In the year of our lord 2025, it’s practically impossible to ignore WFH culture. Since the pandemic, huge swathes of us switched to hybrid working, and with such a shift, the humble home office has been thrust into the limelight – people rethinking their existing study zones or creating them from scratch in their homes.
The backbone of these spaces has got to be the furniture: after all, it keeps us comfy, well-postured and provides structure. This said, it’s tricky to choose. Hence, the purpose of this guide: no matter how much you’ve been umming and ahhing, these office furnishing ideas are here to help you narrow things down.
There’s no time to lose – let’s dive right on in!
Beginner’s Considerations
With the UK’s revenue from home office furniture bloating to $1.32bn USD, we take the recent data as a testament to the study room’s popularity. But how do serious remote workers make things work?
For one, as the line between home and office becomes blurrier, the room has got to go beyond function; it needs to fall in step with your lifestyle, aesthetic preferences and, most importantly, fit the space. An expansive desk is all well and good during your morning meeting prep, but if it’s going to impede the flow of the room – especially if it’s a shared space (kitchen workers, we’re looking at you) – it’s going to be more of a hassle than it’s worth.
To avoid these kinds of blunders, make sure to ask yourself the following:
- What size furniture will fit the space? Would a multipurpose piece resolve any space issues?
- How often will I be in video calls (and how does the background look)?
- Is my chair supportive enough for long hours of sitting?
- Can furniture placement allow for free movement in and out of the room?
- Will adding this desk/shelf block natural light or access to plugs/sockets?
- Do my envisioned home office furniture ideas match the existing aesthetic of the room?
- Can I hide or tuck away equipment when the workday is done?
- Am I willing to invest in higher-quality, albeit more expensive pieces, that will last?
- Would opting for second-hand, or upcycling old office furniture, save on costs? (Financial and environmental).
10 Home Office Furnishing Ideas Combining Productivity & Creative Flair
With those all-important considerations marinating in your mind, we can jump straight into our office furnishing ideas. We’ve divided them by the setup workspace type for convenience, so whether you’re interested in creative small office interior designs or a more open plan alternative, there’s plenty to consider.
Small WFH Spaces
1. A Leaning Ladder Desk to Win Back the Inches
Building a functional office in smaller WFH spaces, namely box rooms, presents added hurdles: layout, clearance, and fitting everything in. That’s why ladder desks are such a versatile solution; with a small footprint, they don’t take up much space, plus they can be dressed up with ornaments and aesthetic storage on their in-built shelves.
2. Extendable Setups & Flexibility for Days
If you’re accustomed to varied workdays and need both the screen and space for physical note-taking, an extendable desk is a great compromise. It can be lengthened and shortened, so you can mould it to your requirements and temporarily gain some surface area.
Multi-Purpose, Hybrid Offices
3. The Dressing Table Workspace
When you’re forced to squeeze an office into another room, be it bedroom or lounge, it doesn’t mean it can’t be functional or, indeed, beautiful. Dressing tables are a great fix: keep some wicker baskets underneath to store your laptop and wires, plonk a nice lamp on top and make sure the chair promotes comfort and good posture – and hey presto – you have a cosy makeshift office.
4. Desk by Day, Sideboard by Night
Similar to the dressing table office furnishing idea, sideboards have unexpected uses. Simply store away your electronics in the drawers during leisure time – no reminders of labour when you’re off the clock! – and keep your other supplies in hidden yet decorative storage.
Office Nooks
5. Murphy Desks When You’re in a Pinch
Even in the tiniest of spaces, you shouldn’t settle for cramped and confined; especially when Murphy desks exist. These clever office furnishing pieces are lifesavers (as well as space savers), since they don’t eat up many square metres and can be folded away when they’re not in use.
6. The Banquette Kitchen Office
When spare rooms are out of the question, the kitchen might be your only option. Here, you can have the best of both worlds – work and play – by incorporating banquette seating, some barstools and a corner table into one of its crannies. Yep, that’s a breakfast nook and desk rolled into one.
Garden Offices
7. Deck Out the Garden Room with Craft Cubbies & Wall Storage
Thanks to the oodles of natural light, garden offices are a great option for creatives who work with their hands. It also makes locating things much easier. So why not optimise it further with magnetic wall strips for stationery and other tools, plus some wall cubbies for your supplies? Finish off the setup with a break-out area with a small sofa or bean bag paired with a coffee table for those essential caffeine top-ups.
8. Keep Things Roomy with Floor-to-Ceiling Storage
Love the shaker look? Then you’re in for a treat. This office furnishing idea brings style and substance in equal measure. The gist is to install tall, wall-mounted cabinets to rid your outbuilding of visual noise and provide tons of out-of-sight storage. For the ultimate organisation, you could fit it out with separators, boxes, and labels.
Large, Modern Offices
9. Curved Silhouettes for the Contemporary Feel
Because curved furniture is a little harder to craft, it exudes a twinned sense of luxury and taste. Think: a rounded desk, sleek monitor, Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, topped off with sculptural table lamps and an egg chair – so stylish it practically entices you to log on!
10. Reclaimed or Antique Office Furniture to Paint a Story of Historic Charm
Whether it’s giving a monastic cloister, Victorian Gothic or a grounded country farmhouse feel, traditionally styled furniture can work a charm. Oozing historic character, it makes the home office not just feel structured and visually appealing, but it also provides a needed retreat from the hectic modern world.
