New Desk Setup

This week marks the first full month of living at my new place! There are still boxes strewn about the condo, full of items we have yet to find a place for - we’re still working on improving certain parts of the condo, so it has been difficult to unpack everything at once. One of the first places I set up after we moved in was my desk - not only is it my work area, but it also doubles as an analogue sanctuary where I recharge. I knew the whole place wouldn’t feel “right” unless this area was settled, so I hopped into the second room and configured it within a week.

One of the most noticeable changes is that I have a bigger desk. Ever since I began working from home in March, I’ve wanted a larger space with ample room for my work monitor, keyboard and mouse on one side and stationery supplies on the other. This new desk (55” Jensen desk from Scandinavian Designs) provides more than enough space to accommodate my needs.

It’s a little funny because now that I have a larger desk, I have to get out of my chair to reach my journals that are placed way back on the right side of the desk. I’m still getting used to it, but overall I love the extra space so that I can leave the Jibun Techo Biz planner fully open and visible while I work. It’s much easier to check off tasks when they’re finished and to write additional to-dos as they come up throughout the week.

I have multiple journals and covers that come in and out of use, so placing my most frequently used ones in a small tabletop tote has been a really great way to look at them all at once. The turquoise canvas bag is the ateliers PENELOPE square tote that I bought from Baum-kuchen more than two years ago.

Along with my journals that I’m using at the moment, washi tapes and stamps have also been relocated to the right side. I used to have everything on the left side of my desk against the wall at my old place, so I’m still adjusting to this new orientation. I got the bottom wooden drawer from Muji a long time ago, and the top box where I store my stamps is from Target - I purchased it on a whim for an affordable price years ago and have been using it ever since. As you can see in the picture, I use the extra space on top of the Muji wooden drawer to keep more stamps and stamp sets (numbers, alphabets, and the like) together.

Moving further along on the same side, I put my pens and pencils near the right edge of my desk. This way, all of my writing utensils are easy to reach (without me having to get up and out of the chair, like when I need to grab a different journal). I also keep some other tools in these pen/pencil holders like a pair of small scissors, a ruler, a bone folder, etc. The green canvas pouch is the ateliers PENELOPE cube from Baum-kuchen and the other cup is from Studio Arhoj.

I keep the rest of my stationery supplies in the well-known Raskog cart from IKEA. I used to have a white version of this same cart, which I chose to repurpose in the kitchen for condiments and dry food. I wanted the cart to match the desk’s legs, and so I ordered a new one. The setup of this cart hasn’t changed very much: I store scrap papers, watercolors and stamp ink pads on top, letter writing supplies and some tech gear in the middle, then unused/new supplies and a few fabric totes on the bottom. I’ve seen countless other stationery enthusiasts using this same cart in all sorts of different ways and it’s so fun to see how everyone is using theirs!

My personal goal is to keep the amount of supplies I have restricted to this one cart, and one day to use all of the unused supplies I have at the bottom. I have a tendency to save certain notebooks and stickers because “I’ll use them later for something nice/important” - the reality is, they get stored away and never see the light of day. It’s on my list to change that - these beautiful stationery goods exist to be loved and used, after all!

At a glance, this is what my setup looks like on the desk. I didn’t take any pictures of the left side because everything there is for work (monitor, laptop on a stand, keyboard and mouse), but I hope this post was a fun read! This condo is my first permanent address as an adult, so I hope to make many memories here and use this space to journal about it all. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below and I’d be more than happy to respond.

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