In the second episode of Design Girlfriend, Alia Ahmed-Yahia and Jamie Bosworth are back for another home décor transformation. This time, they are taking on their upstairs closet in hopes of turning it into a fashionable office space. With a sleek desk, eye-catching wallpaper, DIY shelves, and a striking chandelier, a space of miscellaneous fashion finds revamps into a modern office nook.
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After removing the doors and shelves form the closet, Alia and Jamie start with choosing Calico wallpaper as the feature focus of the space. “The wallpaper is like a handbag in fashion,” Alia says, “where your eye is automatically drawn the second you walk into a room. The wallpaper looks like artwork in itself, and acts as the one dramatic element.”
She takes this wallpaper scene one step further with a clever design idea: creating your own “live mood board.” By taking the same wallpaper she used for the office space in a larger scale, and placing it on clipboards, the clipboards then become apart of the wall, and a place for you to put whatever is inspiring you in the moment.
For a second creative design idea, Alia makes a book spine basket, with the end product looking just like a shelf of books. By affixing cardboard to a HomeGoods basket, and fashioning vintage books on top of that with fabric glue, the innovative storage space comes to life. “When I think about creating design solutions, I really want them to look elevated,” she says. “If it looks like a hack, it is a hack. If someone sees this and is surprised by it, then I did my job.”
When it comes to lighting, Alia thinks that bigger is better. “Having a really great, oversized chandelier makes a small space feel bigger. A lot of people think you have to match the scale of the room to the fixtures, but I love a bang fixture. It’s something that really stands out and makes the space pop.”
As the glamorous office nook finally starts to come together, what does Alia think are the most important finishing touches? “It’s all about the unconventional when it comes to making a modern workspace,” she says. “It’s not the office pieces that make a workspace, it’s the untraditional pieces you find that surprise and delight, and really make the space come to life.”
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Watch the full episode above, and read an interview with Alia on her interior design and style tips here. Plus, shop the room accessories below to create your own chic office nook.
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Tune in to the first episode of ‘Design Girlfriend’ below, where the couple turns their dated living room into a sophisticated putting green:
