It seems that I’ll be working from home for the foreseeable future, and even when I do go back to the office I think it will only be for a couple of days a week with the rest of the time working from home. So, with that in mind, I decided to put some of my last three week stretch of furlough to good use and I made my home office/spare bedroom more functional and comfortable.
Unfortunately I was so eager to get going that I completely neglected to take before photos so I’ll have to describe it instead. My desk was in the alcove to the right of the chimney breast so essentially I was staring at the wall all day. The end of the bed was immediately behind me so I couldn’t properly turn in my chair. There were heavy curtains that blocked out the little light that makes it past next door’s forest and it had grotty carpet that was here when we moved in. Oh, and it wasn’t Harry Potter themed!
It is now!!!
I decided I wanted laminate on the floor, and I’d already decided that I was going with a Harry Potter theme (as you can see from the wall art), so I chose laminate that looks like a stone floor to emulate Hogwarts Castle.
We had to take up the dingy old carpet and underlay and then clean the floorboards underneath and then operation laminate commenced.
We’d never laid laminate before, but it’s pretty easy. The hardest part is measuring it properly and going round awkward pipes and edges.
Once the floor was down we got all the furniture back in and rearranged so that I was no longer shoved in a corner with no space.
I’d already painted the Free Dobby mural on the chimney breast. I had to do this freehand – there’s woodchip on the walls so stencils or stickers are a no go.
For once I don’t mind that we have woodchip because it fits in quite well with the old and shabby nature of Harry Potter.
Now came the fun bit – accessorising!
I upcycled a box table that I’ve had for close to twenty years which had seen better days.
I gave the bottom two coats of red and used gold paint around the edge of the lid. These are Gryffindor colours, the house that Harry, Ron and Hermione belong to at Hogwarts. I then drew the HP on the side and painted it gold, and finally I stuck Marauders map wallpaper on the top and added a sheet of Perspex on the top.
I also added Harry Potter wallpaper to the existing bin, an empty and thoroughly cleaned tin of chickpeas and a shelf.
Next I Potterised a cheap paper light shade.
I cut golden snitches out of gold card and attached them and I made wings for some keys and hung them from the bottom. The golden snitch is one of the balls that are used in the game of Quidditch and the flying key appear in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
I found stickers on Amazon for the light switch.
These are the spells to illuminate the end of your wand to see by, and then extinguish it.
I got rid of the heavy curtains and added a plain white blind instead, and I stuck the crests of each house, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin, along it.
I decided to create some more wall art.
Again, freehand because of the woodchip. These are the Quidditch goals and the golden snitch.
I continued with the creativity and pimped up the litter tray area.
I found this amazing piece of wood in B&Q and made a screen by painting it red (leaving the amazing bark at the top) and drawing on a Harry Potter silhouette. I attached some legs which I’d painted gold.
I made the sign by painting a bit of wood that I picked up from B&Q’s reject bin and adding a sticker that I got from Amazon and a cord that I made from some cotton yarn. We also invested in some bigger litter trays to be doubly sure that little furbabies don’t miss and christen the new flooring! The sign says ‘this way to the Ministry of Magic’ and the significance is that in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, witches and wizards gain entry to the Ministry by standing in a public toilet and flushing themselves down!
On one wall I created a portrait gallery.
These pictures don’t talk to you like the ones at Hogwarts, but it’s a good way to showcase all our photos from the Harry Potter studios in Watford and from the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando.
You’ll also spy Crookshanks, Hermione’s pet cat just disappearing off the edge of the photo, and in the corner is Marilla the mermaid which was the project in my last Little Box of Crochet. Perfectly timed! She’s joined all the other magical creatures.
On the final wall I was umming and ahing about possibly maybe painting a dragon across the whole wall. The silhouette wall art is one thing, but a realistic dragon (because clearly they exist!) in colour is quite another prospect. Whilst I was still pondering, I came across some cross stitches and a long stitch piece that I did in 2000 and had never got round to framing, and they’re perfect for the theme. I quickly found a framer, and yesterday I picked them up.
I LOVE them!
There you have it. A very productive furlough and it’s so much more pleasant ‘going’ to work now I have a magical room! I’ve got a few ideas of little improvements to make, but it’s pretty much finished. On to the rest of the house now then!
Green Girl Gardener 