 Style over Comfort? Posted by Christina Brooke May 11 2012, 12:03 am
Admittedly, it’s approximately the size of a shoebox, but it’s MINE, ALL MINE!! And I’m trying to decide how to furnish and decorate it. It’s important to me that my office be a welcoming, attractive space as well as a comfortable place to work. Unfortunately, just as the most truly beautiful shoes seem expressly designed to torture one’s feet, practicality and style do not seem to go hand in hand when it comes to the office. Ergonomically designed office furniture is exceedingly ugly–at least, the furniture I’ve been able to find is. Why that should be, I don’t know! But given the hours I spend at my computer at a time, particularly when I’m on deadline, I do need to think seriously about correct positioning of equipment so I don’t end up with serious RSI. I am not the tallest person on the planet so most desks are too high for me. There are very few desks on the market with adjustable height so I’m thinking of a vintage kitchen table, which tend to be lower than desks and maybe a separate keyboard tray that I can screw in underneath. I’d like space on the desk to work on hard copy manuscripts and take notes etc, so I’d like a clear space or return that’s away from the computer. I need a bookcase for research books, dictionaries, etc, storage for manuscripts and promotional materials, stationery and so forth. A filing cabinet for contracts and tax records. I’d love a whiteboard for plotting, too. Preferably wall-mounted so it doesn’t take up much space.
The end result will probably be a compromise between style and comfort (as most of my shoes are these days). I can’t wait to show you all some ‘after’ pictures when it’s all done! What about you? Do you choose style over comfort? What’s the worst mistake you’ve made for the sake of fashion? Is there something you own that is so beautiful, it makes you happy just to look at it? Is beauty ever worth the pain? TweetPosted in Christina Brooke, home office, writing Comments46 thoughts on “Style over Comfort?” |
  
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style can be nice, but much enjoy comfort, try for stylish comfort when ever possible but if have to choose one over the other, comfort will generally work (thank heaven for the casual business office *g*)
oh my, the rooster’s coming for a visit — best hide the good stuff quick or stylish won’t be an issue
Gamistress, I’ve always thought our rooster was a style icon on his own!
Hi Gamistress! Yes, I agree stylish comfort is difficult to achieve but some people seem to do it effortlessly.
The bird has gone for platinum streaks today. Not sure I like the look…
Have fun with him
Helen
Christina, I LOVE the photos in this blog. Is that what your office will end up looking like? I think I”m (almost) as keen to see your house when it’s finished as you are. As you know, I adore my current office. My last office (and I’m being generous calling it that) was a tiny corner of my bedroom with a lovely view of a wall of toilet windows on the neighboring block of flats. Now I’ve got table space and storage space and a bookcase and space to put pictures to inspire me. Not only that, it’s no longer toilets but the garden for me to look at. Yay! Having said that, I’d love a space where as you say, you can take notes or scribble. At the moment, I’m stuck moving the keyboard to the back of the desk and balancing on the eight inches or so of space that that reveals. Oh, well, we can’t have everything, can we?
Oh, yes, you have a lovely office, Foanna, and a beautiful big computer screen, too! Nice to be able to display all of your postcards and mementos. There’s so much to look at in your office.You’d certainly have room for another table or return in there if you wanted to. And it’s such a lovely aspect! You’re making me nostalgic for our girly weekends!
I really only have space for a bookcase and a desk but I’ll do my best. And oh, yeah, you can’t *possibly* want to see the finished house more than I do! Thanks for dropping by!
I will choose comfort EVERY time. This was not always the case. For years I wore shoes that I believe were designed purely for the torture factor. No more. I’m a grown up now. Enough!!
Hi Mary, I think I’ve almost forgotten how to wear high heels now! Back in the day, I could run in heels, which was often necessary in my line of work. Never occurred to me to wear comfy shoes!
Congratulations on the house renovations, Christina, and the new office! Yay! I LOVE my office!! Though I must admit I haven’t ‘decorated’ it, more just put out everything I love. But then I love having my stuff around and visible!
I went for practicality over style when it came to my desk and chair. I’m short too and with my back shoulder issues, I need to make sure I’m in the right position. So I made sure I had the best chair I could get with various levers to correct angles and support etc and could be raised(which conveniently came in red).
I have a glass-topped, L-shaped desk with room for a big screen for my computer, a shelf for books etc and a slide-out tray for my keyboard (can’t recommend that tray enough!). The glass top is easy to clean when it comes to muddy paw-prints (not looking at any two cats in particular – CC and Jersey Girl!) And it has space for all my research books, pads of paper etc. The L-shape is useful for working on paper copies.
