I've been using it as a home office for several years, but moved out the furniture recently while I was remodeling and now reconsidering if there are better options. Having a spare room at all in my area is a luxury! There's shelving in the wardrobe and closet for office supplies. I have a 2 drawer filing cabinet that matches the desk that can squeeze in somewhere. (though it's too tall to actually fit under the desk, thanks Pottery Barn!). I have definitely considered something more like this, that has built in file storage and smaller footprint.

Hi RL, So basically in the revised plan I am happy with everything left of the kitchen (ie the new family room and casual eating area that we will create by combining the former breakfast nook and a small recessed study and its adjoining covered patio). Our main reason for making this change is that the nicest/sunniest/widest part of the backyard spans the left side of the back of the house. We are planning to add a rectangular pool, landscaping and plant landscaping n this part of the yard as well. Creating this new family room/casual eating area will give us a chance to add a big glass door and allow us to take advantage of northern California's indoor/outdoor living style. In contrast, the rest of the backyard is pretty narrow and dark. See below for original floorplan shown in context with existing and proposed patio/pool. So given this new family room/casual eating area, I am struggling with how to re-assign the three remaining "public" rooms to the right of the kitchen (currently labeled "living room", "dining room" and "family room".) I have these three rooms, and I have three room functions (1) formal living room, 2) formal dining room, and 3) office/den), and need to match the space with the function. I am willing to remove/add/change walls as needed. Which of those three rooms is best suited to each function?

The desk is cool. But the color is off from the pictures I can see. You can call a local and see if they can install it. And sand and restain to match. Or maybe you can paint over the walls ? 🤭😬

My advice is first figure out what you need in the room for optimal function. What type of desk, chair, storage, etc.? Once you'd determined the essential elements, figure out their layout. Where does the desk make the most sense? What type of light control is required? Etc. Drawing out the room to scale on graph paper can help here. If you want to hide cords, a solid desk against a wall with outlets can easily achieve that but there are all sorts of other tricks for cord management. Style is determined by your taste and what is cohesive to the rest of your home. Here's a modern office: A contemporary home office with built-ins: Eclectic home office: A bright classic office with built-ins: Lots of design inspo out there but first you need to know what YOU want. :)