‘Man cave’ - I hate the very word. It suggests submission to a woman by whom you have allowed yourself to be banished to the attic or, even worse, the basement. Which in turn suggests a ban on your personal peculiarities, that should ideally be given every opportunity to fully develop at home.
Thank you for those very helpful call outs Dennis! I just corrected those. Glad you enjoyed the piece. Be on the look out for more articles coming soon!
Wonderful article — I really enjoyed it. I did notice one small thing that might be an editing oversight: the header “How to a Study Around Your Work.” Did you mean “How to Build (or Design) a Study Around Your Work”?
Hey Jerry, glad you liked the article! And thank you for pointing that out. It was a mistake on my end. It’s been fixed. Keep a lookout for more good articles coming soon!
Loved this. My wife and I recently moved into our first home - a townhome with 3 rooms. One will be my office, and like Connor I also work from home regularly. There are so many things we are doing in the interior of the home, and I’m excited to eventually get to really build out my office. I love photography, journaling, planning and making things with my hands, travel... I like to explore and learn about many different things. We’re going for a victorian/ arts and crafts style, and much if that is similar to what you shared.
Thank you for sharing your story! Sounds like you’re on the verge of having a great space. Congratulations on getting the townhouse. It’s a big step. I recommend having him area dedicated to your cameras and photography. Maybe even hang some of your photos. Then a writing desk for your journaling and planning.
It’s a good question. I’ve been trying to find good brands myself. My friend bought an incredible model of a Ferrari on Wayfair. But I can’t remember the brand.
I found this both refreshing and needed, not to mention timely as I’ve been looking for some creative inspiration in further personalizing my home office. Great read 🥃
It’s a spare bedroom that I’ve converted to an office. I like the idea of building around my craft, which entails my launching my menswear brand currently. I also have a corporate job and WFH so it needs to be functional for that. It’s cliche but I do like the fireplace/leather/whiskey-in-a-decanter aesthetic!
No shame in that. In fact, I’m a crystal whiskey decanter, a leather chair, kind of guy myself. Good luck with the menswear brand. Sounds like a noble undertaking. I wish you success with your office and the brand. You’re a great writer by the way.
A beautiful room is easy to assemble but a room that consistently pulls you toward focus, discipline, and output is something else entirely. Your environment is never neutral. It either makes distraction feel natural or makes the work feel like the obvious next move. The best spaces have character, but their real luxury is that they remove friction between intention and action.
Great article. I am currently torn on building a study. We have a room that I have used for my office, the size of a medium small bedroom (150 sq ft) but there is another room, unfinished that could double that. I’m running into two problems here. 1) can you build an effective study in a small space, which will feel small as it is in a windowless basement, and 2) if not, how do you convince your partner that you need to finish the other room to have a larger study? Ok, the second questions was in jest. Do you have any thoughts when designing a study in a small space? Do you go large desk that you would have wanted or do you cut it down proportionally? Do keep it bare to feel large, or do you fill it up to make it feel cozy? Interested if you have a perspective.
Hi Brandon. I’ll start off by saying congratulations. To even have the option of multiple rooms is without a doubt, a luxury. Firstly, I’d say any room without windows is going to be tough to turn into a very productive space. Something about the closed off nature gives one cabin fever. If you can convince your wife or girlfriend that finishing the other room would make the house more pleasant and productive for you. I don’t see why she would fight that. Especially if the cost is a minimal or you can do it yourself. In my article, I discussed what to put in a room, but I would check out my newest article, a follow up to this piece you have commented on. That should give you a better idea of how much clutter or lack there of you should have. Hope that helps!
I can do everything but smoke a cigar in my basement office. Last summer, I set up a desk outside with a laptop, external monitor, a cigar, and all my required scholarly apparatus. The setup took a while and the mosquitoes were a bit aggressive. I think I need to set up a screened-in gazebo in the garden where I can quickly set up work during nice weather or even during a rain shower.
‘Man cave’ - I hate the very word. It suggests submission to a woman by whom you have allowed yourself to be banished to the attic or, even worse, the basement. Which in turn suggests a ban on your personal peculiarities, that should ideally be given every opportunity to fully develop at home.
Could not agree more.
Very well said!!!
Lots of wisdom here that I’ll be incorporating.
So good. I was just considering this the other day. I had a beautiful office setup before I moved; the new space has been in disarray for months now.
This is just what I needed to rebuild my new space. I hope to make it better than before!
Well, good luck with it!
