We are getting things done, but, as I told a friend, it's really procrastination masquerading as progress, ha! I first shared plans for this room back in January 2017, we hung the wallpaper in March last year, assembled the desk and storage cabinets over a year ago... and there the room sat for months, never really getting it's finishing touches. That changes today!

Today's conversation is sponsored by Philips Lighting and I'm excited to show you how some of their products and a few accessories finally got us over the decorating finish line. But first, here's a quick look at how the room looked when we moved in just over a year ago:


One of the first things we did was paint the room a muted green-grey colour, Tranquility by Benjamin Moore. Just like in our master bedroom, we painted the ceiling, walls, and trim the same colour to deemphasize the coved ceiling and make it disappear.






I can't work with a lot of visual chaos so facing this monotone wall, with just a few accessories corralled on a tray is my ideal work environment. The artwork by Parima Creative Studio provides just enough relief without jarring my focus when I'm working.



How do you work best? I've oriented the room this way because I've discovered I really dislike working either facing out a window, or with my back to the door! I've also realized that I need lots of space and a white surface to work on so this desk from Structube is perfect for me. I don't like lots of clutter so sweet accessories from Printed Matter, my trusty pen from Muji, and my favourite mug filled with hot coffee are all I need within hand's reach to get through the day.

My other absolute necessity is light - and lots of it!



I have terribly bad eyesight so different sources of light and the variety of light are super important to me. In planning this room, I knew I wanted general or ambient lighting, plus accent lighting with the wall sconces. We get ample natural light in this room but having multiple lights allows me to work in different conditions and into the night.



I like working with general lighting overhead - but it needs to be the right light, nothing too harsh and glaring. The Philips LED EyeComfort bulbs are just that. I originally had an incandescent bulb in this pendant but found while it was nice and bright, it was too strong. I sit at this desk for hours and after a while, the harshness of the bright light reflecting off my computer screen and the white desk surface was too much.



A switch to the Philips LED EyeComfort bulbs made this room much more enjoyable. There are a lot of LEDs on the market but not all are created equal. The quality of light these bulbs emit is just right and my eyes don't feel strained at the end of the day. I love that these bulbs are dimmable too, and allow me to highlight the pretty shelves and set a calming mood.



The shelves, the shelves. These shelves really were the reason for the long delay with this project. It took me a while to find brackets that I liked. They were an oil rubbed bronze and I wanted them black so I had to spray paint them. By the time I decided on brackets, it was winter and I was too lazy to spray them indoors so I waited until spring. I also debated whether to stain the shelves but in the end I decided the natural wood was just right.






Even if a room is pretty, it needs to function properly. To me, that means the printer and cordless home phone (I dislike taking long calls on my cellphone) had to be accessible. I had tried storing the printer in one of the cabinets but that was just not working for me. The room would be so much prettier without these items on the countertop, but this is the reality.




This is a room for creative thought so I wanted to devote room for things that inspire me. I've decorated the shelves with design books, favourite photos, and faux plants that I won't forget to water.





Paint: Tranquility by Benjamin Moore
Wallpaper: Blyth Blue Toile by Brewster Wallcoverings
Blue jar, mini white jars, antler: HomeSense
Desk, Sideboard, rug, chair
Pendant light, sconces, light bulbs
Cellphone case, notebook, stationery, mug, gingham tray, hello object, printer
Pinboard, large framed print, picture frame, moon art print, abstract print, geometric print
Boxwood in vase, gingham vase, glass knot, decorative boxes, snow globe
Shelf brackets (hung with short side up, holding 7" shelf)