Skip to content

Top Navigation

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Food and Recipes
  • Culture and Lifestyle
  • Style
  • Holidays & Occasions
  • Home
  • Gardening Ideas
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living Books this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Southern Living

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • The Best New Haircuts to Try in 2022

      The Best New Haircuts to Try in 2022

      Here are the haircuts you'll be seeing everywhere this year. Read More
    • How to Season a Cast-Iron Skillet

      How to Season a Cast-Iron Skillet

      Learn how to season this Southern kitchen staple in five easy steps. Read More
    • 50 Thoughtful Messages for a Meaningful Thank You Note

      50 Thoughtful Messages for a Meaningful Thank You Note

      Not sure what to write in a thank you card? Here's how to show your gratitude with a handwritten note. Read More
  • Food and Recipes

    Food and Recipes

    See All Food and Recipes
    4 Easy Ways to Tell if an Egg Has Gone Bad

    4 Easy Ways to Tell if an Egg Has Gone Bad

    It’s not all in the senses, but they sure can help.
    • Recipes
    • Quick and Easy Dinner
    • Kitchen Assistant
    • Casserole
    • Holiday and Occasion Food
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Healthy and Light
    • Side Dishes
    • Party Food and Drink
    • Appetizers
    • Meat
    • Breakfast
    • BBQ
    • Drinks
    • What's Cooking
  • Culture and Lifestyle

    Culture and Lifestyle

    See All Culture and Lifestyle
    70 Cute and Funny Nicknames For Your Best Friends

    70 Cute and Funny Nicknames For Your Best Friends

    Let your besties know how much they mean to you with one of these unique nicknames.
    • Quotes and Sayings
    • Biscuits and Jam Podcast
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Healthy Living
    • Coastal Living
  • Style

    Style

    See All Style
    The Coziest Winter Nail Colors for January 2022

    The Coziest Winter Nail Colors for January 2022

    The beginning of a new year often has us all feeling like starting off fresh by taking on better habits, getting rid of old ones, and—most commonly—changing up our look. While others are hitting the squats and going into the salon for a pixie cut, why not start slow and steady with a cozy winter manicure in a color that feels new to you? It takes only a little courage to step outside your usual OPI Lincoln Park After Dark or Essie Bordeaux, which is all you need to kick 2022 off on a fanciful foot.  From new wintry takes on classic dark nail colors to unique pops of color that'll have you feeling the opposite of boring, these are the best nail colors to try this January and tick off all the way into spring. 
    • Beauty
    • Hair
    • Fashion
    • Short Hairstyles
    • Nails
    • Medium Hairstyles
    • Skincare
    • Long Hairstyles
  • Holidays & Occasions

    Holidays & Occasions

    See All Holidays & Occasions
    • Thanksgiving
    • Gifts
    • Christmas
    • Mother's Day
    • Hanukkah
    • New Year's
    • Easter
    • Mardi Gras
    • 4th of July
    • Weddings
  • Home

    Home

    See All Home
    16 Kitchen Design Trends Southern Designers Predict Will Be Everywhere in 2022

    16 Kitchen Design Trends Southern Designers Predict Will Be Everywhere in 2022

    There's no denying how the pandemic fundamentally changed the world—including how we live (and work) inside our homes. An overall trend toward celebrating the history and originality of our homes is displacing ultramodern aesthetics and sharp lines as we all look to create cozier, colorful, more personalized spaces that better suit our lifestyles. We're turning away from big-box stores and toward vintage items—first, out of necessity due to supply-chain issues, and now, for design reasons—to add charm and character to every room in the house, including the kitchen. Here, interior designers from around the South share their predictions for what's trending in kitchen design for 2022 and beyond.
    • Home Decor Ideas
    • Idea Houses
    • Kitchen Design
    • Before & After Photos
    • Bathroom Design
    • Curb Appeal
    • Bedroom Design
    • DIY Home Decor
    • Color Palettes & Paint
    • House Plans & Builders
    • Inspired Communities
  • Gardening Ideas

    Gardening Ideas

    See All Gardening Ideas
    If You Keep Finding Ladybugs in Your House, Here's What You Need to Know

    If You Keep Finding Ladybugs in Your House, Here's What You Need to Know

    Plus a few strategies for keeping them out-of-doors
    • Container Gardening
    • Gardening Flowers
    • Fruit, Vegetable & Herb Gardens
    • Garden Pests
    • Plant Guides A-Z
    • Indoor Plants
    • Fall Plants
    • Landscaping Ideas
    • The Grumpy Gardener
  • News

    News

    See All News
    • Celebrities
    • Local News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living Books this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Southern Living
  2. Home
  3. Home Decor Ideas
  4. Real-Life Redo: Home Office Makeover

Real-Life Redo: Home Office Makeover

By Alison Miller and Anne Turner Carroll
Skip gallery slides
FB
Make Paint Functional
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn
An underused home office gets the ultimate promotion with added storage, organization, and style.
Start Slideshow

1 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Functional Office Space

Functional Office Space
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

When Birmingham landscape designer Scott Glenn and his photographer wife, Laurey, invited guests to their home, an apology for the living room usually ensued.

