While it provides numerous perks, working from home also comes with a fair set of challenges. Some of these may include boredom, monotony, distractions, and little or no physical interaction with colleagues or peers. This may have a huge impact on your mood, concentration, and creativity, ultimately affecting your productivity. Thankfully, there is a solution to most of these issues… call it coffee if you guessed right!
If you’re a coffee-lover, you have multiple reasons to set up a coffee corner in your home office. One or several good cups of Joe each day can help enhance your productivity while working from home in various ways. It has been shown to help increase energy levels, reduce stress, improve mental focus, enhance memory, and elevate mood. With a coffee corner in your office, you will also save time since you won’t have to pop into the kitchen each time you need a few sips from your favourite drink.
But how do you go about setting up a home office coffee corner? Here’s a handy checklist you could use.
Contents
1. A Good Coffee Maker and Other Equipment
A coffee machine is one of the first things you should think about when creating a coffee bar in your home office. A great coffee maker will help you save time, money, and energy by allowing you to prepare your favourite cup of coffee in a flash. You won’t always have to order coffee or rush to the nearest café anytime you need a K-cup.
Now, there are many different types of coffee machines in the market to choose from. These range from drip coffee makers to manual espresso machines, and bean-to-cup coffee machines, just to name a few. Other coffee-making tools you may need include:
- Coffee grinder
- Mixer
- Milk Frother
- Blender
- Electric kettle
2. Dedicated Space for Your Coffee Bar
Once you gather the coffee-making tools of the trade, the other important thing to do is choose a dedicated space for your coffee corner. While doing so, consider the items you want to place in your coffee corner. You may also need to add shelving that will hold your coffee goods securely.
You can even add lighting overhead to mimic the look of a trendy café. This is where you’ll place things like your coffee grounds, beans, sugar, milk jars, cups, and so forth. If your budget is a bit low, you can consider using cardboard boxes to create your coffee shop in the home office corner.
If you want thorough and reliable guidance, consider hiring a professional from a reputable source. By this, you can secure dependable advice on designing the space for your coffee bar. It will be an expenditure worth making.
3. A Toaster
Do you love taking your coffee with snacks like bread, pizza, or lasagna? If so, a toaster can be a great utility to include in your coffee corner. A pop-up toaster will allow you to make tasty, crispy toasts. Alternatively, you can go for a convection toaster, which helps you bake or cook pizza, meat, and lasagna in addition to toasting bread.
4. Coffee Corner Furniture
When designing your home office coffee corner, you may opt to include a small relaxation area for your coffee breaks. Including comfortable furniture will help you recharge and re-energize before facing the next task. You can include a comfy sofa or a rocking chair alongside a coffee table. Having a creatively designed mini-shelf can be a plus since you’ll have space to stash your coffee ingredients and other items.
If you’re a bit short on your budget, this DIY guide from OBN can help you give a makeover to your coffee table affordably. Of course, the types and sizes of furniture you include will depend on the space you have.
5. Coffee Mugs and Other Paraphernalia
Having set up a sizable coffee bar, there is one more thing you can’t afford to forget. How and where will you be serving your coffee? Of course, you will need one or several coffee mugs depending on your specific needs.
Having 3 or so coffee mugs is advisable, especially if you occasionally receive guests or clients in your home’s workspace. If you prefer having more, you can consider getting a cup organizer or mug rack that will easily fit in your cabinet or coffee bar.
Apart from adding convenience to your daily coffee prep routine, displayed mugs in a rack make your coffee station more elegant and stylish. What’s more mug racks and cup holders come in many different shapes and sizes, including versions that can be hung on the wall
Alongside these, make sure to have the essential utensils nearby, including a few spoons, a bowl, and canisters to store ingredients like cinnamon and biscotti. A few napkins stashed near your coffee corner will come in handy for those times when messes happen.
6. Coffee-Making Ingredients
Depending on how you like your coffee, the essential ingredients will range from coffee beans to grounds, sugar, milk, and water. Whichever you consider your favourite among the popular types of coffee, keeping the basic ingredients nearby will help save time and effort each time you want a warm cup of ‘Jo. Here’s a quick list of the basic coffee-making ingredients you need to keep in your coffee station:
- Coffee beans (preferably fresh)
- Pre-ground coffee (if you don’t have a grinder/coffee machine)
- Milk
- Sugar; if you love it sweet
- Water (mineral or distilled)
7. Personalized Décor
You don’t want your coffee station to look boring, right? To style it a little more and uplift your home office décor, consider introducing something like a flower vase (with flowers) or a small plant nearby. You can also look for wall décor – such as wallpaper with images or patterns related to coffee. When it comes to personalizing your coffee corner with decorations, the options are literally endless.
Endnote
When it comes to workplace productivity, the benefits of coffee are arguably too many to overlook. This is why having a dedicated coffee corner in your home office is essential. When looking to create one, the above few pointers should come in handy.
