New Office - Lobby and Reception Design
/Office Lobby Mood Board
Last week I shared that we bought a new building that will be used as my husband’s real estate brokerage - and it needs a LOT of work. While we still have some demo to do, we're actually not too far off from a major turning point: putting it all back together!
That being said, I've been working hard designing the interior so that when the time comes, we're ready to jump right in. Today I'm sharing the design of the first room we'll be tackling: the lobby and reception area!
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The Inspiration
In talking with my husband and his business partner about their vision for the office, they expressed that they wanted this front room to feel inviting and comfortable - somewhere people would want to come and hang out or bring their laptops and work together.
I was immediately inspired by the fireplace to the left of the entryway as an obvious gathering space.
I know it doesn’t look like much right now, but picture the fireplace clad in reclaimed wood. Now imagine it surrounded by floor-to-ceiling stone on either side. Can you picture it!? No? Here’s the image that got my design wheels turning:
Can you see it now!?
As much as I love the fireplace wall in that image, the rest of the room isn’t doing it for me - it’s way too woodsy for what I imagine. I picture a room that’s a little more formal without being stuffy. Once I came across this image, it all started to come together:
I love how this room feels cozy but still inviting. I could easily see someone curling up in one of those chairs with their laptop and a hot cup of coffee just working away. (Pssst - it’s me. I’m “someone”.)
The only problem? The color. As much as I love black, I don’t think this room is the right place for it. But a mid-toned blue might just do the trick.
I really like this color palette for this building. I likely won’t use these exact colors, but the tones are in the right family (especially that blue/gray) and they’ve proved to be a good jumping-off point.
Lobby Details
Once I got my initial direction nailed down, I started to put my ideas down on paper. Like, actual paper. For the first time in forever, I sketched out my design old-school style and had a blast doing it! It’s been soooo long since I’ve felt that spark. (It felt pretty great!)
As you can see above, we have the fireplace wall as the focal point with matching barrel chairs surrounding a coffee table. I really like the lived-in look of the chairs below paired with a round dark-toned coffee table in the center.
To define this space, I love the idea of using one of these Loloi rugs from the Chris Loves Julia Humphrey line. I think the tones are neutral enough not to draw too much attention but will tie in nicely with the other colors throughout the room and add a little pattern.
We originally wanted to salvage the flooring in here (and the conference room), but it’s looking less and less likely that’s going to happen. Instead, we’ll probably replace the flooring throughout the main building with a light-to-mid-tone laminate.
And I don’t think we’ll have enough space for a console table as I’ve drawn in the sketch. Instead, we could put a couple of black end tables between the chairs on either side of the fireplace.
As for lighting, we’re planning to install 6 recessed lights in this front room - 4 will be over the lobby and 2 in the reception area. Additionally, I think a wagon wheel chandelier over the coffee table would look phenomenal and really be the cherry on top.
To top it all off, I’m picturing wood blinds or linen roman shades on the windows and a big piece of art on the opposing wall. Maybe with a picture light above it!?
Reception Design
While the reception area is in the same room as the lobby, it’ll have the same blue/gray walls but will be defined as its own space. When you walk in, this is the first thing you see. We’re planning to put a small reception desk facing the front door of the building.
Obviously, the finished product will have walls. Here’s what I’m thinking:
To repeat some of the design elements from the lobby, I’d like to cover the front of the reception desk in the same wood we’ll use on the fireplace surround. I also think that a metal back-lit sign with the company name would look stunning directly behind the reception desk and tie in some of the black elements from the lobby.
I picture something like this, except with the correct company name:
