Turn a wardrobe into an office
Whether you’re working from home or just want a space to keep your computer and paperwork neatly tucked away, this clever home office in a wardrobe ticks all the boxes. The ideal site for your new office is inside a built-in wardrobe in a spare room.
How much wallpaper will I need?
Measure the height of the wall, add the pattern repeat plus 20cm wastage and multiply by the width of the wall. For example, if the wall is 2.5m high and 3m wide and the wallpaper has a 53cm pattern repeat, you’ll need 3.23m (2.5m + 53cm + 20cm) x 3m = 9.69m². Now, divide this figure by the size of the roll (10m x 53cm = 5.3m²), and you get 1.83, so you’ll need two rolls to cover a wall of this size.
Gather your supplies
3000 x 42 x 19mm DAR pine (partition and desk battens); 2400 x 1200 x 16mm MDF panel (partition); 2100 x 900 x 30mm pine finger-jointed laminated panel (desktop); 900 x 240 x 25mm Handy Shelf; 600 x 900 x 3mm MDF (organiser panel); Dulux 1 Step Primer, Sealer & Undercoat; Dulux Wash & Wear 101 Advanced Low Sheen in Reserved (blue for walls and battens); Dulux Aquanamel Semi Gloss in Vivid White (for shelf, corkboard, trims and desktop), Reserved (blue for corkboard and whiteboard frames) and Play School (orange for organiser panel); drawer units; wallpaper; wallpaper adhesive; 40 x 60cm corkboard; 40 x 60cm whiteboard; two 35 x 50cm picture frames; Kaiser Wood MDF boxes in various sizes
You’ll also need
Jigsaw; screwdriver; wood screws; suitable drill bits; hole saw; suitable wall fasteners; paintbrushes; sponge roller; spirit level; utility knife; construction adhesive; pop rivet gun and rivets; sandpaper; low-tack masking tape; contact adhesive; metal ruler; wood filler; Scotch mounting tape
Adjust dimensions and materials to suit your needs.
Step 1 Clear wardrobe and remove hanging rail (you can re-size this later to fit other end of wardrobe if necessary).
Step 2 If you need to partition office space from the rest of your wardrobe, cut 4 lengths of 42 x 19mm DAR pine to make a frame fitting the internal height and depth of your wardrobe. Fix frame in place. Cut 2 panels of 16mm MDF to size and fix 1 panel to each side of frame.
Step 3 Patch wall with wood filler, then give raw surfaces a coat of primer. Paint side walls blue and the shelf white.
Step 4 Using a spirit level, draw plumbline on back wall. Following manufacturer’s instructions, apply wallpaper adhesive to back wall and wallpaper. Hang wallpaper so it lines up with plumb and pattern is straight. Use a damp sponge to smooth it in place. Smooth from centre out to sides, removing air bubbles and excess glue. Trim, using a metal ruler and utility knife. Let dry.
Desktop
Step 5 To support desktop, cut 3 battens to size from 42 x 19mm DAR pine. Fix to back and side walls, using fasteners appropriate to your walls. Make sure desktop height will clear your drawer units. For desktop, cut laminated panel to fit and, using a hole saw, cut a hole so the power cords can be lowered to power points.
Step 6 Paint battens blue and desktop white, and leave to dry. Fix desktop to battens with construction adhesive.
Step 7 Following the manufacturer’s directions and using suitable wall fasteners, install floating shelf above desk
Corkboard and whiteboard
Step 8 To make framed corkboard and whiteboard, remove backing board and glass from frames. Sand frames, then apply a coat of undercoat to frames and corkboard. Finish corkboard with 2 coats of white paint and frames with 2 coats of blue paint.
Step 9 Cut corkboard and whiteboard to same size as backing boards and insert into frames. Referring to pic for guidance, hold frames inside wardrobe door with mounting tape. For hollow core doors, use pop rivet gun to fix to door, or else screw directly into solid doors.
Organiser
Step 10 Prime 600 x 900 x 3mm MDF panel and MDF boxes. When dry, lightly sand each box. Finish panel with 2 coats of orange paint and boxes with 2 coats of white.
Step 11 Lay boxes on panel, spacing them according to what you plan to store in them. Make sure they will not interfere with anything on your desktop. Then mark in a grid for box positions using low-tack masking tape.
Step 12 Remove boxes, then attach each one to panel using contact adhesive, following manufacturer’s instructions for maximum bond. Remove tape.
Step 13 Once glue has set, use mounting tape to hold organiser panel in place on inside of wardrobe door. Fix panel in place as for whiteboard and corkboard (see Step 9).
