For a lot of us, working from home has transitioned from a temporary situation to a more permanent condition. As we adapt to this new way of living, it’s important to pay some attention to the crafting of our workspaces—not just to the ergonomics of our furniture and computers but also to the aesthetics of our surroundings and the materials that they contain. My workspace is decidedly uninspiring in comparison to the author’s. Nevertheless, I can say with confidence that the undulating presence of a natural light that is rarely felt in the best of indoors, in addition to touches of organic materials like the desk itself, are potent salves in ameliorating the basic nearness of nature that is daily missed by someone toiling away in front of the glow of a computer screen.
When I set up my home office, one of the first things I made sure to do was establish natural light as a feature of the space. Natural daylight is too often undervalued as a component of good design; its impact is immediately apparent. It’s not just a visual thing, though; it’s also about the way daylight fills a space with an invigorating energy that simply isn’t present when artificial light is the only source. My desk is just inside the line of sunlight that snakes across my office in the late afternoon hours. When I work in that light, I feel fully capable of anything.
Natural light is a beautiful thing, and using it in your home office to its full potential is one of the best ways to create a space you can thrive in. However, if you are working in an area that simply doesn’t afford you much natural light, or any at all, there are still ways to bring the benefits of light into the space. For instance, I’ve seen some pretty slick solutions using daylight lamps, which can help keep your company refreshed and feeling good throughout the day by imitating the invigorating effect of natural light. Using these lamps is a pale (pun intended) approximation of what you get with natural light, but they are a great tool for people who suffer from seasonal affective disorder or just need a little (or a lot of) light to keep their office vibes positive.
Of course, light isn’t the only way to make a home office feel biophilic. Another key aspect is the use of natural materials. In my workspace, I made a conscious effort to replace as many synthetic materials as possible with natural ones. My desk is made from reclaimed wood. Its warmth, along with the perplexing texture of the wood, brings a sense of calm and a grounded feeling to my workspace. Although I don’t have a lot of storage in my office, I added woven baskets to hold files that I don’t need to access too often. Like my desk, those baskets are wonderfully textured, which is a nice change from the plastic or metal bins that are usually found in offices.
I have also discovered that working with natural textures helps keep me focused and engaged. I’ve experienced office environments that were chill and antiseptic, with smooth, hard surfaces everywhere. But sitting at a desk of wood and a makeshift office in nature, with a stunning view of a vibrant old pine, is a pleasure I would wish for everyone. My office desks have ranged from the clinical to the cozy, and the latter breeds creativity far more effectively than the former. In one project, our team created a variety of textures from wall to floor, turning part of a former medical office into a space that feels comfy and welcoming.
Biophilic design must include plants, of course, and my home office is no exception. I have a number of them in my workspace, and they’ve cemented their role as key players in my daily routine. There’s nothing quite like stopping what I’m doing to give the plants a little drink and to wipe the dust off their leaves. It’s intimate, and it’s really nice to just take a few seconds to care for something that can’t care for itself, that’s in a sense totally at my mercy. And hey, these plants are my air purifiers; they’re my path to a luscious work environment.
One of my favorite plants in the office is a gigantic monstera, sitting in the corner of the room. With its showy split leaves, the monstera makes my workspace feel almost verdant. It’s a good companion in the line of sight during my workday, beckoning a request for attention every so often. I also have a burgeoning mini-jungle on my desk, complete with a snake plant, a baby fern, and a pothos that seems to be in constant motion, extending its tendrils across the front of my desk and toward my computer. And all of these plants require exactly zero horticultural skill on my part. They’re perfect for a home office.
However, it’s not merely a question of looks—having plants around can improve mental performance. There is a lot of evidence showing that being around plants can lower anxiety levels, sharpen focus, and even increase productivity. In one office project I was involved in, we put up a living wall behind the front desk. That wall had a mix of ferns, ivies, and other easy-to-care-for plants, and it quickly became the room’s showstopper. Not only did it look good, but the clients also said they felt calmer and clearer-headed when working in the space around that wall.
Integrating natural aspects into home office design isn’t limited to wellness essentials like plants and materials. We can also create calming spaces by replicating the sounds associated with the natural world. For years, I thought I was just a nature lover who enjoyed outdoor yoga and hiking. It wasn’t until I stumbled upon scientific studies that I understood the link between the sounds of nature and human health. Now, I firmly believe that calming, natural sounds should be a standard in biophilic home office design. As I mentioned with regard to my water feature, there are a ton of apps, virtual playlists, and video resources that offer the sounds of nature. But if you’re more of a DIY type, you could record your own nature walks (just make sure to give narrations in case you encounter Bigfoot).
One more living aspect you can add to a home office is a scent. I personally love bringing scents into my workspace. While I often think of design in relation to the visual sense, I think the olfactory sense is just as crucial. For one thing, how can we expect to feel at home in an office if it doesn’t smell good? The home office of a client I once worked with had this problem and we solved it together by putting in an essential oil diffuser. Every week, we fill the client’s diffuser with a different “calm” essential oil—lavender, for instance. We seriously considered and discussed this detail. The idea is that the home office should smell nice all the time—like a refreshing spa, if you will—so that even the most stressful moments in the context of this client’s work life would be bathed in a calming aroma.
