Desk Decor: Open plan office edition

October 8, 2015 8:22 AM

I have been at my 'new' job for about five months and it's about time I call my 2 feet of deskspace home. What are ways to make my desk pretty, classy, tidy, interesting? Desires and restrictions below the fold:

- The work environment is very minimalist chic (think Diptyque candles and hydrangeas for decor) and we have similar minded clients sometimes, so nothing 'quirky' or 'kooky' and no pictures of loved ones.
- I like the feel of a lot of the images under "desk inspo", but I feel like they rely on a wall for the main focus and I don't have a wall. I am at then end of a row of 3 desks. We face another row of desks.
- I would love to be the type of person who brings in fresh flowers in a vase, but I'm not. But if I were, that's the sort of thing I'd like to have at my desk.
- I mainly do my work on a laptop with a big huge honking screen so there isn't THAT much room. All my 'supplies' (pens and post it notes mainly) are in a metal drawer under my desk.
- I have a ton of professional books at home but I don't feel like trudging them in because they inevitably get borrowed and lost.

Right now I have my Bobble water bottle, a moisturiser from Bath and Body works, and my notebook. Sure, it's minimal but I feel like it doesn't reflect me personally and it's so dull to work in.

posted by like_neon to Grab Bag (10 answers total)

If not flowers, what about a plant in some kind of clean-lined, modern pot?
posted by quaking fajita at 8:30 AM on October 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

You say you'd like fresh flowers. I loved having a small potted orchid at my desk. They last longer (anywhere from four weeks to eight months) than other fresh flowers and have a minimalist feel to them.
posted by Pearl928 at 8:31 AM on October 8, 2015 [1 favorite]

If not flowers, what about a plant in some kind of clean-lined, modern pot?

Succulents are very cheery little plants and need almost no attention. They make good desk friends.

Those stalks of lucky bamboo are also cute but then you have to deal with a little pot of murky water that could tip and be gross.
posted by phunniemee at 8:34 AM on October 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

I enjoy my sansaveria at my minimalist workspace. They are hardy and handsome.
posted by harrietthespy at 8:40 AM on October 8, 2015

A little bonsai tree might work as a plant option, too.
posted by something something at 8:46 AM on October 8, 2015

Best answer: If you want "stuff", pick a theme color, then buy a few things that match: a pencil cup (decorative vase with pencils or fake flowers or feathers or whatever), a mousepad (unless you only ever use your laptop trackpad. Sure mousepads are useless, but they can be decorative), a notebook (even if you rarely use it), a decorative pen, a matching-color-pattern box of tissues, a coaster that your coffee cup or water bottle sits on.
posted by aimedwander at 8:53 AM on October 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

I also have a jump a peg game like this one on my desk next to the tissues. People fiddle with it while we are talking sometimes.
posted by harrietthespy at 8:54 AM on October 8, 2015

Best answer: fwiw, I love fresh flowers, but I've found that that fake flowers can be surprisingly high quality and do wonders to brighten up a workspace. I love these peonies on my desk, and I always get asked if they're real.

You could also try air plants in cool Himmeli figure geometric planters (most are made to hang up or on a wall, but a few are stand-alone, I think).
posted by dire at 9:22 AM on October 8, 2015

Best answer: Some, but not all, of the below are expensive, but if you are only picking one or two things, then sometimes it is worth it to jazz up a place you spend a lot of your time in.

Small desk calendar? (they stand on their own). Another example.

Dandelion art object?

A small terrarium maybe?; this place looks like it probably would custom make one in pretty much any container if you asked. (Also, Jessamyn has instructions on how to make your own mossarium.)

Block lamp?

Ferrofluid magnetic display/toy?
posted by gudrun at 9:35 AM on October 8, 2015

An art calendar. You can also put a piece of art, or cartoons, on the back side of the monitor.
posted by theora55 at 12:12 PM on October 8, 2015