Great read. The study is the perfect place to be
Enjoyed your piece, especially since I am starting to set up my personal study this afternoon
Been thinking a lot about what a study in our home could look like -- appreciate your philosophy of the study here.
Great article! Looking forward to one day being able to design my own study.
I agree…great very interesting article.
Two other potential (and interesting) typos:
For those precious days you spend at Hope, you have control over that environment.
Home vs Hope?
The sad reality is no one will not hand you such a space.
Or should it be: no one will hand you such a space?
Thank you for those very helpful call outs Dennis! I just corrected those. Glad you enjoyed the piece. Be on the look out for more articles coming soon!
Wonderful article — I really enjoyed it. I did notice one small thing that might be an editing oversight: the header “How to a Study Around Your Work.” Did you mean “How to Build (or Design) a Study Around Your Work”?
Hey Jerry, glad you liked the article! And thank you for pointing that out. It was a mistake on my end. It’s been fixed. Keep a lookout for more good articles coming soon!
Loved this. My wife and I recently moved into our first home - a townhome with 3 rooms. One will be my office, and like Connor I also work from home regularly. There are so many things we are doing in the interior of the home, and I’m excited to eventually get to really build out my office. I love photography, journaling, planning and making things with my hands, travel... I like to explore and learn about many different things. We’re going for a victorian/ arts and crafts style, and much if that is similar to what you shared.
Thanks for the inspiration and guidance.
Thank you for sharing your story! Sounds like you’re on the verge of having a great space. Congratulations on getting the townhouse. It’s a big step. I recommend having him area dedicated to your cameras and photography. Maybe even hang some of your photos. Then a writing desk for your journaling and planning.
Also where did you get the model cars? I’m a classic 911 kind of guy.
It’s a good question. I’ve been trying to find good brands myself. My friend bought an incredible model of a Ferrari on Wayfair. But I can’t remember the brand.
I found this both refreshing and needed, not to mention timely as I’ve been looking for some creative inspiration in further personalizing my home office. Great read 🥃
Thanks, Connor. What kind of space are you trying to build? Do you have an entire room or is it more like a nook? Interested to hear about it.
It’s a spare bedroom that I’ve converted to an office. I like the idea of building around my craft, which entails my launching my menswear brand currently. I also have a corporate job and WFH so it needs to be functional for that. It’s cliche but I do like the fireplace/leather/whiskey-in-a-decanter aesthetic!
No shame in that. In fact, I’m a crystal whiskey decanter, a leather chair, kind of guy myself. Good luck with the menswear brand. Sounds like a noble undertaking. I wish you success with your office and the brand. You’re a great writer by the way.
Really appreciate that! I’ve enjoyed reading your posts too. Keep writing!
A beautiful room is easy to assemble but a room that consistently pulls you toward focus, discipline, and output is something else entirely. Your environment is never neutral. It either makes distraction feel natural or makes the work feel like the obvious next move. The best spaces have character, but their real luxury is that they remove friction between intention and action.
Great article. I am currently torn on building a study. We have a room that I have used for my office, the size of a medium small bedroom (150 sq ft) but there is another room, unfinished that could double that. I’m running into two problems here. 1) can you build an effective study in a small space, which will feel small as it is in a windowless basement, and 2) if not, how do you convince your partner that you need to finish the other room to have a larger study? Ok, the second questions was in jest. Do you have any thoughts when designing a study in a small space? Do you go large desk that you would have wanted or do you cut it down proportionally? Do keep it bare to feel large, or do you fill it up to make it feel cozy? Interested if you have a perspective.
Hi Brandon. I’ll start off by saying congratulations. To even have the option of multiple rooms is without a doubt, a luxury. Firstly, I’d say any room without windows is going to be tough to turn into a very productive space. Something about the closed off nature gives one cabin fever. If you can convince your wife or girlfriend that finishing the other room would make the house more pleasant and productive for you. I don’t see why she would fight that. Especially if the cost is a minimal or you can do it yourself. In my article, I discussed what to put in a room, but I would check out my newest article, a follow up to this piece you have commented on. That should give you a better idea of how much clutter or lack there of you should have. Hope that helps!
I can do everything but smoke a cigar in my basement office. Last summer, I set up a desk outside with a laptop, external monitor, a cigar, and all my required scholarly apparatus. The setup took a while and the mosquitoes were a bit aggressive. I think I need to set up a screened-in gazebo in the garden where I can quickly set up work during nice weather or even during a rain shower.
Sounds like a nice set up. Keep at it. Glad you enjoyed the piece.