Creating a biophilic home office isn’t simply about decorating with beautiful things. It is about making a kind of aesthetically lovely environment that also helps bolster focus, well-being, and even creativity. These are spaces designed with both function and the principles of biophilic design in mind, allowing for a beautiful place to work and think and to work and think more clearly. Over the years working as a design consultant, I have witnessed the radical transformations that biophilic design can impart—not just in the looks of a workspace but in how one’s feelings and productivity can sometimes change drastically just by being in a living (or lifelike) environment. I have a longstanding admiration for biophilic design’s built-in ability to stimulate creativity and serve a function as the “natural inspiration model.”
In my own home office, I have put the design principles of work inspired by nature into practice. It began with the selection of a rug made from a poromeric material. This material, according to the 2022 book, The Nature of Nature by Enric Sala, has a small footprint. In addition, the flowing, wave-like pattern of the rug is biomorphic. I also chose an artwork for one wall of my home office that features an abstract depiction of a natural landscape. Again, while not literal, it certainly has a nature-inspired design. The handles of the dresser with 3 drawers constitute biomorphic design. Finally, I finished off the wall opposite my desk alcove with 2 large nature-inspired canvasses. All of these design elements together help make my home office a really comfortable, biophilic workspace. I feel that I am not only climate-, but also creativity-friendly because I am surrounded by shapes and forms that help me think.
Biophilic design is alive with color, and color can have a huge impact on creativity and concentration in the biophilic home office. As my experience suggests, nature-inspired colors, in particular, provide a perfect condition for work, free from overstimulation. Soft greens, blues, and earthen tones possess tranquility and balance, with associations not only aesthetic but also phenomenological. I recently worked with a client to create a home office that inspired her to work with ease and grace. The color palette we selected was predominantly in the fresh and warm tones of an imagined forest. The walls were painted a muted soft sage that filled the room with a feeling of fresh tranquility. The furnishings and accents radiated with tan, brown, and golden tones, like the way sunlight filters through trees. My client enjoyed working in the space so much that she giddily declared it her favorite room in the house.
Creating a biophilic home office that promotes a sense of calm and focus can be achieved through more than just color. Careful space planning also plays a crucial role. I’ve always favored a minimalist approach, especially in workspaces, and I know from personal experience that excessive or poorly arranged “stuff” can be a real distraction. In my office, I’ve done my best to keep the space open and uncluttered and have arranged it such that I can move freely. There’s nothing on my desk that doesn’t need to be there, and everything that is there has a purpose. I know from experience that I am more able to focus and think clearly when the “stuff” around me is in order.
One of my favorite office design projects was for a client who was having a real struggle concentrating in her home office. For her, “elegant disorder” was the problem. Her home office was dominated by volumes of unfinished work, in the form of books, papers, and office supplies. She lamented that the “dispersonalization” of her workspace led to a decreased ability to concentrate on the tasks at hand. My solution was a kind of serene, uncluttered office that used a more natural materials palette, and that put “the focus on no focus.” In the end, we opted for very few pieces of “performative art” in the space. Except for the finished library, not a great deal of visual stimulation exists in her workspace. And that was the point.
An important part of a biophilic home office is the incorporation of nature. In my experience, the presence of greenery can substantially enhance the feeling of a space. Not only do plants bolster air quality, but they also have a soothing effect that can reduce stress and anxiety. Having always included plants in my home office, I inevitably recommend their presence to my design clients. Whether it’s a large potted tree in the corner or a few table-top succulents, plants bring a certain “life” to a space that is unattainable by any other design element.
I once assisted a customer in converting a tiny, windowless room into a cheerful, light-filled home office. Natural light was an obstacle we managed to overcome by choosing plants that thrive in low-light situations. We adorned the office with snake plants, ZZ plants, and a Boston fern, which, along with texture and color, brought an abundance of viridescence to the space. The four-foot-long full-spectrum light installed above her desk did a good job of emulating the sun, which is a necessary condition for the plants and the desk’s inhabitant to achieve photosynthesis. After the room transformation, the client said that the office felt way more “alive” and that the plants had (surprisingly) become a source of joy in her work life.
Integrating natural components into a home office can be downright simple and inexpensive. Even minor adjustments, like including a potted plant, utilizing a diffuser with naturally-derived essential oils, or selecting natural materials for desk accessories, can significantly impact the area’s ambiance. It’s about constructing an environment that is mentally “safe” and slightly reminiscent of nature, where one can work without the jarring disconnection that accompanies many modern workspaces.
When I make my workspace feel connected to nature, I get a stronger sense of the work’s meaning. There is something about being in the company of natural elements that keeps reminding me of the larger picture—that my work is but a tiny part of a much vaster, interconnected world. I find this to be a very helpful perspective, especially when I face hassles of impending deadlines or projects that are too complicated and demanding.
Ultimately, making a home office biophilic is about more than just beauty. It’s about well-being—yours. It’s really about your health. Consider that we are more and more confined to our shelters, not only at home but also at work and in the places where we perform other daily tasks. We need our shelters—our offices, too—to be spaces that can nurture us, inspire us to be creative, help us focus, and, more than anything, support us in figuring out our true, natural life rhythms.
