Office makeover: 'DIY hacks gave us a bespoke workspace on a budget'

A year and a half after moving into their four-bedroom new-build in Ebbsfleet, Kent, Lydia and Peter Elder had decorated every room apart from one.

‘We had a small study off the hall that had just become a dumping ground,’ says Lydia. ‘As time went on, we realised it was a wasted space, and we needed somewhere for household admin and for working from home occasionally. Back then, we had no idea how important having a proper home office would turn out to be.’

Once Lydia and Peter had cleared the clutter, Lydia could focus on designing a space-maximising layout that gave them both an ample area to work in.

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‘The only things in the room were the radiator, white walls and a grey wood-effect laminate floor,’ she says. ‘We couldn’t fit in two separate desks, so we decided on a double one that Peter and I could share. I wanted smart, fitted-type furniture, but the quotes for a built-in desk and wall storage were way beyond our budget.’

Undaunted, Lydia put together her own, teaming IKEA wall-mounted cabinets and drawer units with a run of kitchen worktop. ‘I’m a big Instagrammer (@lydias_layton_life), and I had seen lots of hacks on there,’ she says.

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‘I put the dimensions into the online planning tool, to get the right combination of units for a near-perfect fit with no gaps. A third drawer unit in the centre would have been ideal, but Peter’s a lot taller than me and it was important to have enough legroom for us to sit comfortably.’

Once the desk components were measured and chosen, Lydia started thinking about the look. ‘I love restful, deep greens. I’ve used them all through my home and I knew I wanted dark green behind the desk,’ she says.

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‘The room is north-facing though, so the other walls are pale grey, which helps boost the light.’

Lydia also opted for white furniture to help the space feel brighter and prevent the room from feeling too functional.

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‘We put kitchen cabinet carcasses on the wall, but the white fronts are designed for living room furniture and have a lovely rippled surface,’ she says. ‘For the other side of the room I found a gorgeous white sideboard that’s much prettier than a filing cabinet.’

Decorating the room was the first task, and Lydia stumbled on a bargain when she bought her paint from an online colour-matching source. ‘The tester pots were generous enough to cover the whole room, with no waste,’ she says. ‘That really saved us money.’

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Once the room was decorated, the furniture could be fitted. Assembling the flat-pack units was straightforward, and by luck, a standard length of worktop slotted exactly into the space, resting on the drawers at either end, without extra fixing. Peter hung the wall cabinets and attached the fronts.

‘He re-positioned the hinges from the sides to the tops of the cabinets, so the wall-units open upwards, and don’t stick out over the work area,’ explains Lydia.

Lydia was keen to make the office inviting as well as practical. She chose velvet chairs to pick up the green theme, and layered up rattan, recycled glass, leafy plants and touches of gold for a softer, more homely vibe.

‘Our office has really come into its own recently. Peter and I have both been working from home and, with two young children, things could have been really stressful,’ she says.

‘At the end of the day, we can just close the door, and that helps keep our work-life balance, too.’

This is a digital version of a feature that originally appeared in Your Home magazine. For more inspirational home ideas, why not subscribe today?