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Sometimes, older buildings that have been converted into condos or apartments can be oddly shaped and sized. That was the case with this particular Madison, Wisconsin, condo located in Capitol Square. The one-bedroom, one-bath residence featured a generous living, dining, and kitchen area — but also featured a tucked-away, highly angular bonus room that offered a unique challenge in regard to furniture configuration.
“The previous owners had a dining space in there,” explains Chris Bailey, the staging coordinator at The Cozy Home, the company hired to work on this project. “The photos from a previous listing showed a workspace in there, but it wasn’t scaled properly. There was a large desk you had to scooch around.”
When it comes to staging, the goal is to help people see themselves living in the space, which is especially useful with one that’s oddly shaped. Here’s how the pros made the space more functional, and helped the home sell as a result.
They anchored the oddly-shaped space.
When working with a tight and oddly shaped space such as this office, it’s important to consider scale. The size of the furniture will considerably impact how the space appears as well as how it functions. A too-big desk can be a nuisance to have to navigate every day, and furnishing the space efficiently can allow for maximum usable space. “If you put too much or too-big furniture, it becomes less functional,” the stager says.
The designer and her team went about focusing on anchoring the room. In interior decorating, anchor pieces are typically larger and offer a visual focal point that your eyes are drawn to when first looking at the room.
Anchoring is particularly important in open-concept spaces where the bounds of the living room, dining room, or, in this case, the office may be fluid or expandable. To achieve this, The Cozy Home put down an appropriately sized rug to ground the workspace.
They created a reading nook.
But the stagers didn’t just stop at the workspace. They were even able to make this bonus room somewhat multifunctional by adding a chair in the corner to create a reading nook that sort of floats behind the desk.
“A chair works well in that nook in the corner because it’s an acute angle,” Bailey says. “In this space, you’re using that acute corner for the small nook because it sits there and then you can use the open space for the table. You can fit more than if you were to flip it.”
Those working with a similar space might consider embracing those tight corners or small nooks within their home to create a functional retreat, such as a reading nook, or something visually interesting.
“When you have an oddly shaped room, take those acute angles and look for opportunities or a design moment,” Bailey suggests. “Maybe instead of a reading nook it’s a tall plant or lamp; or use that space because it’s inherently cozy for some smaller niche.”
The condo was on the market for $324,000 and is currently under contract.
“Stagers have to work with what’s there,” Bailey says. “We create privacy where there is none and anchor spaces. A lot of open floor plan homes are not well-thought-out and it can be very difficult to create a cozy space. We achieve this with rugs, scale, and lighting.”
When I opened my coworking space in Totnes for female entrepreneurs and women in business back in 2020, I designed it with the principles of biophilic design in mind. I wanted to use an earthy colour palette, texture, natural materials, organic shapes, and incorporate lots of plants. I wanted the users of the space to feel good in the work environment and wanted it to be a space that supported their mental health and physical wellbeing.
We moved into a new space last summer and our new female coworking space is so much more biophilic. It is a converted barn with vaulted ceilings and huge roof lights so it is flooded with natural light. It also has lots of exposed brick and textured walls and there are expansive views of the countryside on all sides. Our neighbours are cows and pheasants, we have a little bird who comes and knocks on the windows and we’ve had visits from squirrels and regular fly overs of geese. It couldn’t be more perfect. So bringing in the principles of biophilic design has been a breeze.
When I took over the additional studio space upstairs, the previous tenant had some huge plants that they offered to sell me for many hundreds of pounds. Knowing myself and how bad I am at looking after plants I knew that this would not be a good investment for me. So instead I opted for faux plants and I knew exactly where to get them from. Blooming Artificial is a company I have used for many years when it comes to artificial plants and trees. I’ve already featured a Blooming Artificial review years ago when I got some faux houseplants for my home and then again when I used their plants in the first coworking space.
But what I really love about having faux plants is the lack of guilt. I never have to feel bad for not remembering to water them. I never have to watch them wither and droop because they are not getting enough light, or they are getting too much. I never have to watch them slowly get pot-bound because I am seemingly incapable of repotting my plants. Plant care is something I find extremely overwhelming. I try my very best, but it is just so hard to know what plants want and need. Online advice provides very little clarity. The very same symptoms could be a sign that you are not giving your plant enough water…or that you are overwatering. I feel so bad when a plant dies because I have neglected to meet its needs.
Luckily, over the years, I have learnt to buy super hardy plants that thrive on neglect, but even those plants grow and need some ongoing maintenance, and I am just not nurturing enough for this. So faux plants have become a staple in my office. They look wonderful, give us all the good feels and I do not end up crushed under the cripling weight of guilt.
That’s why I wanted to share this Blooming Artificial review—because these plants have solved a problem I didn’t even realise could be solved so beautifully.
What I’ve Learned Since Discovering Biophilic Design
I have been writing about biophilic design since 2019, when I first became aware of the concept and wrote my first article on the topic for designer magazine. Back then, it wasn’t such a hot topic but since then we have seen the emergence of more human-centric design and a willingness to put the needs of people first when creating spaces. We now recognise that biophilic design has an important role to play in counteracting some of the more negative impacts of urbanisation and the persistent disconnect from nature that many of us are experiencing. With the rise in mental health problems and the prevalence of stress in our modern society, biophilic design and its associated benefits are one of the most powerful tools at our disposal to counteract the worrying developments we see in society.
