9 Tips for Giving Your Establishment a Unique Style


 

Your interior design can say a lot about your business. Whether it's full of sleek chrome features or kitschy, old-fashioned charm, its style can send a powerful first impression to clients and customers. Here are nine ways you can make your building as unique as the people who work inside of it.

1. Feature Walls

"Feature walls" are made or decorated with something that distinguishes them from the rest of the space. For example, they might have exposed brick while everything else is wallpapered, or they might be painted a different color than the adjacent walls. There are many ways to style a feature wall, so don't be shy about experimenting.

2. Enclaves

Instead of having traditional board rooms and conference rooms, think about building an enclave on every floor. They can still be used for meetings and brainstorming sessions with your employees, but they'll be much more stylish than a dull and drab office space. They'll encourage a certain openness of communication, too. You won't be behind closed doors all of the time.

3. Lights

If you're still using those boring florescent light bars that came with the property, it's time to upgrade. Think about hanging pendant lights with unique, fashionable shapes, or put in sconces as a kind of accent lighting around doors and cubicles. You might also consider adding a skylight if you live in an area with lots of sunshine. It'll help you cut down on your utility bill while also serving as a creative lighting solution.

4. Glass Features

Glass can be used for so much more than just windows. For example, glass doors will look dazzling in a modern, well-lit lobby. Glass partitions can give your employees their own workspaces without sacrificing the openness of your floor plan. You can even spring for glass floors or glass staircases if you want a truly breathtaking display of style.

5. Greenery

Bring a touch of nature into your office building. Think of something bigger and better than just potted plants. Can you create an indoor terrace that connects to an outdoor patio? Can you grow unusual flowers, trees, vines and shrubs that will become talking points among your guests?

6. Ergonomic Seating

Sitting in the right kind of chair can reduce everything from tension headaches to long-term orthopedic damage. Of course, not all stylish, futuristic-looking office chairs are ergonomic, so you'll need to be careful about the type that you buy. Do your research to see if they'll really combat the effects of a sedentary career.

7. Contrasting Design Elements

If you want wood features in your office, don't do hardwood floors, wooden furniture and wooden ceiling beams. Pick one of them and choose different colors, textures, fabrics or architectural designs to contrast with it. For example, give yourself those hardwood floors, but put fuzzy covers on your lamps to highlight the differences between the two.

8. Water Features

The classic water feature is a fountain in the front hall, but if you're looking for something a little more awe-inspiring, consider an indoor waterfall or portable "water wall." They'll stop your guests right in their tracks as they marvel at the play of water, color and motion. You might also look into something like an indoor koi pond if you don't mind paying someone to feed the fish every morning.

9. Storage

Reconsider those grungy old file cabinets. Instead, think about installing wall-mounted cubes to hold some of your binders and portfolios. You can even build an entire library wall with bookshelves and sunk-in compartments for file boxes. The sky is the limit as long as you're willing to get creative.

Decorating an office space isn't hard, but if you want it to be different from everyone else's, you might have to invest a little more time in things like floor plans and paint colors. Use these nine ideas to create your own one-of-a-kind space.

 

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