[Desk: $149.99, Target; Hutch: $99.99, Target]
Since I began freelancing full-time about two years ago, I’ve had continual trouble achieving optimal work/life balance. First, there was too much life (if you count watching full-day marathons of America’s Next Top Model as “life”). Now, I just work all the time.
This past weekend, I was determined to stay strong, and not work.
So instead, I spent several hours putting together a Photoshop collage of my dream office, which I then wished I could start working in right away.
Then I somehow ended up at Target, where I saw a way cheap version of the $5,000 desk I had put in my collage. So I felt I had to share it with you.
After the jump, the rest of my dream office:
- Snow Voile Scarf Valance, $19.99, JCPenney
- Millie Chandelier, $728, Room Service Home
- Boston Poster, $22, Ork Posters!
- 4 inspirational prints, $29, Etsy
- Birdcage Office Caddy, $149, Room Service Home
- Casablanca Lanterns, $78-$145, Room Service Home
- Stanhope Desk, $5,950, Williams-Sonoma Home
- Expedit Bookcase, $199, Ikea
- Semikolon Print Magazine Box, $18, See Jane Work
- Wooden Desk Caddy, $89, Room Service Home
- Oriental Garden Rug, $219-$1,419, Neiman Marcus
- Lamp, $35-$39, PBteen
*Originally published on MM
Steph Auteri 
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Oh– I love this. I’m so glad to hear I’m not the only one who wastes time Photoshopping my dream office. Heh. Beautiful choices, by the way.
How very Real Simple! I would dearly love to have such a beautiful workspace. As it is, I work out of a cluttered home office that features an ugly old computer desk from the mid-90s that my husband can’t bear to part with. There are half-empty bags of dried fruit from Trader Joe’s scattered about to give me snack options that don’t require a trip downstairs to the kitchen. And I have files stacked upon files stacked upon files. It’s the antithesis of spare, neat glamour.
@becca: I may eventually work my way through my entire dream home. But of course, the office was the most important. :)
@Jennifer: Can you tell that I love Real Simple? I own their Organized Home book.
My office now? Shared with my husband (we work back to back) and separated from the living room by a screen that doubles as a drying rack. At the moment, I’m still using the desk I used back in college, and the surface is a mess of product samples, bills, tissues, etc. I also have to litter boxes next to my desk (ew). Oh, and the china cabinet is squeezed in here, too. It’s a hand-me-down from my mom, who had it back when she was in college. I’m attempting to makes things nice in here by hanging some pictures. It’s a work in progress. :) I may order those four inspirational prints now.
[...] into a savings account for future office rental costs, that shiny new invoicing software, etc. That Stanhope Desk isn’t going to pay for [...]
[...] in what was originally meant to be the dining room. Is it any wonder that I like to daydream about my future office space? My deal-breakers: natural light, room for file and book storage, and a door with a lock on it. [...]
[...] But we’ve been looking at houses lately. Not because of my workspace woes, but because we plan to start procreating, and living in a one-bedroom condo with three cats and a kid seems ridiculous. And since we’re upgrading anyway, we haven’t been looking at anything with less than three bedrooms. This leaves one room for us, one for our child-to-be, and one for the office of my dreams. [...]
[...] But we’ve been looking at houses lately. Not because of my workspace woes, but because we plan to start procreating, and living in a one-bedroom condo with three cats and a kid seems ridiculous. And since we’re upgrading anyway, we haven’t been looking at anything with less than three bedrooms. This leaves one room for us, one for our child-to-be, and one for the office of my dreams. [...]
[...] with less than three bedrooms. This leaves one room for us, one for our child-to-be, and one for the office of my dreams. This makes me giddy. Because, aside from the thrill I’ll derive from finally having my own [...]