Home Office Must-Haves
When working from home became the rage about a year ago, some of these office-in-place essentials were as hard to come by as toilet paper. But now manufacturers are keeping up with demand and even inventing some new and different must-haves for the home office. Take a look at some of our favorites!
Cool and Comfortable
While we believe a dedicated workspace is where we get the most meaningful tasks done – sitting on the couch with a laptop is an occasionally welcome respite. If you echo that emotion and have been using your lap for a desk, at least part of the time, it’s time to get that heated device onto a cooler surface. The top five lap desks for 2021 include a memory foam multi-tasker, a folding lap desk with plenty of storage, and one with a louvered top capable of five different angles that can double as a breakfast or reading tray for bed. Read the Best Reviews here.
You can spend $14 to $40 on a mini fan for your desk, depending on how stylish you’d like to be. From the Honeywell Turbo on the Go, to the Vornado mini classic from Bed, Bath & Beyond, you can keep cool drinking your hot coffee with one of these. And speaking of coffee, if you like it hot, check out this coffee mug warmer from Amazon. The Yeosen mini hot plate will remember your temperature, has a gravity sensor and turns off automatically after four hours or when your cup leaves the base.
Keeping it Clean
If your mobile phone has become your office phone, you might – like some of us, take it with you everywhere – and we mean every room in your house. If you’d prefer not to slather your smart phone with hand sanitizer (who knows what those chemicals might do to the finish on your smart screen?!) check out this Gladiator UV sanitizer. It’s better than wipes, killing 99.9 percent of the harmful bacteria that collects on your phone. And you can use it on earphones, pens, your mouse and everybody else’s phone, too!
Two great things about having plants in your workspace: one they purify the air around you and can tolerate low light – because if you’re working a computer, the last thing you need is bright sunshine glaring on your screen. Check out The Sill’s ZZ Plant with its thick green leaves and porcelain nursery planter. It only needs water every two to three weeks – so if you get busy or distracted with work, it’ll live. Or the Peperomia Obtusifolia. Try saying that three times fast. One of these living, breathing, bits of green will make your office space more attractive, and healthier!
All About the Desk…and Chair!
Some of us already have a dedicated workspace, and looking through the latest options gives us desk-envy, especially the Jarvis Bamboo Standing Desk. It comes in six sizes and can be adjusted to rise from 24.5 inches to 50-inches high for standing. It’s one of those assemble-yourself propositions, but we’re told it’s not that hard. For more options (desks, coffee machines, headphones, keyboards and mice) check out the recommendations from The Strategist, compiled by people who work from home.
While the desk is important, so is the chair, and the cushion if there is one. Strategist has some recommendations for those too, but so does Tech Savvy Mama. Blogger Leticia has tested several over the years and the All33 Backstrong Chair is her current fave. Designed by a chiropractor the chair supports all 33 of your vertebrae, it has a rocking sit-in-motion technology – the seat is like a swing but also provides good support. Sitting in the right chair allows better breathing, digestion, and prevents long-term problems – not just stiffness from sitting too long.
Office at Home in Colliers Hill
The home builders in the master-planned community of Colliers Hill were already designing most of the homes here with gorgeous home office spaces. So whether your preference is ranch or two story, check out the offerings from Century Communities, KB Home and Richmond American Homes. Life is better on the Hill, from the amenities to the beautiful model homes from three top Colorado builders. It’s still a great time to buy with rates still so low and lots of possibilities — from the high $300s.
