Have you seen ‘The Intern’ yet? Well I saw it over the weekend and now the set design from the movie is officially my inspiration for my #OneRoomChallenge office makeover! Director Nancy Meyers (of ‘It’s Complicated’ and ‘Somethings Gotta Give’ fame) hit another interiors home run with the set decor of this movie. The interiors were very Pinterest-inspired and the movie spoke to the changing of the guard when it comes to the way we work today and who is running the show.
As a working mom to four middle-to-high school age sons – and being of an age in between that of the main characters – I still felt that I could easily relate to the aspirations of both: Anne Hathaway as the young mom/internet start-up success story trying to find balance in her work and personal life, and Robert De Niro, a recently retired senior looking to fill his post career days with meaningful work and joy. I have always been intrigued with these types of stories. How do we do what we love, provide for our families, and still find balance in our days? The main character played by Hathaway, Jules Ostin, has to deal with managing a successful boss-babe empire on top of figuring out the whole “can we have it all” thing. It is definitely worth seeing how everything turns out for her and her loves while this beautifully decorated film is on the big screen!
Below is a photo of the loft space of her internet-based fashion business, About the Fit ...
What I really liked about the company’s office interior was the modern design paired with classic styling, intentionally set with open spaces for collaboration and multi-tasking. The super large work surfaces are my favorite part. In fact, I have a table pretty big in size (3' x 8') in my current office. In all honesty, it is probably a bit overscaled for the room size, but when I saw how good a large desk looked in the movie, I have decided to keep it in my room makeover. It is a great work surface to have and I have always intended to keep part of it cleared off for impromptu design projects. But since I got it a couple years ago, it has becoming somewhat of a flat filing system much like the desk of Jules Ostin’s executive assistant in the movie ...
What my desk looks like (maybe a little worse!)
How I would like it to look:
Fresh flowers. Seating for guests. Organized.
Clean. Room to be creative.
The floor plan above shows what my office layout will look like and how it will be all about The Desk! What I have altered from my current layout is the editing out of many storage boxes filled with clutter, along with a large double wide children’s dresser that is currently on the largest wall. We bought the dresser for my boys when they were little, and years later it is not in the best shape anymore. Drawers are off the tracks, the paint is chipped, there are stickers on it. It kind of just ended up in this room, and I do not love it anymore.
After reading “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” to get motivated for this One Room Challenge, I have learned that to live well we must let go of what no longer serves us or provides joy. Every time I enter the room and look at the dresser – which is now piled high with papers and objects that need to be sorted – I feel completely overwhelmed. I want the clutter to be gone and the wall to be clear of furniture so that I can use it as a pinboard-type area for inspirational images.
Back in 2011, when I was trying to get my creative career back on track after staying home with my kids, I started an online design magazine, New England Finery. Back then, this wall was where I sorted out my stories. The space was energizing! I had a vision and could see it come to life right in front of my eyes.
New England Finery photo by Elizabeth Wertz
I really enjoyed that creative period in my life despite the fact that I was struggling with the ups and downs of raising a family at the time. Designing the magazine while curating editorial content was completely engaging, and I met a lot of creative people along the way. It combined my graphic design training, my passion for interior design, and my love of technological innovation all in one place. I could hardly call it work.
Unfortunately, this self-created position didn’t exactly pay the bills, so I ended up shelving the magazine for a full-time job at a local luxury showroom that needed a marketing director. Since then I have taken on other full-time jobs (furniture sales, large format printing sales) always searching for the perfect combination of creative challenges and work-life balance. I finally decided that being a freelance creative director (define as you wish!) with multiple sources of income and opportunity is where I want to be. My plan is for my new office to support me in following this path.
A few items that may end up in my home office makeover
A friend and teammate from my new position as brand ambassador for the skincare company Rodan + Fields, posted the image below on my Facebook page recently. Seeing it in my photo stream made me realize that my home office was not looking as fabulous as a successful entrepreneurs place of business could look today. Seeing that photo motivated me to take on this One Room Challenge. Stay tuned for next weeks post that will detail my selected colors, fabrics, and lighting. Check out this weeks updates from the other Calling it Home ORC participants here. Hopefully I will be Instagramming my decluttering progress shots soon! #justdoit