Biophilic design gives us the opportunity to support and nurture one another in a way that reduces stress and increases productivity. According to the report Human Spaces: Biophilic Design at Work prepared by environmental consulting and strategic planning firm Terrapin Bright Green for Interface, environmental psychology research tells us that being connected to nature actually assists with, psychological restoration. It also states that biophilic design supports multiple organizational outcomes, including well-being, productivity and creativity.
Key global figures that were gathered in the report found that:
A third (33%) of office workers say that the design of an office would affect their decision to work at a company.
Two-thirds (67%) of respondents report feeling happy when walking into bright office environments accented with green, yellow or blue colours.
58% of workers report having no greenery, in the form of plants, within their work environment.
The research also identified that visible connections to nature can have a positive effect on an individual’s reported stress levels. Further analysis showed that perceptions of well-being can increase by up to 15% when people work in surroundings that incorporate natural decor elements, providing a connection to nature, in contrast to those who have no contact with nature in their workplace.
I feel so lucky that I knew all of this before I decided to open my coworking space. I had previously worked in a unit on an industrial estate when I first graduated, and I was selling metal alloys to the French aeronautical industry. There was no natural light in that unit because there were no windows. There was nothing natural about that place and my well-being took a nose dive. I can’t tell you how unhappy I was spending eight hours per day in that kind of work environment. Needless to say, I didn’t stick around because my wellbeing and mental health mean too much to me. I need light and views of nature to do my best work.
The coworking space I have created is the office of my dreams. Every day I come to work and am overwhelmed with gratitude that I get to work in such a beautiful space that makes me feel so good. It is flooded with natural light, has beautiful views of the landscape outside, and the biophilic office decor incorporates natural materials and earthy colours, and I have filled it with a mix of real plants and artificial plants.
I understand that even the most realistic faux plants don’t offer quite the same benefits as living plants, but I have found that mixing the two provides a great balance for me with all the wellbeing benefits I need, minus the guilt.
The faux plants I have both downstairs and upstairs are primarily from Blooming Artificial and the reason I get my faux plants from there is because the quality is incredible and they actually look real. I swear if you didn’t know they were faux and you were looking at them across the room, you would have no idea. I would even go as far as to say you probably wouldn’t guess they were unless you reached out to touch them.
They have brought so much joy, colour and texture into our coworking space and they really are the star of the show in all my photos as they bring the space to life no matter what the season. Writing this Blooming Artificial review has made me appreciate just how much these small touches have contributed to the feel-good atmosphere of our coworking studio.
As for whether they are worth the money. It’s a resounding yes from me. Whilst these large artificial plants aren’t cheap, they actually cost roughly the same price as a similar-sized real plant. Considering the huge potential there is for a real plant not to survive my neglect, I would much rather spend that kind of money on a large faux plant knowing that it is guaranteed not to die. So given that the costs are comparable, the benefits of artificial plants actually make them the better investment for me. And I would gladly pay that money to alleviate myself from the guilt of being a plant murderer!
Sarah writes about all things shopping for Apartment Therapy, The Kitchn, and Cubby helping you find the best deals and the best products for you and your home. A Brooklyn-born Jersey Girl, she loves a good playlist, a good bagel, and her family (but not necessarily in that order).
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
At home, I have the perfect work setup. My desk has plenty of storage space, all the supplies I could possibly need are within reach, and my swivel chair is soft and plush. Plus, it’s all right next to my bedroom window, so I get plenty of sunlight. Do I ever actually work from there, though? Absolutely not. Instead, I spend my 9-to-5 writing from my bed, where I can stretch out in any position I want.
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Comfort, or a lack thereof, is the main reason why I refuse to hunker down at my little makeshift office. Specifically, I cannot find a good placement for my legs. Keeping them crossed at the knees hurts my back after a while, whereas the pretzel position eventually makes my joints feel stiff. And if I want to stretch my limbs, my desk’s bottom shelves serve as an inconvenient roadblock. Recently, I was thinking back to how I used to have a small stool at my previous home and how nice something similar would be now. It should come as no surprise that I found an even better one on Amazon.
The adjustable under-desk footrest by HUANUO is the product you need if you also feel uncomfortable while working from a desk. It’s essentially a compact stool that you can easily fit under the table, but it has some special key features. As its name states, this footrest is adjustable, meaning you can tilt its surface at any angle. Whether you want your feet to be slightly elevated toward your body or at a downward slope, all you have to do is slant it to your liking. The footrest’s height is also adjustable.
What’s more, its rectangular platform sports a bumpy texture to prevent your feet from sliding off. Personally, I subconsciously try to prop my feet up on my desk’s lower shelves while typing, but I’m unable to find relief because said shelves are fully stacked with books and binders. A product like this is nothing short of tempting. And if you’re petite, the footrest is a must-have. “Didn’t realize how much my legs hanging all day contributed to my knee pain and leg exhaustion,” one reviewer shared. “This was a perfect solution at a very nominal cost.”
Even if you’re back to working on-site, nothing’s stopping you from bringing the footrest along. It weighs under 5 lbs., so you can easily transport it and never feel discomfort at a desk again. Your body will thank you in the long run. Grab your own footrest now from Amazon, and make sure to hit the “apply 5 percent coupon” button for a discount!
Sarah is a staff writer at Apartment Therapy. She completed her MA in journalism at the University of Missouri and has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Belmont University. Past writing and editing stops include HGTV Magazine, Nashville Arts Magazine, and several outlets local to her hometown, Columbia, Missouri.
