Building Office Space in a Closet

You probably read the title to this article and thought: what?? How can you take a closet and turn it into office space? Well, you’d be surprised what you can accomplish when you think outside the box! Especially for people in tighter apartments or people who have dual-function rooms (i.e. living room/office), building office space in a closet may be the creative solution for a desk, computer, and other accessories.

First, consider the potential advantages of building office space in a closet:

– Some people enjoy the cozy feeling of a tighter space and find that it makes work more productive.
– The recession of your desk, computer, and other office equipment into a closet may free up space in the main room or create a better egress.
– You can separate your office workspace from the rest of your life and ensure more privacy when guests visit.
– Functioning within a tighter office space may force you to stay more organized.
– In some closets, the existing shelving structures provide perfect nooks for office equipment or supplies like computers, printers, scanners, shredders, file cubes, and books.
– You may be able to “hide” uglier desks or other unattractive office furniture this way.

Is building office space in a closet sounding like a better idea now? If so, then it’s time to evaluate your closet. If the closet is already occupied by clothing or other possessions, be sure that you have somewhere to relocate these belongings. Of course, perhaps the closet was just full of random junk that can be disposed of during a thrift store trip. Many folks who complain about a lack of closet space in the first place are people who keep too much tuff in their homes anyway. Are you one of them?

Once the closet is cleared out, evaluate the logistics of building office space there. Think about:

– Electrical outlets: Is there one in the closet? Is there one in the nearby room that can be reached without incident? Can you rig the cords without stringing them in an unsightly way?
– Internet: Can you reach the cable modem, DSL box, or internet port? If not, consider a wireless router.
– Lighting: Is there an overhead light? Will the main room light be adequate? Do you need an appropriate desk lamp?
– Size: Is there enough room for your desk or a table that can function as a desk? In the case of a walk-in closet, size should not be a problem. If you are dealing with a closet that is not wide or deep, think about a more hutch-like desk.
– Flooring: Do you need an area rug? Carpet squares? Peel-n-stick tiles?
– Color: Do you like the walls and background of the closet? If not, paint them!

Other tips for building office space in a closet:

– Work upward if need be. Instead of going horizontal, as people often do in large rooms, orient your stuff vertically. A hutch-like desk or built-in closet shelves may help with this.
– Whether you have a regular swinging closet door or a sliding closet door, try to fit the office space entirely within the closet – like the desk version of a Murphy bed.
– If your chair doesn’t fit, no worries! Just shut the door and let the chair become part of the main room’s furnishings. Then, when you want to use the office, just open the door and pull up the chair to your desk.
– Paint the closet walls a bright color if the space feels darker than you’d like.
– If the closet doors are totally inhibitive to your office space concept, consider removing them entirely. You can always hang a tapestry or use a room screen to separate out the “closet office” from the main room.

Alternate idea for building office space in a closet: For those of you who don’t like the idea of locating office space more permanently in the closet, find a sturdy desk on wheels that fits tidily inside the closet. Then, you can wheel it out into the room when you’re using it and hide it when you’re not.