Home Work: Stylish Home Offices

Do you work at home? If you do, you are not alone. According to more than a third of all residential architects who participated in the American Institute of Architects Home Design Trends Survey covering activity during the second quarter of 2012, the home office is the most popular "special function room." The survey cites the continued popularity of telecommuting, as well as increasing numbers of self-employed and contract workers and the need for many people to bring work home at night and on weekends as reasons for the steady demand for home offices. The following photos may provide inspiration if you are creating a personal work space in your home. Take a look . . .

"An Italian neoclassical secretary from Hollyhock in [Brooke] Shields's study."

Greenwich Village townhouse owned by Brooke Shields, husband Chris Henchy, and their two daughters.

Interior design by David Flint Wood.

Architectural renovation by MADE.

Photography by William Waldron.

Text by Judith Thurman.

"An Exclusive Look at Brooke Shields's Manhattan Home" produced by Howard Christian.

Architectural Digest (March 2012).

"A Williams-Sonoma Home desk fitted with swing-arm lamps by Sandy Chapman becomes an instant office when open."

Interior design by Matthew White and Frank Webb, White Webb, LLC.

Photography by Udom.

"Apartment Life: A Jewel of a Studio"

Metropolitan Home (September 2009).

"Custom shagreen desk. Herman Miller chair in Edelman leather. Table lamp, Flos. Floor lamp, Cedric Hartman."
Vacation home in Bridgehampton, New York.
Interior design by Vicente Wolf.
Architecture by John P. Laffey Architects.
Photography by Max Kim-Bee.
Styled by Olga Naiman.
"Season in the Sun" written by Stephen Treffinger.
Veranda (July - August 2012).

"In Benvenuto's office, the desk is her own design, the ladder is 1920s French, and the steel filing cabinet and light fixture are from the '50s, the floor lamp is by IKEA, and the shelving is painted in Benjamin Moore's Super White."

100-year-old Craftsman-style cottage of Los Angeles designer Claudia Benvenuto.

Interior design by Claudia Benvenuto.

Photography by Joe Schmelzer.

Styled by Stephen Pappas.

"Small Wonder" interview by Michael Lassell.

Elle Decor (September 2012).

"A West Elm Parsons dining table in designer Mary McGee's Los Angeles living room does double time as a desk and cocktail table for entertaining. McGee put mostly white furniture against the brown bookshelves 'to lighten up the area,' she says. 'I kept everything clean and modern, but with classical lines.' A pair of lamps from House in Rhode Island is paired with Louis Ghost chairs and a French antique armchair that McGee covered in China Seas Lyford Background in Brown on White - 'as close to a floral as I'll ever get.' "

Beverly Hills bungalow of designer Mary McGee.

Interior design by Mary McGee.

Photography by Miguel Flores-Vianna.

"Fashion Forward" interview by Alexandria Abramian-Mott.

House Beautiful (April 2008).

"Design inspiration and personal photos crowd linen-wrapped corkboards in the home office. A rare 19th-century French crystal ship chandelier hangs above the Oly desk and a Louis XV-style leather chair."
Designer Stephen Shubel's 1907 Sausalito fisherman's cottage.
Interior design by Stephen Shubel.
Photography by Luca Trovato.
Interview by Douglas Brenner.
"California Cottage" produced by Doretta Sperduto.
House Beautiful (July - August 2012).

"Paul [Corrie] transformed a small bedroom into his home office. A Drexel Heritage round table - the dining table in his previous residence - doubles as a desk where he can look over design options with clients. Shelves hold client files in linen binders."

Interior design by Paul Corrie, Paul Corrie Interiors, LLC.

Row house of Paul Corrie and Steve Ewens.
Mount Pleasant neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

Photography by Gordon Beall.

Text by Krissa Rossbund.

Produced by Eileen A. Deymier.

"Remodeled Row House"

Traditional Home.

