital color wall to flip through colors on your computer or mobile app.
You can also choose to go to the store to look at paint swatches. You can buy a few Color to Go samples to paint directly on your wall to compare. You may love a color on a paint swatch, but depending on the sun the room receives or the wall’s surface area, you may change your mind.
By painting small areas of your wall and leaving it up for a few days, you’ll get a sense of which color you like best in your space before you commit. Once you’re confident in what you love, you’ll be able to choose a color without stress.
Consider an Accent Wall
Not all your walls have to be the same. If you want to create an accent wall to either accommodate the sunlight or for a fun look, you can select two colors for your home office to refresh your walls. You can choose to have your accent wall a darker or lighter shade than your other walls or a completely contrasting color.
Time to Paint Your Home Office
Now to the fun part: the execution.
You can choose to hire a painter or do it yourself, but the first step is to prepare the space. Put your furniture in the middle of the room and cover them with tarps or plastic sheets.
Lay down some protection on your floors and begin taping outlets, baseboards, or corners. You should start with by edging the walls along the ceiling and trim with a brush, and you can then use a roller for the rest.
The number of coats you need will depend on the color of the paint you choose and the color you’re covering, but two coats are a good start for a light color, or three if you choose a darker color.
Conclusion
It’s surprising what a little paint can do to change your home office completely. When you have the finished product, you’ll feel more refreshed, renewed, and inspired to get to work.
