The room you never knew you’ve always needed

LET’S kick things off with a quick quiz… Who’s heard of a butler’s pantry? What about a butler’s office?

Yep, exactly what I thought. Loads of head nodding for the first question… but not so much for the second.

Head’s up: This article comes with a warning. Once you know about the butler’s office, you’ll love the idea and want one in your house, too. Trust me.

So, what is a ‘butler’s office’ anyway? A smallish space (approx. 4sq m) that is located directly next to the kitchen. It’s an open-plan work space that is still connected to the living spaces.

What are the must-have features of a butler’s office?

Seamless cabinetry that looks like the kitchen cabinets.

Deep shelves behind the cabinetry, which can fit a printer and other bulky items.

Drawers for pens, pencils, rulers, sticky tape – you know, all the stuff you wish was close to the kitchen but never seems to be.

Loads of power points (and internet connections, USB chargers) in the cupboards and above the desk.

A built-in desk and cool chairs. A half-wall to hide the desk (and mess). Make it roughly 1.3m high, so you can still see over the top when seated.

Elevate the whole thing on a platform to give it a true ‘control tower’ aspect. Why do I want a butler’s office? Lifestyle! As a country, we’re all working more than ever before, and, in the digital age it’s almost impossible to separate work from home life.

So rather than fight it, embrace these blurring lines when you need to and create a space that satisfies both needs. In your butler’s office you can float between serving afternoon tea to the kiddies and closing a mega-deal via email – all in the comfort of your own kitchen.

What happens if I don’t have a butler’s office?

A few scenarios can eventuate*:

You won’t be able to find a spot at the dining table for dinner thanks to the mountains of papers, letters, your laptop and multiple battery chargers piled up there. Eek.

You’ll end up super stressed trying to do all of your emails on your mobile phone ’cause you don’t want the hassle of finding a place to set up your laptop.

Your quality of work drops because you’ve had to retreat to the uninspiring, isolated room you call a ‘study’. Your kids will also be wondering when afternoon tea is going to be served… they’ll probably get hungry and cranky.

Or, you’ll miss out on that critical email notification about the Sass & Bide warehouse sale because you were buttering bread when you should have been doing both!

Why must we compromise when we can have it all?!

*Okay, so this might be a bit extreme – but you get the point: A butler’s office can only improve your home and work-life balance!

Where do I get a butler’s office? Alas, this isn’t something you can buy off the rack. Ideally your kitchen guy would build this for you as part of the kitchen so it looks totally seamless.

Can it have a dual-purpose? Absolutely. DJ desk at the ready.

Is it really for butlers?

Heck, no.