As for beauty versus pain – many of you know I have a slight interest in shoes *g*. I’ve found that the most comfortable shoes with heels tend to be expensive – Chanel and Jimmy Choo Couture and Giuseppe Zanotti. Manolos are an exception – though that depends on the shoes. I’m prepared to test out that theory with some Louboutins for you
VA, it sounds like you have the perfect setup! So what you’re saying is, if you’re short, all you need is a good, adjustable chair and a keyboard tray. Do you use a footstool or does the keyboard tray mean you don’t have to crank the chair up so high?
Christina
I am so not an interior designer LOL I pick things that I feel comfortable with and I think look good LOL but they don’t to other poeple.
I have to feel compfy in what I wear and sit then I am happy. I have so much clutter around little keepsakes from relatives that it is a real hog podge here in my house and I really need to have a big spring clean.
The place I love is my library with the books on the shelves love that room
Have Fun
Helen
Helen I’m greeeeeen with envy over your library! I still haven’t ruled out putting floor to ceiling shelves throughout my rumpus room and filling them with books but having a dedicated room would be wonderful!
And I have a lot of keepsakes people have given me, particularly lovely readers like you and Barb and my writer friends. They all take pride of place even though they might not tie in with some decorator’s colour scheme.
Also, I meant to say I envy your shoe collection as well as your fortitude in actually wearing the things!
Hmm – I believe I’m an auditory learner, with shades of kinetic – so how come I can’t work in clean, tidy spaces? Jeanne?
I’d be interested to know that, VA. I find clutter distracting, which is why I always clear the decks before I begin a long stint on the computer. Jeanne’s workshop was so enlightening on that subject!
I’m weird also in that I like to have a wall at my back so I never feel like someone can sneak up behind me and read over my shoulder. Not that anyone in my household has the least intention of doing that!
The biggest mistake in style versus comfort was when I was young and wore 3 and 4 inch heels, I worked in retail and was on my feet anywhere from 9-12 hours a day 5 days a week. I didn’t know it at the time but the damage was done.
I refuse to wear any clothes that I constantly have to fuss with, for example a shirt that shows my bra if I don’t keep an eye on it, pants that don’t come to my natural waist and I am constantly tugging them up. I simply won’t wear them which means I can’t find any new clothes because nothing comes to your natural waist right now. The fact that my natural waist isn’t where it is supposed to be doesn’t help at all. I am very short waisted so tops cut the least bit low show way to much and pants cut below the natural waist feel like they are slipping off! Come on designers, get with the program and remember not everyone are super models.
I love shoes and at one time in my life I had shoes to match almost every outfit I owned. Now?? Uh no, I have a pair of work shoes that are definitely ugly and couple of pairs of neutral 2 inch heels that have to go with everything.
Dianna, you’re very sensible and I’m with you on the short-waisted thing, although I tend to like the low waists because they should by rights elongate the torso. However, I do agree with you that designers should think about women who have a bit of shape to them. Most beautiful garments around now simply can’t be worn by anyone with hips. But having watched Project Runway, I gather it is much more difficult to design for hourglass figures than for stick women!
What about you? Do you choose style over comfort?
I’m a comfort person… even when I was at school, I wore what they called Beetle Crushers; they were leather shoes that weren’t very comfortable but they were good for your feet – right up until my arches fell! Then, they fitted my orthotics! I had to relearn how to run again and that wasn’t pleasant!
But whenever I go out, I must be comfortable, I can’t wear heels for too long; and if I ever do, they must be block heels. Most times, I wear boots like Doc Martens or sneakers. I don’t like carrying around short-handled handbags; love the long, long straps that I can put over my shoulder and it crosses my body so my whole body takes the weight… great kinda bag…
What’s the worst mistake you’ve made for the sake of fashion?
Worst fashion mistake was wearing a knee-length skirt to a nightclub when I normally wear jeans. I felt so exposed and all the guys thought they could touch my legs…. eeeewww! Even though I was wearing boots, which made my legs look short, guys still looked at me like I was a piece of meat. I hated feeling that way. And the following week, I was back into my black jeans and white shirt… feeling like my usual self – without every guy staring at me (I know that sounds weird, but there are some guys who like chicks in jeans; most don’t, some do).
Is there something you own that is so beautiful, it makes you happy just to look at it?
My late-Grandma’s piano. I know it’s a big thing but it’s a beautiful big thing. I love it. The inside is cast iron and I love looking at it and playing it. Even though it’s a Victor, I call it a her… strange that.
Is beauty ever worth the pain? No. Comfort is always the way to be. If you’re not comfortable, you not only can’t enjoy yourself, you suffer more the next day… and the day after that…. and always because you’re not comfortable. You must be comfortable no matter where you are.
