Home furniture that embraced comfort and innovation to create warm home offices

The culture of working from home is set to completely rethink what it means to be a professional. It is more than just a reaction to world events; it represents a conscious move in the direction of a more adaptive and flexible workplace. Adaptable designs for work-from-home furniture have fundamentally altered how we approach remote work by skillfully combining utility and flexibility. These ergonomic designs provide solutions that easily modify workplaces, meeting the evolving needs of contemporary professionals. Furthermore, since modular design solutions are customisable, users can create unique settings suited to their particular workflows. Innovative approaches that rethink the dynamics of productivity, creativity, and well-being within this changing environment are emerging as remote work becomes more prevalent.

From an emphasis on adaptability and geometric elegance to redefining sustainability in office furniture, STIR collects adaptive ‘work from home’ furniture designs that embody a unique narrative of functionality, style, and comfort of working from home.

1. ‘Revo’ by Pearson Lloyd and Profim strives to revolutionise workspace design

The Revo collection by Pearson Lloyd includes sofa designs , both with and without backs, along with benches, screens, and stool designs in softly contoured, organic shapes. The idea of 'squaring the circle' served as the inspiration for Revo's straightforward and striking aesthetic identity, which uses a gentle geometric language to distinguish the collection, while also allowing it to be put together in countless different ways to make it compatible with work-from-home setups. It is a range of modular furniture that can be incorporated into any interior space. With a variety of table designs in various shapes and sizes, Revo's chairs and screens can also accommodate many tasks, including focused individual work, formal meetings, and brainstorming at the coffee table.

2. Andreu World conceives furniture centred on well-being, for hybrid offices of the future

There is a need for healthy and inviting workspaces that make employees feel at home while promoting concentration and productivity. The In Out Office program is an innovative solution by the Spanish brand Andreu World, with Monoplace as its ultimate expression, making its debut in Valencia, Spain. It is a compact and agile response to the intelligent work environment and the new demands of workspaces at home and in the office. Monoplace stands out as a versatile tool for collaborative communication, offering endless possibilities of use. “Driven by a constant quest for innovation, I always seek to invent new solutions to meet ever-evolving demands. For me, the perfect combination lies in merging responsibility, sustainability, emotion, and innovation,” explains its creator and renowned product designer, Alfredo Häberli. The In Out Office 'Monoplace' consists of comfortable armchairs with an auxiliary table design, both wrapped in upholstered panels in various finishes. An open and organic backrest gesture is the distinctive feature of this chair design, allowing for an ergonomic and focused posture.

3. The ‘Hazy’ collection by Studio TZEN redefines sustainable furniture for offices

Multidisciplinary design studio TZEN manoeuvres design as a bridge between users and their surroundings, turning to simplicity and minimalism to create their function-focused product designs. The same ideology has been translated into their latest furniture collection, named Hazy, which comprises office system shelves playing on translucence and swaying visuals that are geared towards a creative vision for future office compartments. In addition to the calming effect that greenery has, a more flexible and effective at-home workspace can be swiftly created employing the easy mobility and multifunctional design of the Hazy collection, which creates a synthesis between furniture, plants, and light.

4. ‘Hook Desk’ by Karim Rashid

The fully modular Hook Desk designed by Karim Rashid allows users to customise their at-home work environment while keeping all necessities organised and at hand. The translucent screen provides privacy but allows for the flow of light and air. Cuts in the desktop help organise cables and allow the addition of accessories. The lower shelf provides storage, manages to wire, and adds a splash of joyous colour. The desk can be customised to include a lower drawer, a PC tower, upper shelving, and lighting. The arc lamp spans the entire desk, creating ambient light with fewer less harsh shadows than a standard task lamp. Larger desk systems have the option of smaller dividers and side panels, creating a positive social space. This casualisation of shape, form, material and behaviour is now a movement. 'Casualism' is also a metaphor for 'Freedom' – to be who you want, express yourself the way you want, to be an individual and not follow the rules.

5. ‘Work From Home’ desk by Six Dots Design

This Work From Home desk by Six Dots Designs is a one-off piece designed and fabricated by Joe Ellwood in North London. The desk was crafted when Ellwood had the realisation that, for him, working from the comfort of his studio has always been a way of finding peace and solace. “This desk is a moment of creative freedom, it's a way of disregarding the discipline of the modernist education I was given and laying bare who I am and who I want to be. I think that the older I get, the more I realise realize that nothing makes sense, and that is as much of an opportunity as it is a terrifying reality. This desk has no reason or purpose for existing, it doesn't make sense, but maybe that in itself is the reason I made it. It’s the decisions we make that don’t make sense that make the world vibrant that bring diversity and dialogue," the furniture designer shares.

What’s NEXT?

These forward-thinking furniture designs usher in a new era of practicality, customisation, and inventiveness in workstation solutions as the lines between work and home continue to blur. Pearson Lloyd's Revo collection exemplifies adaptability and versatility; Andreu World's Monoplace embodies a fusion of well-being and collaborative efficiency, Studio TZEN's Hazy collection pioneers sustainability and flexibility, while Karim Rashid's Hook Desk champions modularity and individual expression and the bespoke Work From Home desk by Six Dots Design stands as a testament to the power of personal narrative within workspace design. These ideas promise a future where work settings are as distinctive as the people who inhabit them, while simultaneously redefining utility and reflecting the varied goals and lifestyles of today's workforce.

STIRred 2023 wraps up the year with compilations of the best in architecture, art, and design from STIR. Did your favourites make the list? Tell us in the comments!