Office Refresh

Here is the office before. It's a great space and will be used almost every day by my husband who works from home. Getting it updated and comfortable for him was my first priority when we moved in.

I loved the look of built-ins but didn't have the budget for them. First up was finding a desk. I wanted something large since I knew we would have it floating in the middle of the room. I came across this beautiful desk on Facebook Marketplace for only $100. After some heavy lifting we were able to get it moved into the space.

After scoring this amazing desk, the next priority was finding the perfect rug. My husband needed to use the office right away and it was too echo-y without a rug. I found this gem for under $400 at my local Home Goods.

Next up was my faux built-ins. I headed out to my favorite local thrift stores and found the pieces I was looking for. First I found this file cabinet for only $35. I forgot to take a before, but here it is in process!

Then, I knew I wanted to frame it with two matching bookcases. I found this set of Thomasville solid wood bookcases at a local thrift store for $250.

Picking the perfect color came next. As my blog's name suggests, I am a sucker for a dusty blue. I went to Home Depot and tested three samples - Teton Blue, Intercoastal Gray, and French Colony. I fell in love with Teton Blue and it matched perfectly with the rug. For this project, I used Behr's Chalk Paint and was super pleasantly surprised with how easy it went on and how much it covered in only one coat. I ended up only having to do two coats, although I did use primer on the bookcases.

After getting the bookcases and filing cabinet painted, I had to choose hardware. I landed on these acrylic pulls and gold knobs.

I found this lamp and artwork at my local thrift store for under $40 total.

Here is the final reveal. The shelf styling is a work in progress and I would love to find a better office chair, but I am so excited about how the "built-ins" turned out.