Dear Elaine,
Last February I left my full-time accounting job to work at home because the stress and pressures of taking care of our two children, running my home, and also going to work every day had gotten to me big time.  I now have a pretty good accounting practice keeping the books of small businesses but the only place I could have my office is what was a 10 by 12 foot storage room behind our house.

I desperately need a better home office because where I am working now is a space that has no window and really is a very dreary room. 
After working there a couple of hours I feel claustrophobic and I have no privacy because the kids and my husband walk into it exactly as they did when it was the storage room.

Is there something that would make it a better place to work in?  Should I paint it a color that would make it cheerier?  I really need help.
—Michelle from Scottsdale, Arizona

Dear Michelle,
Although substantial incomes are frequently produced in home offices, it is still not generally perceived as an “office” where serious business
is conducted and real income is generated. 
In conventional thinking, a spare bedroom or storage room is a good starter place for a home office, and people looking for the most economical way to establish themselves in a small service business will, once their business is successful,
rent office space in a legitimate office building.  Right?  Wrong---not any more!

About ten years ago the paradigm shift to a serious business head-quartered in a room of our home began to be considered a legitimate place for one’s business and today is occurring more and more frequently.  Those who work at home and enjoy all the personal advantages that home gives us are responsible for this newer thinking.  I’m one of those people who work at home and I thoroughly enjoy my office environment in my home.  In fact, because of its convenience to me I have no plans to have my office outside of my home.

Because successful businesses and substantial incomes are often produced in home offices they’re continuing to gain acceptance and respect. 
It’s apparent that the home office is here to stay.

Having said all this, the way to achieve the privacy you require in yours, it is now necessary to send clear messages to your family members that your office is off-limits to them and they now need visual proof of this new regulation.  The best way to send them this message is to attach a 12 x 15 inch sign
in dark bold letters to the door that reads:  
KNOCK FIRST!  DO NOT ENTER WITHOUT PERMISSION.

This sign will send the PRIVATE OFFICE message you want to convey to your family.

The best way to brighten your office is with natural light.  A skylight, rather than a window, will serve two important purposes.  It will eliminate that “dreary” feeling, and instead of a window for your family to appear at to gain your attention, the skylight will provide you with the privacy you need.

Paint the walls and the ceiling of your office a color that makes you smile, and you’ll have instantly created your own personal office.  Also, in addition to the usual office components---fax, computer, printer, etc., furnish your office with those things you love to live with, and which may have nothing to
do with or belong in a traditional setting.

And for those moments when you need to move away from your desk and regroup your thoughts—
to read something having nothing to do with accounting---treat yourself to a comfortable lounge chair and ottoman.  You’ll find that this expenditure will repay its initial cost in that it will allow your to quiet your mind.  Having your own chair in your own office will do wonders for your spirit.

These days the home office is about a new fusion
of workplace and attitude where you nurture yourself in the environment in which you’ll do your most creative work. 

Dear Elaine,
I would like to have color in our home other than in the throw pillows on our sofa and chairs. Our furniture is mostly beige. Can you suggest a color scheme that would hold up for years without needing to be changed as decorating styles change?
—Rebecca from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

Dear Rebecca,
A very good question. You’re asking for a timeless color scheme that will be as fresh and pleasing to you 15 years from now. And you want to avoid trendy colors.

Every decade or so a color becomes the color for the home. In the 80s it was mauve, and we saw mauve used everywhere in the home: carpeting, fabrics, lampbases, even in small appliances for the kitchen. In the 90s the most widely used color was beige in every incarnation.

Nothing’s wrong with any color because color is a visual source of nourishment. What’s wrong is how we use color.

To use colors in your home so that they blend beautifully with each other, my Color Bar Color Matching System (included with every copy of Color Your Life) is the best and safest way to go. You’ll find that you have become your own color expert. And the colors you choose will always be in fashion. Not trendy colors—they are forever colors because the colors in the Color Bars have been taken from nature, and nature never goes out of fashion.

Start by deciding on three colors from one side of the Color Bars—either the even numbered side or the odd numbered side. Using these three colors for your fabrics, carpeting, paint, and all of your accessories will give you the timeless color palette you’ll always love living with.

Dear Elaine,
Because of my husband’s job, we have to move every four or five years. Although the packing is done by a moving company, moving has always been extremely difficult for me, and I find myself dreading it. Then, when we arrive at our new home, the unbelievable chaos is what really gets to me. Once we are moved, are there certain things I can do to make our new home feel lived in, instead of having that temporary look that seems to stick around our houses for months? Is there a quick fix to making a house look like home?
—Laura from San Francisco, California

Dear Laura,
You have my deepest sympathy—more than you can know! Yet, I do understand that some people find moving a whole lot easier than you or I do. With regard to a “quick fix” to make your house look more like your home: begin at the front door. Your entry or foyer is the introduction to your home, and when it looks welcoming and pleasing to you, you’ll gain the enthusiasm you need to move on to the other rooms. In this first room—your entry—place your best chest or console table, and above it hang a favorite large painting or a mirror. And place the lushest looking plants you own. That first room done, move on to the family room—the room you use the most for TV, reading, or wherever the family congregates. Complete that room and move on to the next room. The key to eliminating the chaos quickly is to unpack for a single room—do one room at a time.

Dear Elaine,
Some of my friends and I were talking about how we would love to use colors in our homes as easily as we use them in our clothes. Do you know why people seem to be more comfortable using neutrals and earth tones in their homes?
—Suzanne from Providence, Rhode Island

Dear Suzanne,
In the 18th and 19th centuries, colors were used as easily as people ate their favorite foods. (Read the “Supermarket Test” chapter in Color Your Life). They felt sure that if they liked a color they’d like living with it. Yet beginning in the mid-20th century and into the 21st century, the beige-ing of America came to pass, and unbelievable changes occurred regarding how people felt about colors in their homes. We have and always will find that rich, vibrant colors lift our spirits, and because of this timeless truth, people will again use colors in their home without fear of making a mistake. The Color Bars, by the way, go a long way toward making this happen.