We originally planned to include a few shots of the office-turned-guest-bedroom in this morning’s post, but we ended up taking too many photos to fit everything in. So here’s a follow-up with extra pictures and the small changes we make when the room needs to pull double (or triple) duty for visiting friends and family.
Below is the full-size sofa bed fully folded out and dressed for guests, using linens we already had from the previous full bed that used to occupy the room. The pillows are from Pottery Barn and the quilt came from Bed Bath & Beyond.
To create a makeshift headboard we place the larger sofa cushions behind the folded-out mattress. The two smaller cushions that are removed to fold the bed out get tucked under the bed so they’re out of the way. Files and paperwork are quickly stashed in the open desktop cubby or in our file boxes under the desk when guests arrive. We also sometimes move one of our laptops into the den — there’s still a small corner desk left that I used when working full time.
The other laptop slips into the bottom cubby to free up tabletop space for guests and to make the sleeping area feel less like a workstation.
It’s natural to wonder how much spare room remains in a compact 10′ x 10.5′ space that must fit a slim two-person desk and a fold-out full bed. The short answer: not a lot. We’d love more than a foot of clearance between bed and desk, but guests report it’s easy enough to squeeze through when needed. The main relief is that the sofa bed can fully extend without bumping the desk — a standard, deeper desk would have caused problems.
We always provide a reachable nightstand-style drop zone so guests have a place for jewelry, a phone charger, or a glass of water. A short bookcase shelf at nightstand height serves this purpose nicely. Here it is before we make guest-ready adjustments:
And here’s the shelf after a quick guest prep:
We stand the books up to create room for a coaster and a glass, and leave a space for a charging phone (there’s an outlet nearby). If we have a moment we’ll swap the photo in the frame to one that includes our visitors — a small personal touch guests appreciate.
Here’s what the closet looks like when guests aren’t visiting:
When guests stay, all the bedding goes on the bed and the closet shelves are cleared to hold luggage and free up hanging space for clothes so they don’t get wrinkled.
We like to leave local maps and magazines out so out-of-town visitors can explore Richmond. We also add a mix of magazines that might match our guests’ interests — gardening, parenting, or light entertainment — so there’s something for everyone. (We’ll share a tutorial soon on the patterned storage boxes pictured on the top shelf.)
To make the room more welcoming we erase our usual to-do list from the mirror and write a welcome message with a dry-erase marker instead.
This room really earns its triple duty: here it is set up as a playroom when guests aren’t in town.
There’s plenty of rug space for Clara to spread out. She enjoys the magnetic wallflowers and the flash-card clothesline above the sofa. Safety note: twine, ribbon, or wire can be strangulation hazards. Keep hanging items out of children’s reach and always supervise play.
The bookcase dedicated to Clara’s toys, books, blocks, and blankets keeps the chaos contained, and a $27 ottoman from Target helps with extra seating and storage.
We’re thrilled we managed to fit three distinct functions into this small room where we spend most of our time. If you want to see the everyday office version of this space, check out the big reveal post linked on our site. Do you have guest-bedroom tricks or toy-storage tips to share? We’d love to hear how you make visitors feel at home and how you keep kid clutter under control — we’re still learning, too.