Welcome to my first blog post! For a long time, I have wanted to adopt a forum of some sort in which to share things that inspire me and inform my sense of style—items I come across, design ideas and thoughts about recent trends. Although I had heard of blogs, I have to admit, I was not, and am still not, completely familiar with the “blogger culture”. What I saw in launching this blog was an opportunity to share my thoughts on how style, not trend, can manifest itself in a regular person’s daily life, and even improve the quality of that life. My take on a stylish, lovely life emphasizes luxury, glamour, ease, comfort and a touch of lightheartedness—a combination which I think allows a person to celebrate and enjoy all aspects of life, from a night at home with the family to a lavish dinner party. I hope that my Monday-morning musings will be a fun, inspirational beginning to your week. I also invite you to check out more of my style at www.roihomeservices.com.
Workspace chic. I am a firm believer that feeling great and put-together increases productivity. And what has the power to affect your mood if not your environment? A stylish space can not only help you perform well, it can make you look forward to coming to work. This philosophy translates to fashion as well. Even on days when I won’t see any clients, I still try to put together a polished outfit. And I find that when I do, I accomplish more, and it’s better quality work. Here are a few of my tips toward cultivating an inspirational workspace.
In an office: Unless you have a beautifully framed bulletin board at your office (like I do @ROIHS), I hereby prohibit you from “tacking” up meaningful photos to your cubicle wall. Reserve such tacking for casual photos of recent outings, work-related papers and whimsical objets d’art (yes, that would be your favorite Far Side comic). But for your beautiful kids’ faces, buy yourself this fabulous 4x6 silver frame: http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p3943/index.cfm?pkey=caccfrafrm. In fact, get the 5x7, too, and frame your favorite photo you ever took on a vacation. Assess the color palette in these photos and bring in gorgeous containers for pens, etc. in this same color palette. I prefer to shop for things like this in non-office stores for a more personal look.
I am a firm believer that a nice scent is key to one’s mood, and thus, productivity. A candle or room spray would be inappropriate in an office environment, but a subtle aromatherapy hand lotion with a calming scent applied occasionally (and discreetly) might be enough to keep you feeling calm, refreshed and on top of things. My favorites are Loccitane’s Shea Butter and Lavendar Hand Creams (Lavendar:http://usa.loccitane.com/FO/Catalog/Product.aspx?prod=15MA150L7&cat=usg_bh_HandCare) and the classic Aveda Hand Relief.
Workspace chic. I am a firm believer that feeling great and put-together increases productivity. And what has the power to affect your mood if not your environment? A stylish space can not only help you perform well, it can make you look forward to coming to work. This philosophy translates to fashion as well. Even on days when I won’t see any clients, I still try to put together a polished outfit. And I find that when I do, I accomplish more, and it’s better quality work. Here are a few of my tips toward cultivating an inspirational workspace.
In an office: Unless you have a beautifully framed bulletin board at your office (like I do @ROIHS), I hereby prohibit you from “tacking” up meaningful photos to your cubicle wall. Reserve such tacking for casual photos of recent outings, work-related papers and whimsical objets d’art (yes, that would be your favorite Far Side comic). But for your beautiful kids’ faces, buy yourself this fabulous 4x6 silver frame: http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p3943/index.cfm?pkey=caccfrafrm. In fact, get the 5x7, too, and frame your favorite photo you ever took on a vacation. Assess the color palette in these photos and bring in gorgeous containers for pens, etc. in this same color palette. I prefer to shop for things like this in non-office stores for a more personal look.
I am a firm believer that a nice scent is key to one’s mood, and thus, productivity. A candle or room spray would be inappropriate in an office environment, but a subtle aromatherapy hand lotion with a calming scent applied occasionally (and discreetly) might be enough to keep you feeling calm, refreshed and on top of things. My favorites are Loccitane’s Shea Butter and Lavendar Hand Creams (Lavendar:http://usa.loccitane.com/FO/Catalog/Product.aspx?prod=15MA150L7&cat=usg_bh_HandCare) and the classic Aveda Hand Relief.
In a home office: Keep as little as possible on the desktop itself. Visual clutter is mental clutter. Plus, once you break the seal, it’s easy for a home office to become a catchall for mail, receipts, etc. and there goes your home office. Instead of lots of items on the desk itself, use decorative pieces on walls and neighboring shelves/consoles and keep seldom-used items in containers or drawers. I have one, single desktop organizer which holds the clutter (that's my home office above), but its single footprint looks less-cluttered than many separate containers would. Everything else goes in white boxes on a shelf.
Matching ROIHS pencils make me happy, although I primarily work with a chrome Cross pen
To introduce a calming element, I keep a huge jar candle on my desk and burn it at all times. Be sure to stay within your color palette here—candles are the easiest place to fall off that wagon. My desk lamp has 2 lower-wattage bulbs (individually controlled—so good!) instead of 1 higher-wattage one, which creates a less-intense, more appealing atmosphere. And PS always close your laptop when not in use. That’s an order. You can thank me later. Have a great, stylish week!
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