Workstations at home are becoming more and more important, especially as work-from-home and hybrid models emerge. But urban homes are also more compact, so one may not always be able to assign a designated area for their workstations, let alone an entire home office room or study room.
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However, in compact urban homes, every corner can offer multiple purposes, creating functional workspace corners without clutter.
All you need are a few smart changes to create a setup that feels more organised, comfortable and suited to your daily routine.
To understand how urban homes can accommodate smarter work-from-home setups, HT Lifestyle reached out to Shailly Mandiwal, Country Home Furnishing Direction Leader at IKEA India. She described that a workstation should be flexible enough to adapt to everyday routine. “The idea is to make homes a little more flexible, a little more playful, and easier to work from- without losing their warmth.”
In smaller homes, a work set-up has to fit into spaces that, in a way, already serve several purposes throughout the day. According to Mandiwal, a few small changes can help create a space that feels organised and suitable for everyday work. The challenge is to create a corner that supports focus and comfort without making the room feel crowded or overly office-like. What you need is an adaptable set of solutions that help to blend the workspace in your home.
“WFH is very common these days. The idea is simple: make homes a little more flexible, a little more playful, and easier to work from- without losing their warmth. A few thoughtful additions can help every corner do more, in its own easy way.”
Here are some of the tips from Shailly Mandiwal of IKEA India on how to create a smarter, more flexible and organised work-from-home setup in compact urban homes.
1. Double-duty furniture
- Use the dining table as a workstation when there is no space for a separate desk.
- Turn a comfortable sofa into a spot for quick calls and catch-ups between meetings.
- Add foldable tables, a bed tray like IKEA KLIPSK, cushions, or laptop stands to improve comfort.
- Choose pieces that can be moved or stored easily when the workday ends.
- Make the furniture you own serve more than one purpose.
2. A workstation that can move with you
- Keep frequently used work essentials like chargers, notebooks, headphones and stationery in a trolley basket or portable organiser.
- Store everything together so you do not have to pack and unpack these work items.
- A portable workstation helps prevent documents and accessories from spreading across different parts of the home.
3. Use your walls
- Walls can do more than just hold up calendars and family photos- they can actually get to work.
- With a few simple additions like hooks, pegboards, floating shelves, or wall organisers, your everyday essentials stay within easy reach, while your tables are freed up for everything else life throws at them- from lunch plates to half-finished hobby projects.
- It’s an easy way to bring more order into your space, without adding more furniture.
4. Pay attention to light and greenery
- Place the workstations near a window to make the most of natural light during the day.
- Add task lighting, such as a desk lamp, if the corner does not receive enough sunlight.
- Introduce low-maintenance indoor plants, such as money plants or snake plants, near the desk or window.
- Greenery can make the work corner fresher, brighter and less clinical.
- Keep the setup simple so that plants and lighting improve the atmosphere, but without unnecessary clutter.
5. Create little calm corners for kids
- Working from home often means switching between meetings and snack breaks, homework help, and just one more question.
- A dedicated kids’ corner can make those shifts a little easier for everyone. Set aside a small, clearly defined area where children can read, draw, solve puzzles or work on crafts.
- May help parents manage meetings and work tasks with fewer interruptions.
6. Set up a presentable video-call background
- Choose a clean and uncluttered area of the room as a video-call background.
- Simple additions like framed photos, a memo board, a notice board, or a neatly arranged shelf can add warmth and personality to the space.
- Keep distracting objects visible, wires visible and piles of documents out of the camera frame.