The Process of Transformation

What I have become present to is how most people aren’t aware of how often change happens in our lives and the ripple effect that comes from it. Within a year of switching from a desktop to a laptop, my office was abandoned. And I didn’t even notice. This was a pretty small shift, considering all that happens in our lives.

Last week I talked about the necessary transformation I needed to pump life back into my office. The image above was the “after” shot from the last time I transformed my office at the end of 2015. 

At that time, I was really excited to have finally raised my desk by adding drawers on each side and could now stand and work. My desk had been behind my sofa, and it had become convenient to have a surface there. I took the upright bookcase and laid it on it’s side and now had extra surfaces area for my work and to place a drink while sitting on the sofa.

From the time I was old enough to manage moving the furniture in my bedroom, I would often rearrange my space and I was always delighted by the new vibe it created. I knew immediately that freeing up the wall that the desk was currently on would help get my handstand practice back. This meant that the cubbies would have to go upright again and by placing them on the wall closer to the entrance of my space, it offered some privacy for meditating and a place for my altar.

I quickly became aware of some issues:

-the desk was taller than before. The back of the desk, which was just a countertop, was unfinished and unattactive. I could see the back of the top drawers and needed to solve for that. 

-the wall that the desk was on was stained and dinged-up from holes created by the mounted utility board that was above my desk. If I repainted this wall, all of the other walls would look dull by comparison. In no way was I prepared to have the entire room painted.

I opted for a very easy (and temporary) fix for both. Using what I had on hand, matte board (used for framing art) and brass nail heads, I was able to create a clean finished edge on the sofa side of the desk. It’s not perfect, but it gives me peace in the interim. 

For the wall, my ideas kept evolving. First, I was going to paint white birch trees along the entirety of the wall. I knew it could be beautiful, but I also know any spare time I have now has to go towards finishing my book. I remembered self-adhesive wallpaper was a thing, although I had never used it. I started googling “birch peel and stick wallpaper” but ultimately, the choices I found in my budget were a bit too cartoonlike. I knew the look I was going for and didn’t see it represented. I kept browsing and decided on white painted brick. 

I already have a contrast wall in my space, a dark blue wall going down the stairwell. Introducing another contrast wall had to be well thought out. I have small areas throughout my renovated pre-war home of exposed brick and thought it would be a cohesive choice.

I did a TON of research once I knew the effect I was looking for which I’ll talk more about next week.  

Check out my quick video below to see that this is a process. I didn’t have solid blocks of time to complete this over a weekend. To transform completley, it’s good to take time to settle in. Next week I’ll reveal the wallpapered handstand wall!
 

Have you ever moved the existing furniture around your space and had a profound new feeling of energy in your space? Please share in the comments below.