The place where we think, where we write, whether it’s a short Facebook post, or a long dissertation for uni, is a reflection of who we are. Whether we write with pen and paper (maybe a fountain pen?), or in the newest, trendiest laptop in the market; we give our workspaces that bit of our personality.

A few weeks ago, I bumped into WeWork, a co-working company that has office spaces for rent, and was prompted to write about my own workspace. I’ve been going on about it in my head because on one hand, I wasn’t sure I wanted to talk about it, as it might be over sharing a bit, since I write mostly in my room; while on the other, I thought it could be a cool way of sharing more about myself. After some consideration I thought why not?

I’ve already mentioned my flat isn’t the biggest of them all. I used to live in a bigger flat (and that had a great kitchen), but I moved out for a more affordable one about a year ago (a bit longer, as I moved out in summer). At the moment, I live with my brother in a two bedroom flat in South East London. It’s usually alright, except when you do stuff that requires space, like cooking or baking, or taking photos of things, or when you just need to stretch your legs.

My room would be OK-ish, but I have a big desk that I love and I don’t want to part with. I’ve considered selling it and getting maybe a smaller desk, if any at all, but decided against it. I love my desk, so I’m keeping it. It comes in handy when doing big stuff, like sewing or working with A3 sized paper and card stock.

If I could, I would love to have a room specifically for writing and blogging (and by blogging I mean crafts, sewing, and taking photos of what I make), like an office, but unfortunately I can’t at the moment.

This is my desk. I bought it from IKEA (I think) about five years ago (I think). The calendar was up to date when I took the photos (so, last weekend), although I don’t tend to keep it updated every single day, I’m afraid.

My work space is shared with my make up. I tend to put my make up on by looking into the mirror behind the desk, so it makes sense to have everything there.

You’ve probably noticed the empty frame. It’s not the only one in my flat. I love frames, but I don’t care that much about putting a picture in them… Am I weird? You can also see my diary, which I use daily, mainly because I don’t like mobile phone calendars; and a printed monthly calendar, which I use for planning the topics I want to write about. Plus books.

Lots of books. On this corner, I have my laptop, and the printer, which I still haven’t managed to sync with the MacBook, so I’m not using at the moment. There are always comics hanging around, and you can see a mini TARDIS my brother gave me as a present. It has a little light that lights up, like a real TARDIS! (Yes, I said real TARDIS!)

Behind the laptop, you can see books on Photoshop, Premiere, JavaScript, WordPress, and different graphic design books, as well as many notebooks.

Behind my desk, I have a chest of drawers that I bought ages ago and started customising, but never finished it. Why?, you might be wondering… Well, I don’t know how to decorate the last drawer! The top one has a map of Paris, the middle one is painted with chalk paint… Initially I thought about some fluffy fabric, to have a third texture, but then realised that it would just gather dust. Maybe a quilted one, so that I can use it to pin things to it? I have no clue what to do with it, any ideas?

The mess that you can sort of see on the right is actually storage space I have between the wardrobe and the wall. The white wooden box at the bottom is an old dirty clothes basket, which I’ve never really used for that purpose and instead has fabric and stuffing and yarn in it. On top, in blue, my sewing box, and on top of that, some wooden block, a saw, a small bag with markers, and a bundle of clothes I either need to fix, throw away, or cut up for stuffing.

Inside the drawers, are my craft supplies: glue gun, fabric, yarn, stickers, paints, I don’t know, whatever. On top of it, I have some sewing books and magazines, and some different knickknacks. The little sewing kit on top of the stacked books is one I made out of a marmalade jar! That chalkboard clipper is from an event at work in which one of the departments had to make things and then “sell” them (we had fake Monopoly-style money) to the rest of the company, like in The Apprentice. There was food and crafts, and they set up a market. It was a lot of fun, like a bake off, only pretending to buy. I got that chalkboard and the ginger beer. The brushes are in a jar covered by one of my first crocheted pieces. Still holding up!

This part doesn’t really belong to my work space, but more to the whole area and atmosphere of my room. As you can see, I’m not a minimalist person, and more like a collector (hoarder? Nah, that’s an ugly word). I like many of the items on this picture. The different perfume bottles, the Bastet figure (an Egyptian goddess), the mask I wore when I dressed up as a super heroine for a fun run, the French-looking wall clock, the Alice In Wonderland print of the White Rabbit… And more books. The item that I hold dearest is the smoking pipe in front of the clock, on the books. It comes with a leather pouch where you can put your tobacco. Now, I don’t smoke (not anymore, anyway) but this pipe belonged to my granddad, so it’s a great memento.

Come to think of it, except because of the lack of space, I actually like my work space. However, if I had the resources, I would probably change it a bit.

I’ve seen different work spaces being rented, like well, WeWork, mentioned above. They have office locations in a lot of countries. Now, that could be awesome, if you have the ability to travel (and you can afford renting extra space… but hey, cool is not cheap, right?), as you would be able to work from different places. Also, there might or might not be beer available in some locations!

A while ago I saw Workspace signs from my train commute. When I checked them online, they basically rent studios. These are good if you’re looking to rent a place with access to machinery (like wood cutting, for example) for your work. They also have offices, but I’m interested more in the craft and DIY facilities, and WeWork seems trendier from the pictures I’ve seen, more in line with my style!

Those two are great ideas, and great spaces, but they require a bit of investment. I think for now, given that my blog is just a hobby, I’m happy with my big desk in my small flat. Maybe one day I’ll get to have a big flat and have a studio like this and this.

To be honest, I would be happy with just a small room, with a big bookcase where I can store books and crafts (and space for my desk!).

Do you have a work space? Is it at home, or do you rent office space somewhere else?