I LOVE Doc Martens – have loads of pairs!
Mozette, I’ve gone for comfort ever since I had children but I’m starting to think I need to balance that more with style, now that they’re older and I no longer have the excuse of extreme sleep deprivation! I get what you’re saying about feeling exposed, though. That’s a separate issue. You have to wear what you feel good in, there’s no doubt about it!
Besides, I look great in jeans… so why would anyone want to see my chicken legs in a skirt is beyond me…
I wore a long corduroy black skirt on Thursday and Mum said it looked beautiful! That it was something I don’t wear enough – long skirts – but then I’ve been looking for long skirts in my size and I just don’t see them anywhere; and I’m a size 12 (Australian).
But you’re right, you gotta be comfortable.
Meant to say, the piano sounds beautiful! It sounds like you’ll always make room for her in your house.
Hi Christina,
Hope your office turns out to be everything you’ve dreamed it could be.
I have short legs, short arms and I’m certainly short on style. But comfort is what I go for first and foremost. I bought a small stool years ago for grandkids who no longer need it. Now it’s my footrest whenever I’m at the kitchen table eating, laptop or visiting with company. It really helps take the pressure of my back. So no matter what chair you decide on, consider a footrest.
Deelynn, thanks for the advice on the footrest. I’ll definitely put that on the list!
Christina, congrats on the space if your own and the impending completion, at long last, of the work! It sounds wonderful.
I go for comfort over style. Until the boy gets out of school, budget is also a factor. I don’t love the fabric on the couch in my study. Really don’t. But it has a queensize sofabed and we could afford it. That room needs redoing overall, but that also has to wait. I love having my own space, though, with my geek stuff on the walls and my books around. I do tend to generate clutter but am trying to be better about not letting it get out of hand.
Can’t wait to see your “after” photos!
Nancy, what a fantastic idea to have a sofabed in the office! Up until now, my study has always been in a bedroom and I’ve always liked being able to lie down and stretch out to make notes or pre-write or sometimes even sit there with my laptop. Have you thought of getting someone to make a slip cover for the sofa? I don’t know how expensive it would be but sometimes that’s a good compromise. Of course, you’d have to take it off when the sofa was in use as a bed.
Comfort over style every time for every thing is my motto… I don’t own a pair of heels and haven’t since I found a job where the dress code was informal! The money I have saved on hosiery!! If you’re adventurous… look into those standing tables for your computer — or the ones with a treadmill !! Looking forward to the end product!! I love to see other people’s decor!!
Hi Cate! Thank you, I hope it lives up to expectations! Oh, I used to loathe wearing hose all the time, especially when we had a puppy that insisted on jumping up on me as soon as I got dressed in the morning and tearing holes in them.
I don’t know if they sell treadmill desks here but I do have a treadmill with arms so I put a shelf across the arms for the laptop. I still can’t seem to write fiction when I’m on there, but you’re right, it’s a good alternative!
Christina, I love those pictures! Congrats on the renovation – can’t wait to see your new office.
Right now my workspace is pretty much a desk (well, two as my husband made me a standing desk) and not much else. I do tend to get quite a bit done there so I’m in no hurry to change anything *g*
I’ve made many, many fashion mistakes and will undoubtedly make many more
Beth, you certainly must be doing a lot right with your workspace, given your productivity. It seems to be working for you!
Thanks for the congrats on the reno. I don’t know that they’re deserved but we’ll see at the end of the month!
I cannot imagine you making a fashion mistake!
Whatever your final choices, I hope your office turns out to be perfect for you, Christina.
My desk is an antique dining table, and I love it. The height is right, and it gives me room for my computer, room to write by hand, and room for my water bottle or tea cup. I also have room behind the computer for a small, two-shelf bookcase that holds the reference books I use most frequently with space on top for favorite photos of the grands and my old friend, Flannery the bunny.
That sounds gorgeous, Janga! I think it’s so nice to sit down to a lovely piece of furniture. An antique dining table sounds like just the ticket, especially if you’re writing historicals, like I do! And so lovely to have some items that mean a lot to you there, as well. I have my Tigger that a friend gave me and also the Eeyore that our Foanna gave me (Eeyore is my nickname as I’m always looking on the bright side:) Thanks for the good wishes! I can’t wait to be back.
I have a cup my son made in boy scouts it doesn’t have a handle,it leaks and it’s lopsided but I think it’s beautiful:)
Oh that’s so gorgeous, Gail! I love everything my boys make for me, too.
Gamemistress got the GR! He is a stylish accessory no matter what the decor. SNORK!
