How to Create a Minimalist yet Inspiring Office Design

Although it’s great to have a busy, decorative office that’s full of inspiration, having too many decorations and unnecessary stationery items lying around can be distracting and counter-productive. Minimalist office designs involve getting rid of the clutter and keeping only what’s necessary, whilst toning down colours and decorative items. Minimalism doesn’t have to be boring – if it’s done right, it helps to provide an atmosphere that’s open, peaceful and produces focused workers who are less stressed. If you wish to create a workforce made up of employees with decluttered minds, you might consider re-designing with minimalism in mind.

Tone down colours and decorative items for a minimalist look.

Clearing out the office of unnecessary items is the first step in the process. Try to only keep the supplies that you really need, and just keep a couple of personalised items for each desk. It also helps to try and convert to online methods of storing documents, rather than having endless amounts of paperwork lying around. If you’ve got a lot of wires attached to computers, it’s also worthwhile investing in cable organisers to keep it all looking neat and tidy. Decluttering your office of unnecessary items allows you to strip back to the basics, providing you with a clear base to work with.

Clearing out the office of unnecessary items is the first step in the process.

When deciding on paint and furniture colours, try to steer away from bold colours or distracting wallpaper patterns to encourage stress-free minds. Why not incorporate an interesting feature wall by adding natural textures such as wooden effects or a biophilic plant wall? Alternatively, decorate walls with some motivational and inspiring quotes, or use the space as an opportunity for wall-sized open shelving to display helpful resources and decorative pieces.

You could consider incorporating natural textures such as wooden effects.

In terms of seating, it’s worth investing in chairs that are ergonomically designed and sturdy, since this will improve employee wellbeing. For a minimalist design, try to find chairs that are slim but comfortable, since this will both prevent back problems and blend in with the simplistic design. To further reduce clutter and increase space, consider incorporating desks with built-in storage – just enough to store important papers, but still maintaining a streamlined design. It also helps to invest in desks that are of a pastel or neutral colour – this will help them to blend in.

It’s worth investing in chairs that are ergonomically designed and sturdy.

Storage is a hugely important part of maintaining a minimalist design. A combination of open shelving and closed cabinetry is best, since you’ll have opportunities to both shut away unsightly papers and folders whilst still being able to display décor pieces such as plants and personalised items, as well as books and any other helpful resources. Desk shelving is also a great way to reduce clutter on desktops; which, for a minimalist design, should contain no more than the most necessary items, and perhaps a framed photo and small plant.

A combination of open shelving and closed cabinetry is best.

There are several ways that inspiration can be maintained and encouraged in a minimalist office, whilst still reducing clutter. This is mainly achieved through considering minimalism in the design process, through colour choice, textures and streamlined furniture. Minimalism provides both financial and mental health benefits, so is definitely worth considering for your office.