> it’s simply not good to have
> one’s back always facing the door.

This makes no sense at all to me. The computer desk should be placed where the room’s windows make the least glare on the monitors.

Alan

Chris, heard/seen anything about these desks before? http://www.powerdesk.com/

I had much the same problem about a year ago. Unable to find a store bought desk I liked, I decided to contact a Kitchen remodeling company. Working with them, we were able to design a nice, built-in piece of furniture with laminate top in an unused corner of the living room. The space was a smallish area between our fireplace and living room wall. Too small for a loveseat or oversized chair, but perfect for a desk. End result? For about $750.00 we were able to get this beautiful, custom desk that met all requirements (ball bearing slides on drawers, ability to hide my PC tower, drawer handles that match the room decor, white pedestals to match the baseboard trim of the room and laminate top that matched the hardwood floor color of the room). It has become one of my favorite parts of the house and is a “one of a kind” piece. It is now a part of the house rather than an object in the house. Highly recommended solution!

If the new home office has no windows or if the walls are paneled or are in dark colors, you might not want to have dark walnut furniture, unless you want the office to look like a dungeon. Give it some deep thought before you get everything dark. Our house has real mahogany paneling in every room, which makes it look very dark most of the time. We have used light-colored artwork and colorful Navajo-type rug hangings to brighten things up. My home office has everything built-in and has glass floor-to-ceiling doors on one wall which open onto our patio. We use a light colored adjustable-panel shade to keep sun “in” or “out” depending on day and weather. The walls are mahogany and the “desk” space, which is acutally a counter for computer & peripherals, is off-white. You might want furniture that is in a medium-color wood that would harmonize with the rest of the office. Your personal “decorator” seems to have good color sense, so she probably can give you some good advice, but if you spend many hours in your office and she does not, you want to make sure that it’s comfortable for you. Also, make sure that you get appropriate lighting. You may find that the right kind of lighting makes all the difference in having a office that is perfect for you.

For good quality, big selection, mix-n-match, but assemble it youself at a fair price look at http://www.sauder.com/

I’ve had great use from a office configuration that I purchased from Form-In-Teak, an importer of Scandinavian veneered furniture. I put together a set with a corner, a large desk and a large 4 drawer file. There’s enough room for my triple monitor setup and the computer and all the peripherals on the top of the desk corner desk. I chose a cherry veneer as the finish and I’m very happy with the look. It’s not nearly as dark as walnut.

As for your back to the door, I suppose it’s about being accessible to the other people in the house. Back to the door says: stay away. Try to be at least sideways to it.

As for windows, who needs them? They just let in light and glare. I have shades or blinds over mine to control the outside light. But I did add a large halogen (450W) conference fixture that hangs a four feet over the desk. That gives me great light when I need to read paper.

Regards,
Andy

A friend of mine once recommended this company’s products to me:

www.hardwoodfurniture.com

I haven’t tried them yet myself.

Good luck!

If you’re looking for a home computer desk unit I highly recommend Kathy Ireland Home by Martin Furniture http://www.martinfurniture.com/Office_Ent/Office.htm. Good chioces, great product.

Yes. hardwoodfurniture.com is a great place to get a desk with a hutch. They are really well made and extremely configurable. They take up a small footprint and are more vertically oriented, which is great when you live in a city with expensive real estate.

I got one of their JS series desks with all maple wood. It costs more for the maple, but it is a harder wood. I think it was around $900 with the hutch and everything, but they start at around $300.

The thing I like best is that all of the hardware fits together with a socket wrench. Apart from about 4 bolts that are embedded and need a smaller socket wrench, you can use your socket spanner on every other part. This means you can get it built pretty quickly, and it is very sturdy.

These guys are great. I had a few f#%^@’in moments assembling it, but it turned out I didn’t follow the directions as well as I should have. Compared to other furniture, the assembly is easy, and more importantly, sturdy. Nothing is assembled forever, so if you want, you can take the whole thing apart and fit it in a small box. It is probably better to take parts of the frame apart.

The best thing is how configurable these workstations are. They can be adjusted for people of all heights. Also, the work surfaces that slide out and the shelves for equipment are just great design. If you don’t have a lot of room, but have a lot of equipment (this is for my recording equipment, so there is more than a PC), you can’t beat these desks!

My buddy recommended these guys:

http://www.computerdesk.com