I’m used to working from home (my studio is in my backyard) but I know that most of us are not.

I wanted to share my workspace with you, in case you haven’t seen it. I’ve got two parts to my studio. The side with the checkered floors is where the upholstery and styling take place. I bring in color with the fabrics that I hang on the wall. These colors inspire my design process.

The other side of my studio is where I strip chairs and paint them. Many of my fabrics are housed in the filing cabinets, garage can, bins, and armoire. I can’t help but feel inspired here. And that feeling helps me to be productive in my work.

Your workspace might look different than mine, but there are things you can do to make your space inspiring too. Right now, many of us have carved up spaces within closets, living rooms, bedrooms, dining rooms, and kitchens. We are making due with what we have. The truth is, we don’t know exactly how long this is going to last. So, why not add some style to our new workspaces to encourage inspiration and productivity? Here’s some tangible things we can do right away.

First, research tells us that to be productive in our work, bring in some color to our workspace. Different colors have an effect on our productivity. For example, green and blue help us generate new ideas. For highly detailed tasks, surround yourself with red. It gets the blood pumping and energizes us. Need to innovate? Add yellow to the room.

Happy colors including orange, pink, red, and yellow lifts our moods. You can bring these colors in the decor or in a cute chair, artwork, a rug, or other decor.

Bring in flowers and plants to manage your stress. Just a simple jar with some wildflowers from outside can make the biggest difference and lower our stress levels as we work.

I’m a big fan of using mason jars and I’ll often wrap a ribbon around the jar just for some added detail.

Research also tells us that round furniture produces positive emotions and helps us be more creative and productive. So don’t feel that your desk must be a rectangular table. Look around your home for a round table, curvy chair, or other round shapes to bring into your workspace and get those creative juices flowing.

By bringing in color, plants, and curves we can make the most of our workspaces right now and boost our productivity. Think about shopping your own house to bring some style to your space. I’m doing this a lot! I like to switch things up so I can feel inspired and more creative. How about you? Does this inspire you to take a new look at where you’re working? I would love to know!