Keep your office space timeless and sophisticated with some classic design elements that won’t date your environment from the get go.
Here’s one piece of actionable advice: don’t be trendy for the sake of it. As office design experts, we know that redesigning a functional office space can be both taxing and expensive – especially if done frequently and for little reason other than keeping up with the Joneses.
Fashionably adopting the look of the season, whether that’s marble accents, chrome edges or touches of neon, is far more challenging in rigid workplace design than it is in clothing and accessories – especially because what was “so in” in 2005 could be terribly outdated by 2010 – let alone 2017!
Workplaces need a bit of longevity built into their look and feel to prevent the need for expensive changes that disrupt the productivity of your employees.
Luckily, there are some timeless designs that you can incorporate into your office now that will make your office space relevant for ten years or more. Plus, planning ahead and making sure you incorporate timeless elements into your office space can save you the stress of a full redesign when you do want to make a change.
We’ve put together an infographic of the top four timeless design elements that you can incorporate into your office space now.
Click here to download this infographic
1. Clever lighting
If you’re starting from scratch and can renovate your space fully, adding more windows and allowing for more natural light is a must. Natural light gives an office space a timeless look, and allows you to save on electricity and allows office bound people to interact with nature. This design will also stand the test of time as you’ll always be able to take advantage of the lighting no matter what designs you add to the space.
In addition to adding natural light, the right amount and type of (relevant) artificial lighting will keep the space relevant and your staff productive. Optimal lighting design does require specialist advice, but we recommend you try adding more LED lights to the environment and combining it with the natural light you do have to create balance and make the lighting better.
2. A neutral base
Over the years colour has become the in thing in the design space and we always recommend designing with your company CI in mind. But if you’re looking to create a neutral space that can be versatile, the classic colours like, black and white, dark and light greys, or cream and taupe, will never age.
It’s a colour palette that gives you room to play using other elements in the room, while still keeping a classic look. It’s easy to update your look and feel than it is to redesign an entire place, and a neutral palette gives you the freedom to do exactly that. Balance in a space is a key pillar of interior design and the simplicity of these shades are all incredibly flexible, easy on the eye, and have longevity.
3. Natural timber furniture
A classic addition to any space, much like jeans, wood furniture will never go out of date. But beware of the colour you choose, like any colour trend this can go out of date. 10 years ago, dark mahogany was the in thing, while drift wood tones are in now.
The best is to work with natural timber colours as much as possible. The closer you can get to nature, the less likely to date, or at least the faster it comes back into trend again. Wood furniture is also durable so with a little maintenance it will still look as great as the day you bought it in 10 years time.
4. Artwork
The great thing about art is it can be moved easily. So if you have a space that you’re unable to customise, it’s a timeless element that you can use to add some colour and style to any space. Artwork can also inspire creativity, reduce stress, and help people to be more productive so it’s an element that has multiple benefits. Art never dates so you can keep the same piece for years without it going out of style.
Now that you have an idea of some of the timeless design elements you can use in your office space, take a look at our space calculator to find out how much space you need.
