We finally tackled painting the lower half of the office walls beneath the chair rail a shade darker than the stenciled pattern above so the room feels more grounded and balanced. The top-heavy look with the stencil only on the upper portion bothered me, so I moved one square down on the Benjamin Moore paint swatch from our existing wall color (Moonshine) and chose Gray Horse. We had it color-matched to Olympic No-VOC paint in satin. Total cost: about $10 for a quart. A small change made a big difference.
The darker base makes the room feel more anchored. It’s subtle, but it gives the stencil and the furniture above it more presence.
We swapped out the metallic gold gourd lamps we used to have for a pair from HomeGoods: one is a tripod desk lamp in an oil-rubbed bronze finish with a white shade, and the other is a glass-based lamp in the same finish with a white shade. They don’t match perfectly, but they complement each other and add a little visual imperfection to counterbalance the strong symmetry (mirror-image desks, centered window, two chairs). A touch of asymmetry makes the space feel lived-in rather than staged.
I know mismatched lamps can feel odd without artwork surrounding them — yes, I’m looking at you, Mom — but once we hang art on those walls the lamps will blend into the overall composition as one more layered element. Even if you still don’t love them, you’ll still love me (especially, again, Mom).
We also brought the dark leather chair from the bedroom into the office because it pairs nicely with the dark wood desktop and actually gets used here now instead of serving as a clothes holder. A bright green lumbar pillow we already owned ties the chair into the recently painted desk chairs we refreshed a few weeks ago. Pillows around here are nomads — they travel from room to room until they find their spot.
For some reason I’m particularly fond of the file cabinet now that it’s surrounded by colorful accessories. The combination of gray walls, white desk and cabinet, brown chair, and dark desktop created a natural craving for color, which we satisfied with the green chairs and a few punchy accents.
I casually stacked some books with a few bowls and a ceramic pear and realized out loud — yes, I talk to myself constantly — that someone could easily build a room around those colors.
Then I noticed how the accessories already echoed the room’s palette:
- The yellow tones in the bowl and the bottom book match the yellow accents in the chairs’ upholstery and the stenciling.
- The green bowl mirrors the color of the desk chairs.
- The dark gray book on top is one or two shades deeper than the new gray under the chair rail.
- The turquoise in the globe and the middle book appears in the desk chairs’ fabric.
- The glossy white of the ceramic pear relates to the white trim, desk, and file cabinet.
So yes — we effectively based the room on those colors by accident, which is one of the best ways to design: trial, error, and happy surprises. My recommendation: white + green + yellow + gray + turquoise, with a little chocolate brown for warmth. Someday I might change the globe base to an oil-rubbed bronze to pick up that deeper tone even more.
Like every other room in our house, the office isn’t truly finished — we’ll probably keep tweaking things for years — but it already feels much more cohesive than it did a few months ago.
Progress so far:
- Built a wall-to-wall desk to maximize workspace.
- Added an Ikea file cabinet for storage and organization.
- Included a toy basket for Clara so the room stays functional for family life.
- Painted the walls a soft gray (Benjamin Moore Moonshine).
- Repainted the chandelier indigo and topped it with a large drum shade for scale.
- Stenciled the upper walls to add pattern and interest.
- Painted and reupholstered the desk chairs to introduce color and texture.
- Painted the lower half of the walls a darker gray (Benjamin Moore Gray Horse) to ground the space.
- Added a cozy corner chair for reading and storytime.
Remaining tasks:
- Hang artwork to complete the wall spaces.
- Add window treatments for softness and light control.
- Decide on a properly sized rug — the current one is the wrong dimensions.
- Add a floor lamp and side table to the reading corner for scale and function.
- Continue tweaking details as the room evolves.
How about you — any weekend painting projects or outdoor tasks getting attention before the weather turns? We’re itching to tackle some yard work while it’s still mild.
P.S. Curious about our favorite neutral wall color we’ve used in several rooms? Ask and I’ll share the name.