Home Office Design Tips for Productivity
As we’re shifting more toward remote work and work from home capabilities, it’s important to create an intentional space for your work so that you’re as productive at your home office as you are in the actual office. We’ve put together this list of home office trends, including the importance of plants in any home office design, along with our top recommendations for home office plants!
Home Office Design Trends
Modern home office design trends combine function and fashion, with a combination of obvious necessities like a desk, chair, and organization alongside accessories and upgrades to personalize your space. What’s most important about a work space is that you feel comfortable and can use the space to your advantage.
Here are some of our favorite trends for home office decor and design.
Home Office Essentials
A comfy chair. One of the most important parts of your home office is an ergonomic chair. If you’ve ever worked from a makeshift home office (i.e., your dining room table), you know the struggle of lower back pain that comes from eight hours in an unsupportive chair.
A houseplant. Plants provide numerous benefits to your home office, including better productivity and mood so you can beat cabin fever working remotely. We’ll cover tips to pick the best plants for your home office later, but be sure to keep a space in mind for your leafy friend when you’re planning your desk organization.
Storage. Even if you go minimalist, you need some kind of organized storage for your workspace. This could be a bookshelf, bins or baskets, a file cabinet, or a well organized desk drawer. A clutter free workspace helps you focus without distractions.
Home Office Design
You can decorate your home office in whatever style suits you best. If you’re more of a minimalist, focus on organization that keeps things put in their proper place. If you love bright color, add art or a bright throw pillow to your space. If you feel inspired by motivational quotes, add a vision board or print of your favorite quote. Home office design trends are just that -- trends -- so you can take what you love and personalize it in your own way.
Minimalist design. Sometimes, less is more. Prioritize your space for necessities first. Making sure your space is functional and well designed makes for a more peaceful home office.
Color schemes. One of the top trends in home office design this year is unique color schemes including dark color palettes. If this fits your own design aesthetic, go for a charcoal gray office, navy blue accent wall, or even a deep mossy green decor - which will look great with the pop of your office plants! Brighten up with a throw pillow or other accessories.
Multifunctional offices. Designing an office in a small home can be a challenge if you need to keep space for guests or add a workspace to an existing family room. With some creative rearranging, you can have your home office and maintain space for guests and family activities too.
Benefits of Plants at Work
Plants help improve motivation and productivity at work, so they’re the perfect addition to your home office. There are also many health benefits of plants that make them ideal for your home office where you spend eight or more hours of your day!
Health Benefits of Plants for Offices
Plants have been shown to improve air quality.
Plants can boost your immune response.
Plants reduce stress.
Plants increase humidity.
Plants decrease sick days.
Adding plants to your workspace helps remove harmful pollutants from the air, increase humidity naturally, and reduce stress. They’re so much more than just decoration, as both foliage and succulents make an extremely effective way to reduce stress and improve your overall quality of life as you work from home.
How to Choose a Houseplant
When you’re selecting a plant for your home office, you need to take several factors into consideration.
How much space you have
The amount of light your office gets
Your level of plant expertise
If you’re decorating a home office in a small home, space is at a premium. Take advantage of vertical space on shelves or hang plants from ceiling hooks, if you don’t have room on your desk. Find out how much light you have using our guide to determine which plants make sense for your light level, and then check out our plant recommendations for houseplant beginners if you need a low maintenance plant for your home office.
The Best Plants for Your Home Office
These easy care houseplants are great for your home office and require minimal maintenance so you can focus on getting work done! Scroll through the slideshow to see photos of all eight plants for your office.
Sansevieria (Snake Plant)
Ivy
ZZ Plant
Spider Plant
Pothos
Jade
Schefflera (Umbrella Tree)
Fittonia (Nerve Plant)
Sansevieria are great office plants for beginners because they provide all the benefits of indoor plants with very little maintenance. They can live in low light and need very minimal watering.
Ivy does okay in low to medium light, but it will grow faster in brighter light. It’s also known as a great air purifying plant for your office!
ZZ Plants are perfect for any light level and can thrive even in low light. They require minimal watering due to holding onto water in their underground rhizomes.
Spider Plants are a good candidate for low to medium light offices and reproduce easily so you can repot the babies and keep plants in other areas of your home too!
Pothos can thrive in low light and are forgiving if you forget a watering day. They droop when they need water so they will communicate with you if you know what to watch for!
Jade plants are great plants for office Feng Shui as they are great symbols of luck and prosperity. As a succulent, they do best with bright light and need minimal watering.
Schefflera, also known as a Dwarf Umbrella Tree, provides a cheerful canopy of leaves that brighten up any office space. It looks great on a desk and does best in brighter light.
Fittonia is a great air purifying houseplant and can live in low light, but it does need regular watering.
What’s Your Office Trend?
Are you a minimalist, bright and bold decorator, or office plant enthusiast? Show us your home office plants on Instagram when you tag @wild_interiors!