I’ve now been working from home for well over a year, which is crazy! Especially considering when we left the office on that strange day in March 2020, I honestly thought we’d be back in action in a couple of weeks. Still, to my dismay, we’re now a year into this new normal. I’ve even started a brand new job, all in the confines of my little at-home office.
Since I’ve been spending 8 hours or more a day in the office, I wanted to spice it up a little and make some changes to get me excited about working in there again. Luckily, we had fully decorated the office a few months before ‘rona took over. However, I think when you spend so much time in one place, it’s nice to freshen it up every now and again.
One of the things I wanted to do, was to add a record player into the office. I usually listen to Spotify, but I felt I’d get distracted by making new playlists to entertain myself. Or just changing the songs over too often for it to be productive at all. BUT, yes, a record player may technically be more effort. However felt it was the best thing to; 1) Get me excited about the office again and 2) Leave me to actually listen to a whole album, rather than getting distracted every 2 seconds with a song change.
Just A Lick Of Paint
With me, though, it’s never as simple as just putting a record player in the office. I have to make a whole song and dance about it and take the opportunity to redecorate a little. I’ve seen a few trends circling around Pinterest with painted wall arches and decided to go for it and see what I thought of it. Long story short, it was the worst experience of my life. DIY-ing is not my forte, and I literally didn’t breathe for the duration of the project. It was undoubtedly anxiety-inducing.
The funny thing is, though, I’m still not 100% sure what I think of it. Some days I really like it, and some days I wonder why I even did it at all. Luckily, it did not cost me any money as we used leftover paint from the feature wall in the room. Sometimes our ‘visions’ just don’t work well when they come to life, but at least I tried it, and after taking the photos for this blog post, I do think it looks pretty good!
New Artwork
Yes, I have way to many prints dotted around the house, but I’m a sucker for them. I like to change them up every now and again just to give rooms a little upgrade without spending too much money. Usually I try and really research into the prints I purchase and try my best to get them from Independent artists, however, on this occasion, it was a Desenio job. I wanted prints that where really fuss-free and neutral as they’d be on a feature wall, in a room that already had a lot going on.
The oak frames – which are also from Desenio – bring out the colour of the Vintage Mid-Century chest of drawers that I snagged on eBay for an absolute bargain of £15 a few years ago.
I think the frames and that artwork just pair really nice with the little record setup, especially considering they are music themed. Although the arch wasn’t exactly what I’d hoped it would be, I think it looks pretty good accompanied with the artwork and the wall hanging
Hello, New Record Player!
You know me, I’m a sucker for a record purchase. I love going to Flee Markets and second hand shops to see what record I can get, although I don’t have a huge collection, I have a collection that I’ve sourced from all over the world. Some from my fave independent music shops in Liverpool, Leicester and London, some from the oldest music shop in Europe, some from Flee Markets in Berlin and even some from my first trip to New York, my record collection actually means a lot to me.
As you may know, the ‘main’ record player that we have in the living room is my pride possession. It’s a refurbished, original Dansette record player from the late 50’s, I love it and would never replace or get rid of it. With that in mind, I wanted to get a modern turntable, so I went for this one from Sony
With a turntable, you need speakers (which I didn’t fully realise until after it arrived, yes, I’m a dope) so I ordered these from Argos and they’re actually incredible. They’re a really lovely wood finish and just match well with the drawer unit and the oak frames from the prints. They where around £80, but they where such a good find!
So, there you have it, my little office makeover.
Stay groovy x
