7 tips for rethinking the home office

Here’s the recipe for how this makeover came together, annotated with tips you can repurpose for your home office:

1

Keep the palette calm ...: While Night + Market is known for its eclectic and bright decor, designer Jessica Ruiz Lee kept the office palette toned down — “productive” and “efficient” were two of her driving words, and while beaded curtains and floral oilcloth tablecloths lend the restaurant a dynamic vibe, they’re not so helpful when it comes to sitting down and writing. 2 … but still reflect personality: That’s not to say a home office has to mimic a beige cubicle: Ruiz Lee pulled in a tie-dye-inspired Feizy rug for flavor, as well as a contemporary Dot & Bo chair that feels like something you’d find in a lounge. “Skipping a designated desk chair in favor of something more creative keeps an office more casual and stylized — and less rigid,” she notes. 3 Go beyond one-size-fits-all: One of Kris Yenbamroong’s key tasks for the upcoming book is laying out his recipes, so Ruiz Lee brought in a console table nestled around a pair of rolling filing cabinets, giving him a designated spot for this. Similarly, a bookshelf was brought in to house his impressive collection of inspiring cookbooks — and save floor space that had previously gone to stacked books. 4 Consider going drawer-less: Notice how Yenbamroong’s new Crate & Barrel desk is remarkably naked, with nothing but a clean-lined base underneath the walnut top? It’s hardly just for aesthetic purposes. “More often than not, desk drawers end up being junk drawers,” says Ruiz Lee. Abandon them and it’s much easier to throw things away rather than stash them for “later.” 5 Clear clutter daily: Pre-makeover, the clutter that had built up on Yenbamroong’s desk was acting as a deterrent — both physically and mentally. “I would walk into my office and think, ‘Well, I can’t even begin because that would mean cleaning for 45 minutes,’ so I would just leave the room altogether.” Now, if it’s not something meaningful or something he uses daily, he tosses it. 6 Include a nod to the outdoors: Who doesn’t have some of their best ideas outside? Ruiz Lee channeled the great outdoors and their thought-provoking powers with a Zamioculcas zamiifolia plant, also known as a ZZ plant. 7 Know when to get help: “It’s pretty obvious that having a better office makes you do better work, but I didn’t really think of something that was attainable since I’m not great at coordinating these sorts of things,” says Yenbamroong. “But working with someone took all the hard work out of it.”