So excited you have your own office and can’t wait to see the pics, Christina!
My office is still a work in progress at this point!
When it comes to my surroundings I tend to go for comfort rather than style. My writing desk is actually an adjustable drafting table. As I am also vertically challenged, my brother suggested this and it works great for me.
Now when it comes to matters of fashion I am a style girl all the way, especially when it comes to my weakness – SHOES !! I have some of the cutest most tortuous shoes ever. I only wear them at RWA conferences at this point, but I do love them. And I grade them on the H scale (hours I can wear them without screaming!)
I’m snorting about the H scale, Louisa! And what a great idea about the drafting table. I knew there would be a few useful suggestions here!
SHOES!!!!
Yes. Love em, and I am giggling over the H scale. I do the same, but I figure I can fudge the scale if I’m sitting more than standing or walking.
Haha, yes there’s always the ratio of walking to sitting to factor in, isn’t there?
Christina -
How exciting – a shiny new CLEAN office! I’m afraid I’m the sort of person that lives in clutter – at least in my office. My office is the smallest bedroom in the house. It’s where I do all my accounting work so I have multiple filing cabinets in there for client files, forms, bill-paying files, etc. It’s also where I can all my “fun” writing stuff. I have a dragon kite hanging from the ceiling, figurines of pirates, sheep, mermaids, corsets – anything that grabs my fancy. It’s also where I throw all my promotional stuff, collect the odd sort of things to go into raffle baskets, have posters of my book covers, files of research thingees. It’s also the “hide everything” room that is so essential when company comes to call – we grab the stuff that’s lying around and toss it into my office and shut the door. Hopefully everything that gets tossed in eveentually goes out…but not always.
So my office is in a constant state of turmoil. Good thing I don’t write there
. Instead, I take my laptop to a clean surface – generally the table on my back screened in porch – or the kitchen table or dining room table in inclement weather. I find I need a view to the outside in order to get into the writing zone. Someday I hope to have an office big enough to handle my split personality, accounting and writing, with enough storage to hide all the stuff I keep with both.
Donna, it doesn’t surprise me at all that you can’t write in the space where you have so much business type stuff — I think writing requires shutting off that part of you that should be doing your taxes (or other people’s!) I’m going to try to make my study a writing only zone so that I train myself to work when I’m there. I think even internet and email should be banned from there. I’ll see how I go!
Yay, Christine! Huge congratulations on being able to carve out an office for YOU after the house renovations.
I used to be all style, no comfort, didn’t care. Now I bought a pair of shoes for my trip to Virginia next week because we’ll be doing a lot of walking. And they look suspiciously like Birkenstocks! Sigh.
Thanks, Jo! It’s a lovely thing to look forward to!
Well, it would be taking things to the extreme to wear beautiful shoes when you’re walking a lot as a tourist. That’s the dilemma, though, isn’t it? When you wear comfy ugly shoes as a tourist, you often find yourself in places where you cringe and wish you looked more stylish. But it would be a lot worse to be limping after the first day, wouldn’t it?
Absolutely! Reminds me of the episode this week of “Modern Family” when Gloria (Sophia Vergara) wears her spiked heels to Disneyland!
Ooooh, decorating time!!! I’m so jealous *ggg* I love playing with color and flow and energy and seeing what I end up with. But once I find something I like, I settle into a rut and stay there. Thats probably not good
I use a big farmhouse style dining table as my desk. As you mention, I have a pull out keyboard tray thats mounted underneath, which also holds my mouse. This gives me plenty of space to work, and spread out as much as I need. And enough room for a healthy plant, some pretty candles and crystals and lots of inspiration. Instead of a desk chair, I have a rounded easy chair that rocks and swivels and feels so comfy. I figure I’m here for long, long hours, I want to be comfortable and entertained. And yes, that means from time to time, I just sit and swivel in circles *g*
I have a narrow sofa table thats the same height as the ‘desk’ set up in an L shape, which holds my laptop and docking station, and my file caddy. Shelves across the room hold reference books and all my promo stuff and own books are in the closet. I sort of love it
That was the only way my hubby could wedge me out of our last house – he promised me an office.
I’ll bet you’re going to love yours when you’re settled back in
Tawny, your office sounds like my idea of heaven! I’m not surprised you love it. Would love to see a photo some time.
The easy chair sounds like a great idea. I like to be comfy but I find I’m usually sitting on the edge of my chair (with excitement?!) when I write so the back of the chair doesn’t really get used. Maybe that’s because chair backs don’t seem to be designed for short people? I don’t know.
Thanks for sharing, Tawny. There have been lots of great ideas and food for thought today.