"Paul [Corrie] placed a small antique desk and bench, handy for quick notes, next to the front-hall stairs."

Row house of Paul Corrie and Steve Ewens.
Mount Pleasant neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

Interior design by Paul Corrie, Paul Corrie Interiors, LLC.

Photography by Gordon Beall.

Text by Krissa Rossbund.

Produced by Eileen A. Deymier.

"Remodeled Row House"

Traditional Home.

"In the home office, [Melanie] Elston created a bold space with Glen Eden's 'Out of Africa' rug and yellow curtains in Scalamandre's 'Bamboo.' "

Interior design by Melanie Elston, Melanie Elston Interiors.

Architecture by Morgante-Wilson Architects.

Photography by Werner Straube.

Text by Lisa Cregan.
"Chicago Apartment With Delightful Color" produced by Jenny Bradley.

Traditional Home.

"Deniot turned the intimate scale of the office into an asset. He upholstered the walls in Le Manach's George Sand toile and a Brunschwig and Fils stripe, then added 1940s Bagues nesting tables and an Empire-period portrait."
An American couple's Parisian pied-a-terre in a 1911 building with a view of the Eiffel Tower.
Interior design by Jean-Louis Deniot.
Photography by Marina Faust.
Text by Penelope Rowlands.
"A la Mode"
Architectural Digest (January 2011).

"A built-in desk is one of a pair in the library that pull out from the chair rail on either side of the doorway to the foyer. File drawers are concealed in the wainscoting. 'We each wanted a place to work, but we didn't want to have a mess to clean up every time the doorbell rang,' explains Skip."

Washington, D.C. home of Skip Sroka and John Kammeier.

Interior design by Skip Sroka, Sroka Design Inc.

Architect: Anne Decker, Anne Decker Architects.
Builder: Gibson Builders.
Photography by Werner Straube.
Text by Candace Ord Manroe.
"Designer Skip Sroka's Own Home" produced by Eileen A. Deymier.
Traditional Home.

"India's desk holds one of her favorite mementos: a rose from Princess Diana's bridal bouquet. (India [Hicks] was one of the flower girls at the royal wedding.)"

Hibiscus Hill, the home in the Bahamas that India Hicks and David Flint Wood share with their four children.

Renovation, interior design and landscape design by India Hicks and David Flint Wood.

Text by India Hicks.

"Island Girl" photographed and produced by Miguel Flores-Vianna.

Veranda (May - June 2011).

"[Mariette Himes] Gomez is well-known for her clean and edited interiors, exemplified in her design for this uncluttered library."

Interior design by Mariette Himes Gomez.

Photography by Pieter Estersohn.

"Decorator's Secrets"

House Beautiful (June 2003).

"An attic office with flair - thanks to fretwork fabric shades and the dormer's architecture."
San Francisco Edwardian built in 1900. Home of Anna and Mason Morfit.

Interior design by Melissa Warner, Massucci Warner Miller.

Renovation architects: Robert Stiles and Charlie Barnett.

Photography by Werner Straube.

"Color Coded" written and produced by Sabine Rothman.

Traditional Home (April 2010).

"Vintage French table. French 19th-c. chair in linen. Draperies of Belgian linen.
Seagrass carpet."

Houston, Texas townhome of Donna Temple Brown, owner of The Gray Door antiques shop.

Interior design by Donna Temple Brown.

Design consultation by Pamela Pierce.

Photography by Casey and Anne Sills.

Text by Kimberlie Waugh-Bloodworth.

"Antique Dealer's Home: A Little Shop Talk" produced by Mary Jane Ryburn and Tara Shaw.

Veranda (January - February 2009).

"One of [Ellen] Rakieten's Emmy Awards sits on a custom-made desk in the family office; the vintage Chippendale chairs are upholstered in a Madeline Weinrib fabric, the computers are Apple, and the wall is covered with nailhead-trimmed burlap."

