Though it slipped into the ether of my Gmail account/organizational device, I swear we received an email a few weeks ago asking after wares to weird up an office. At least in my little world, most of my friends have home offices, and I have my own nook for painting, blogging, accounting, planning, and spying on the neighbors. If you’re looking for fun supplies for your home office, look no further. We made a list of office supplies and decorations that aren’t so mainstream.
Organization and productivity tools
Keeping track of tasks is especially important when you work solo. I chat with Ariel and we send emails all week, but outside of that I’ve got to keep track of my own damn to dos. You too? Start with a fantastic chalkboard vinyl decal perpetual calendar:
The number one thing I want for my desk is this adorbz hedgehog colored pencil holder.
Got a bulletin board to manage your lists, inspiration and top-of-mind paperwork? Normal push pins are laaaame — get offbeat with ninja star push pins or medieval weapons push pins:
"Cloffice" kind of sounds like... I dunno, maybe an equine venereal disease. But sound it out with me and you'll see we're actually talking about... Read more
OMG check out this adorable panda computer mouse:
A: this is a cute clock. B: if you, like me, don’t do so well with numbers, this is kind of ideal.
And tame your cable jungle with Kikkerland’s cable robot organizer — also available in monkey and crocodile flavors.
There are seven computers in our home, plus a PS3, and a printer which can print from a thumb drive. I’ve gots to get me a new one — and I want one of these blind boxed Blotz drives. They come loaded with sound bytes and wallpapers! KAWAIIIII!
HOT! Red analogue phone (it also comes in chrome and black):
I’m SO in need of an iPhone holder, and these plush Kawaii cell phone holders are too, too awesome.
Got to also love the tulip USB hub. What? I’m a sucker for tools cleverly disguised to look like other, more attractive things.
Got crumbs? Eraser nubbins? Dirt? Get a desktop animal vacuum to make tidying up more fun.
Distractions: enablers and minimizers
I firmly believe some distraction is necessary in the work day. It keeps one’s mind fresh and can lead to interesting inspirational leaps — you just have to keep “too much” and “too little” stimulation in balance.
I have a cat. She’s a great cat. She keeps me company all day, and without her in the house I’d probably skip work and just start writing Days of Our Lives fanfiction. But sometimes she needs a little too much attention. If you, too, have periods where your cat disrupts your productivity, how about the Frolicat magnetic toy to keep yours entertained for a bit of a break?
Let your mind drift when you pretty up your desk with a Magic Garden set — mix the ingredients together, assemble your scene and grow an idyllic mountain on the desktop.
Got neighbors to spy on? I’ve got a duplex on one side of the house, a school to the north, lesbians to the west, and an octogenarian to the south. Someone has to keep up with neighborhood happenings. Use a cute telescope to get the job done.
Offbeat office decor
Have you seen these lenticular horror portraits? They usually pop up around Halloween, but they could be interesting in an office, too. Maybe not one you host clients in — unless you are in the gothic decor industry.
Brighten up the place with an 8-bit Flower Bouquet.
A friend, knowing my penchant for anthropomorphizing inanimate objects, gave me these Inanimate Object Stickers a few years ago. See? Angry turpentine jar is angry:
Use these products to spruce up your work day. When your office looks good, even the banal accounting tasks are more fun.
Posts like these light up my life. *:) I can’t wait to put some of those Inanimate Object stickers on every appliance in my kitchen….
Happy toaster! Brave little toaster! <3
i just cleaned up my desk at work. my favorite part is my organizational tins – my wife occasionally buys me mario candy tins which i have repurposed into office supply containers. the mushroom is explodingly adorable, but the star is a great size for paperclips =)
I want the teeny robot vacuum, but I want one that looks like R2D2.
I think the words “teeny robot vacuum” just made my life. 😀
I also love the Inanimate Object Stickers. They would be perfect in our kitchen alongside the mugs with crazy expressions we already have.
Also I highly recommend a notice board of some type for anyone, home office or not. I’ve got a white board (aka dry erase board) that is so incredibly useful for everything from to-do lists to shopping lists to phone numbers and other random important information.
Although I have a bad habit of covering it in badly drawn dinosaurs and then trying to cram the useful info in around the edges. 😀
I love the tiny robot vacuum. With a three year old in the house, I feel like that one might be a must. Also, I love office supplies so much it’s a little weird.
I just wanted to add that a nice terrarium or easy to maintain plant can make a world of a difference in an office.
waaaaaaaaah! why arent these goodies in South Africa!! *sad face* i want!
That was me who asked!! Thank you thank you thank you!! I totally want the cute little hedgehog! I’ve got very limited space at work (I still work for someone else. Boo) but this has totally inspired me to do my home office for when my business kicks off! Totally in love with the tulip USB!
That was me who asked!! Thank you thank you thank you!! I totally want the cute little hedgehog! I’ve got very limited space at work (I still work for someone else. Boo) but this has totally inspired me to do my home office for when my biz kicks off! Totally in love with the tulip USB…
HEDGEHOG. YES. DO WANT.
This is an awesome post and I approve of every word in it.