My Home Office… Or the “Man Cave”

Our home has 2 bedrooms, and one more room that was originally staged like a dining/breakfast/”I don’t know what” room… Most houses, villas, and apartments in the Eastern Province come somewhat furnished, and while staging a space with dining room furniture makes sense, I was confused because this room had the largest closet in the house! This amazing closet is so big that it currently houses our winter clothes, all of our sports equipment, my décor & craft supplies, and any other junk we don’t know what to do with. Since I was completely confused and couldn’t quite figure out how I should use this space, I left it as our junk room for a very long time…

The problem is that I can’t design or decorate a space without purpose. I’m all about functional rooms and if it has no purpose, it’s a total waste of space and money spent. I also wanted to wait and see what kind of a room we actually needed. Spending time in your home helps with that.

After about a year, I decided that we were in desperate need of an office. My husband also wanted some space for his cricket gear, so I figured the room could double as his “man cave.” We moved in one of the couches we brought in from our shipment, bought a set of trendy curtains from Canada, and then purchased everything else from around here.

The amazing picture of the cricket field, taken by Sadaqat Ali, is one cricket-related item I will gladly find space for! His pictures are just stunning. Visit his website for pictures of his recent trip to K2, the second highest mountain in the world!

Above his picture, I put up an “old Arabian map” that I got as a gift. Antique maps are great décor items especially when they’re of the country you’re living in 🙂

Lighting is a big thing for me, and I especially love spotlights. I love being able to highlight areas of a room and draw people’s eyes to things that I want them to see.

While some of the spotlights are shining on the right things, a few of the others are focused on places that I have yet to fill. This room is still very much a work-in-progress, as most rooms are and always will be! I’m trying to figure out how to get a bookshelf in, a cricket bat shelving unit, and some artwork. I’m also trying to avoid the cluttered look, so I’m going to sit on all of these ideas until I figure out how to create more space…

I find that you can easily add a pop of color to a neutral home by bringing in colorful accessories, and in my home one of those accessories happens to be my indoor plant! It’s one of those “good” indoor plants that improves indoor air quality as well. Even the dark wooden blinds (I also consider this an accessory…) have changed the look of the room completely.

However, I think the dark gray chair and the carpet are my absolute favorite items in this room. The carpet is a total game changer in terms of color, adding rich and bold tones to the room. The chair is technically a dining room chair and a pricier purchase compared to our IKEA stuff, but it was worth every penny. I spend a lot of time sitting on it and my tush is grateful!

I also recently realized that my office was lacking a coffee table, so I decided to opt for a custom made ottoman a couple months ago. Since my husband loves putting his feet up while strategizing for cricket, I thought that an ottoman would be the most comfortable and practical choice for both of us. I purchased the material for around SR 100 per meter from Al-Guthmi (upholstery fabric can be expensive so shop around if this doesn’t fit your budget) and had it made by a local upholsterer. 

This room is now one of my favorite spaces in the house, and is utilized as much as our living room. I definitely think it was worth the wait!

Wooden Blinds: Al Johi, Clock: Debenhams, Speakers: Bose, Indoor Plant: Sultan Gardens, DIY Table, Spotlights, Chrome Lamp & Drawer Units: IKEA, iMac: Virgin Megastores, Curtain Rod, Pillows & Curtains: West Elm, Blanket: Made By Mom :), Antique Map of Saudi Arabia: Arabian Collections Gallery, Picture of Cricket Field: Sadaqat Ali, Chair: BoConcept, Paint: (S2010Y30R) Jotun, Carpet: Island of Carpets