How to Furnish a Home Office Inexpensively

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

Rate: (4 Ratings)

Your home office doesn't have to be all business, no style. A resourceful decorator can furnish a home office attractively and inexpensively - here are some ways to satisfy budget and aesthetics.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

Computer Monitors
Printers
Telephones (cordless Probably Best)
Bookcases
Desk Chairs
Desk Lamps
Desks
File Cabinets
Interior Paints
Round Particleboard Tables
Simple Valance Curtains
Unfinished Furniture
Venetian Blinds
Round Tablecloths
Office Supplies
Computers
Used Computers
Sawhorses

Step1

Craft your own desk from two file cabinets or two sawhorses topped with finished plywood.

Step2

Haunt tag sales, rummage sales and thrift stores if you're not in a hurry; desks, file cabinets, bookcases, lamps, chairs, phones and computer equipment regularly pop up at these venues.

Step3

Look in your classified telephone directory to see whether there's a secondhand office-furniture store in your area. Call ahead to check stock on items you're particularly interested in.

Step4

Check for unfinished furniture. While not the cheapest way to go, this can net a nice savings if you're handy with a paintbrush.

Step5

Consider ready-to-assemble (RTA) furniture, most of which is easy to put together nowadays. RTA bookcases, desks, consoles and desk chairs can be very reasonably priced - sometimes less than $100 - and are available in styles ranging from high-tech to very traditional Chippendale.

Step6

Comparison shop for a desk chair, but go with comfort over price. This is an item you don't want to skimp on if you'll sit for more than an hour at a stretch.

Step7

Think about what you really need in terms of office supplies. A case of file folders, no matter how cheap, could be too much for you to use within a reasonable amount of time. And while office-supply super stores often give deep discounts, basic supplies at mass-market discount department stores could cost less.

Tips & Warnings

Creativity is your biggest ally. An easy antique or other faux finish can rescue a scratched desk or bookcase; embossed wallpaper (which you finish later) can rescue an ugly metal file cabinet.
Save money by leaving the window plain or by using a simple valance or miniblind.
Put a full-length round tablecloth over one of those inexpensive hide-a-tables (three legs that screw into a round particleboard tabletop) so it can serve as a printer stand or lamp table and - as a bonus - its skirt can hide office supplies, books, software boxes, etc.