Interview Daniela Weber
Interior designer Daniela Weber shares tips on how to furnish your home office
You planned the work corner in the living room. How did you go about it?
My goal was to make the home office workspace blend harmoniously into the living room. That's why I chose materials and colours that were the same and matched each other. The desk in the living room is positioned against the wall rather than in the middle of the room, so it plays a secondary role, with living being the main focus. The carpet under the desk clearly defines and delimits the work area. The cosy and more delicate visitor chair on glides fits better into the overall situation in the home office than a classic office chair. It is the same colour as the cushion.
Do you work from home? How do you manage to switch off in the evening?
I work from home and, as a freelancer, I enjoy the luxury of having a separate office. Because I unfortunately find it difficult to switch off in the evening and often end up sitting at my desk longer than planned, I try to schedule fixed working hours at home and stick to them as far as possible. At the end of the day, I put everything away, close the office door and resolve not to open it again. (laughs) I don't have to commute home from the office, so I improvise a ‘transition phase’. This can be a walk, a jog or a yoga sequence, and occasionally I devote myself to my garden, which is in dire need of attention!
How do you organise your day?
As I have two school-age children, the first thing I do in the morning is get them ready for school in a timely and stress-free manner. Then I do a little yoga, have a small breakfast and sit down at my desk. First, I create a to-do list for my day working from home. I usually do planning and creative work in the morning, provided I don't have any online meetings, as my head is still clear and I have better ideas. My lunch break is either tailored to the children or my workflow. After the break, I often work through things, do paperwork, write quotes or invoices. Creative work comes easily to me again in the late afternoon!
What helps me in the different phases of working from home are different positions: paperwork while sitting, planning while standing, creative work while standing and moving around (looking for patterns, comparing, holding things up to the daylight, etc.), talking on the phone while walking around, sometimes even in the garden! This keeps the body mobile and with it, the mind.
Can you give us an insider tip: What is the best way to hang pictures?
There are a few things to consider here, and not just in the work corner, of course. (laughs) First of all, it is important to consider the surroundings and the proportions: large pictures on large walls or above large furniture, small pictures on small walls.
- Effect: a horizontal arrangement makes walls appear wider, while a vertical arrangement makes them appear higher.
- Height: Always hang pictures at eye level, i.e. plan for the centre of the picture to be approximately 1.60 m above the floor. Here, too, consider whether you will be viewing them while standing, sitting or walking past. It is a good idea to orient them along an existing line in the room.
- Preparation: You can test the arrangement on the floor beforehand; be sure to use aids such as masking tape and a spirit level for hanging.
- Row and edge hanging: All pictures are aligned along an (imaginary) line, which can be the edge of the picture or the imaginary centre line of the picture. The distances between the pictures should always be the same. A calm overall picture is most likely to result from group hanging if all pictures have the same frames and passe-partouts.