Table of Content
This also allows the guest portion of the room to take center stage visually. You need a place for files, and your guests need a place for belongings. Creative gathering place, co-working space + meeting point. Have a cup of delicious illy coffee, grab a book and take a time out. Simply savor the moment, or use the space to meet at the co-working table, gather and connect with your team and colleagues. Always surrounded by the light activity of our hotel lobby, Le Méridien Hub is the perfect place for focus and distraction.
Here's How to Choose the Right Pillow for various sleeping styles. Daybeds also work nicely in combination rooms, however those can be taste specific and tend to look more like beds than seating, so they may not be the look you’re going for. We just threw some random things in there, and when my husband started working from home last spring, we added a desk space . The paint only took one coat, which really sped things up! At first, I was a little worried that I may need to apply two coats.
Focus on the Bed
This is especially useful if you live in a smaller home or apartment where there isn’t a dedicated guest room to begin with. Sourcing a large vintage or thrifted wooden dining table to use as a desk is an affordable option for those who like to have a large surface area to work on. In this minimalist black-and-white office guest room from real estate agent and interior designer Julian Porcino, a large wooden table adds warmth and fills the space. Orienting the desk facing out toward the spacious room makes it easy to give your eyes a break and is often more comfortable than facing a wall.
To save space and maximize home office functions, I decided to do a desk built in. So for this guest room, before any hard renovation I did some basic update with the old walls and the flooring. Cats and dogs are allowed at an additional charge of 35 EUR per stay.
The Key Is to Make the Room Simple Yet Cozy
Instead of using curtains, I opted for a light weight shade. I have a post with video on my desk built-in, so check out this DIY desk built-in tutorialif interested. For my desk built-in, I used two IKEA ALEX drawer units, and a long table top above. It’s all digital printables that’s why it’s so affordable.
For additional insight, see our guide on How to Style a Guest Bedroom Your Visitors Will Love. For more tips, read our blog, Create Your Ideal Space to Work From Home. If you work from a laptop, you'll want to have a way to store it or carry it around when your visitors are using your home office. Made of natural wool with handsome leather accents, the Felt Laptop Sleeve is an excellent choice — and it pairs well with the desk mat and cord keeper for a cohesive look.
Add a Magazine Rack
I think this light fixture works both for the guest bedroom and home office. Since we don’t have guests come over often, I decided that the space should be 60% home office, 20% guest bedroom and 20% craft room. One of the easiest ways to add a cozy atmosphere to any room is by incorporating texture. Your office area may contain a lot of smooth and hard surfaces - the wooden desk, the metal cabinet, the plastic parts of your desk chair. Try offsetting these surfaces with softer elements that elevate the guest room portion of your space. Throw a chunky knit blanket on your desk chair or add an ottoman featuring a natural fiber to add plenty of variation.
To go with the lounge vibe, I also added a wall sconce so it can serve as a table lamp when people sleep here or a reading light when we are using it as an office. In fact, we had to return the first sleeper sofa we purchased because the mattress was too firm to sit on. When it is time to use it as a sleeper we have to fold down the back cushion which creates an uneven surface to sleep on. A lot of sofa beds on the market can accommodate two people. If you use a daybed instead, it can only accommodate one person.
If this room was solely a home office, I likely would have shoved 10 times the office supplies and such into various storage bins and baskets around the room. I might have added a large bookcase with displays of my collections and so forth. Having a multipurpose guest room office forced me to house only the items needed.
Complimentary entry to our Unlock Art™ partner SCHIRN KUNSTHALLE FRANKFURT. Meeting, conference, brainstorming or any kind of celebration. Creative, individual and considering your requirements.
At some point, we might consider swapping this queen sized bed for an office daybed or a guest room sofa bed. In fact, I didn’t really realize just how bad the placement of the bed was until we moved it out and rearranged a few weeks ago. How much bigger the room feels with just those simple changes of the bed! Between that and the new lighter color on the walls, the room feels like a completely different space.
Take time to imagine how the bed looks in the center versus in a corner. Next, consider where the desk makes the most sense, then add in storage components, and so on. This room doesn’t need much more than a bed, a desk, some storage space, and perhaps a chair. By taking a minimalist approach to designing, you create a space that can be shaped for a multiple purposes. I always think guest rooms need a lamp, so guests can have the option of dimming lights for comfort.
This will give your guests the option of an extra layer of warmth on chillier nights while adding a decorative touch. Find more office/guest room ideas in our Bedroom Furniture Essentials checklist. I’m embarrassed to even post these photos, but of course you want to see what this now office and guest room looked like before I made it over. The prior owners used it as a dance studio- hence the wood floors and floor-to-ceiling mirror wall. With open shelving, the room looks a little more convertible between office and guest room modes. Anything that normally goes on the desk can be tucked away into a basket and placed on the shelf for easy access once your guest departs.
And when guests do arrive, simply unfold the bed and provide them with a comfortable place to sleep. In this sense, you also get some added living space when the sofa bed isn’t in use. This functional home office idea in New York needed to be both professional yet cozy enough for overnight guests. The cabinetry and millwork are custom, stained in grey oak, and finished with brushed brass pulls. File drawers were integrated under the daybed, while a mix of open and closed shelving provides plenty of storage options.