Chicago apartment of television producer Ellen Rakieten, her husband Peter Kupferberg and their sons in a 1927 Beaux Arts building.

Design by Nate Berkus and Anne Coyle.

Renovation by Oscar Shamamian of Ferguson and Shamamian Architects, LLP.

Photography by William Waldron.
"An All-Star Home Makeover" written by Ellen Rakieten.

Elle Decor (March 2010).

In my home office, a leather sofa and cowhide rug temper the more feminine elements of the room. Corkboard covered with old pages of Beethoven's Sonate Pathetique. Antique table used as desk is mahogany. Wall color: Benjamin Moore's Enchanted. Trim: Benjamin Moore's Linen White.

Interior design by Kathleen Sams Flippen, Spaces by KSF.

Photo credit: Kathleen Sams Flippen.

"In the home office, a desk designed by Lambertson and Truex, an apothecary-cabinet storage unit, and factory lights from Privet House; painting by Truex, vintage commercial art, and sample footwear from the Lambertson Truex men's collection are displayed throughout."

Sharon, Connecticut country home of accessories designers,
Richard Lambertson and John Truex.

Interior design by Richard Lambertson.

Photography by Pieter Estersohn.

Styled by Lili Abir Regen.

"Country Chic" by Dan Shaw.

Elle Decor (October 2008).

"A porter chair and Carter-designed desk in the master bedroom; a bronze sculpture sits atop a vintage Parsons table, and the convex mirror is 19th century."

Washington, D.C. townhouse of designer Darryl Carter.

Interior design by Darryl Carter.

Photography by Simon Upton.

Text by Mitchell Owens.

"Cool, Calm, and Collected" produced by Anita Sarsidi.

Elle Decor (November 2009).

"A huge mirror leaning against the wall opposite the windows reflects light and adds to the illusion of more space to the room. [Ellen] O'Neill's farm table-desk does double duty as a dining table when she entertains. Mirror and table from Laurin Copen Antiques."
Ellen O'Neill's 450-square-foot studio in Gramercy Park, New York City.
Interior design by Ellen O'Neill.
Photography by Thomas Loof.
"A Surprisingly Large New York Studio" by Carol Prisant.
House Beautiful (July - August 2010).

"The home-office bulletin board bears a colorful portrait of Castaing and swatches of [Jean-Paul] Beaujard's favorite fabrics, including Verrieres by Brunschwig and Fils,
a blue floral print."

Manhattan duplex of interior designer Jean-Paul Beaujard.

Interior design by Jean-Paul Beaujard.

Photography by Miguel Flores-Vianna.

Text by Judith Thurman.

"Jean-Paul Beaujard's New York City Apartment" produced by Robert Rufino.

Architectural Digest (September 2011).

"[Shawn] Gold's small home office appears bigger with mirrored-back built-in shelves that hold his collection of vintage books."

Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles home of photographer Amy Neunsinger, her husband Shawn Gold, and their children.

Interior design by Amy Neunsinger.

Photography by Amy Neunsinger.

"A Ranch House Makeover" by Alexandria Mott.

House Beautiful.

"Barbara's enviable home office is ensconced on her third floor, a neutral space for a designer who tolls all day with a dizzying array of fabrics, accessories, swatches, and paint chips. Uncluttered and meticulously organized, the workspace incorporates a glorious collection of books, auction catalogs, and her inspiration boards with an ever-changing collection of snippets of this and that, plus tearsheets from magazines. 'I like a neutral envelope in which to work and lay out fabrics and draw plans,' Barbara says." A painting of Jacqueline Kennedy pays tribute to her mother, who once was a docent for the First Ladies Exhibition at the National Museum of American History."

Alexandria, Virginia town home of designer Barbara Franceski.

Photography by Francesco Lagnese.

Written by Krissa Rossbund.

"Town House With Great Personal Style" produced by Eileen A. Deymier.

Traditional Home.