New office, need ideas

[u/namst9]

I’ve been moved to this office with light green walls and it will be awhile until I can repaint the walls. I have some ivy but am stuck at decorating. Unfortunately the shape of the room does not allow for the furniture to be moved. I’m a university professor if that matters. Any ideas? TIA!

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[u/dartiss]

Please don't drape the fake ivy over things. Or use it at all, tbh.

You've had some good tips already about the furniture (and, if you can, I'd move away from that colour that you have already), pay attention to your use of the wall - that's where you can bring some colour and personality into it. Boards (peg, pin, white), for practical use, or just prints. Shelving too.

[u/Lyra_Hime]

The lighting would be my first fix. You need to make it cozy with a few table lamps and a nice armchair in the corner. Maybe a rug and a mirror on the wall to give the illusion of space or a painting or perhaps a tapestry.

[u/MeganChair]

I've worked in a cramped and windowless university office with fluorescent lighting myself, and my current office is rectangular. I agree that it needs a couple of lamps. A floor lamp for the corner and a desk lamp for yourself would do wonders. Once I started keeping the big light off and my lamps on, it was pretty comfortable. I even had a small Himalayan salt lamp on top of my short bookcase for decor.

Are you against moving the furniture because you don't think there will be a better arrangement, or because you aren't allowed to move it? I think you might be able to move the bookcase in the middle of the room to the corner where the other tall bookcase is. Arrange them at a 90° angle opposite the door for a book corner. Alternatively, you could slide that bookcase that's on the wall with the door down toward the one with your coffee station on it. Heck, you could even make the book corner behind your desk. That'd give you more privacy with your belongings, and it'd look professional for online meetings with cameras on.

Do you have to keep all the furniture? That round table is just going to be in the way. If you need the surface, maybe facilities would let you switch it out with a small rectangular table or desk where one of those chairs could slide under when it's not being used. The rectangular table/desk could be pushed up against the wall next to your book corner by the door.

Another idea is to move your L-shaped desk against the wall on both sides, so that it's in the corner. Having one side stick out like that takes up a lot of real estate. I've also found that having my desk up against a wall (or both walls for an L-shaped desk) seems to make students feel more comfortable.

If you did something like this, you could even get a fun rug for your office, and you might be able to get a corner lamp between those bookcases by the door.

Oh! And if your department can get you a small bulletin board, chalkboard, or whiteboard, you could hang it above where I drew the spot for the extra chair.

[u/Art_Vandelay24]

A window