  • Homeowner: Scott Glenn, Gardenscapes, Inc.; 205/365-6938.
  • Contractor: James Clayton; 205/492-7047.
  • All building materials: from Lowe’s.

1 of 9

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Before

Before
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

In the otherwise pretty space, Scott’s home office, along one wall of the room, created an eyesore of mounting paperwork and bulky equipment. Not only did the desk and cabinet disrupt the design, but the desk wasn’t big enough for him to work.

2 of 9

3 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

After

Make Paint Functional
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

In stepped Associate Decorating Editor Anne Turner Carroll to help Scott tackle his makeover to-do list: maximize space, introduce organization, and add style. They tackled the challenge by first knocking out one of the built-in cabinets to allow for a longer desktop. Next, a coat of paint on the remaining built-in, in the same color as the walls, better unified the area with the room. Anne Turner chose magnetic chalkboard paint for the back wall, adding color and functionality.

  • Love it? Get it!
  • Rug: Platinum Ming Cotton Carpet by Madeline Weinrib; 212/473-3000, ext. 3780.
  • Stool: Knicker Stool by Blu Dot (bludot.com, available through 2Modern.
  • Metal letters: Enamel Letters by Design Legacy by Kelly O’Neal.
  • Basket: Chronicle Baskets by Roost, available through Velocity Art and Design.

3 of 9

Advertisement

4 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Stainless Steel Desktop

Stainless Steel Desktop
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

A longer desktop, raised to countertop level, provides more elbow room and a comfortable height for Scott to draw. A metalsmith cut and shaped a sheet of stainless steel to fit like an apron over a plywood desktop and affixed it with glue. “If you have a countertop you want to transform, this is an easy upgrade with little construction,” says Anne Turner.

  • Love it? Get it!
  • Countertop: Sheet of stainless steel over Formica by Kenneth McGill Designs; 205/401-0910.
  • Woven box and tray: from Pottery Barn.

4 of 9

5 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The Right Lights

The Right Lights
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

Lighting is key for a well-functioning home office. For maximum light in Scott’s space, Anne Turner paired a hanging ceramic fixture with a distressed-metal task light. “The pendant is great-looking, and he can have it on all the time. But when he needs some serious light, he can position his task lamp to focus down where he’s working,” she says.

  • Love it? Get it!
  • Light fixture: Cosmo Stepped Pendant in Natural Bone China; available through lightingmatters.co.uk.
  • Task lamp: Vintage Inspired Distressed Metal Task Lamp on Stone Base by Vagabond, Vintage available through Mothology.

5 of 9

6 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Floating Shelves

Floating Shelves
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

A shallow wraparound wood shelf above the desktop keeps office supplies within arm’s reach. Additional floating shelves along the right wall provide storage for the gardening encyclopedias and reference books Scott uses most.

  • Love it? Get it!
    Globe:
    vintage, for a similar look, try Globe on Stand (5425) from Everything Furniture.
  • Model form (holding rubber bands): Jointed wooden body form on stand from All Dress Forms.
  • Stapler and tape dispenser: Nickel-plated, also from Pottery Barn.
  • Glass canisters: Stackable Container with Lid (0590-C) from Couronne Co..

6 of 9

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Paper Holder

Paper Holder
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

Easily accessible tracing paper scores major points with Scott, who still draws all of his garden designs by hand. Anne Turner’s idea to mount a swing-arm curtain rod as a paper holder cleverly puts the rod to work in a new way.

Love it? Get it!
Paper roll holder: Ball Swing Rod Set, 20-36" by Umbra.

7 of 9

8 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Hidden Storage

Hidden Storage
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

The remaining built-in cabinet gives Scott the storage he needs, behind closed doors. Anne Turner worked with a carpenter to equip the cabinet’s drawers and shelves with sliders to enable easy access to files.

Love it? Get it!
Cabinet & lower wall paint: Manchester Tan (HC-81) by Benjamin Moore.

8 of 9

9 of 9

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Magnetic Chalkboard

Magnetic Chalkboard
Credit: Photo: Laurey W. Glenn

To create a chalkboard and bulletin board in one, Anne Turner layered colored chalkboard paint on top of three coats of magnetic paint. A handwritten days-of-the-week calendar transforms the wall into communication central.

  • Love it? Get it!
  • Chalkboard paint: Chalkboard paint in Deep Ocean (#24) by Hudson Paint.
  • Magnetic paint: Specialty Magnetic Latex Primer (115535) by Rust-Oleum, also available from Lowe’s.

9 of 9

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Alison Miller and Anne Turner Carroll

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 9 Functional Office Space
    2 of 9 Before
    3 of 9 After
    4 of 9 Stainless Steel Desktop
    5 of 9 The Right Lights
    6 of 9 Floating Shelves
    7 of 9 Paper Holder
    8 of 9 Hidden Storage
    9 of 9 Magnetic Chalkboard

    Share & More

    Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print
    Southern Living

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • About Us
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Books from Southern Living
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    MeredithSouthern Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporation. Southern Living is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab All Rights Reserved. Southern Living may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Southern Living. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.southernliving.com

    Sign in

    View image

    Real-Life Redo: Home Office Makeover
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.