Resources for Home Office Planning & Organization

HGTV Home Office Section
Home and Garden Television has a wealth of information about home office and workspace, including office redesign, masculine offices, retro home offices, home office suites, tranquil music room and retreat, painters studios, home office makeovers, old west offices, seaside home offices, industrial home offices, vintage home office furnishing, L-shaped desks, sea-inspired offices, choosing an office chair, kitchen offices and converting an old bedroom into a home office. Links go to articles with tips and explanations of room makeovers, including before and after home office photos.

Home Office Design - Basic Planning and Organization
This site offers a succinct description and advice for a home office, concentrating on three major areas: work space, support space, and active storage. Other helpful pieces of information include advice on energy, privacy, organization, and the separation of home space from home office space. As with any home office advice site, the objective is to get you organized and productive.

Starting a Home Office
Starting a business of your own that you'll run out of your own home is a risky venture. Before you burn any bridges with your current boss, this article has several suggestions for ways to help insure that your new venture stands at least a 50/50 chance of success. Once you have made the decision to go it on your own you will be faced with several challenges. One of the first challenges, according to this article, is a system of organization. This might be a simple spreadsheet or it may be more complex, depending on your business model. You'll need lists of contacts, client lists, supplier lists and so forth. Next make a list of equipment that you'll need. Basic equipment includes a computer, plus a laptop or a palm device if your business requires much travel. Make sure all components work flawlessly with each other. Spend enough to get good quality, but don't go overboard; most equipment will be obsolete in two years anyway. You'll need a separate phone line for your computer and fax machine and you should consider a fast broadband Internet connection. Click on NEXT and the article continues with discussions of multi-task office equipment (scanner/printer/fax machines), and the importance of a good office chair. There are also discussions of financial management and the proper structure of your home business, how to deal with red tape, how to get the word out about your new enterprise and even a discussion on balancing home and work life.

Bright Ideas for Home Office Lighting
One way to avoid uniform levels of lighting is to use indirect lighting sources. A fixture that reflects off of the ceiling back down into the space is the least glaring and most comforting for the eyes. If the area around your monitor is not well lit, there will be a contrast between the bright computer screen and the darkness of the room, which will certainly create eyestrain after awhile. To avoid this situation, try "washing" the wall behind your computer with a recessed "wall washer", a light fixture that looks like a regular light that would project light down the wall. Article also discusses paint choices for the home office, as well as halogen bulbs and general office décor and themes