The Set-up:
Before you can tackle all those papers piled up around your house, you need a functional desk that has space for your files. This system depends on being able to quickly sort and file papers into a few broad categories.
The Basics:
You can use hanging files, normal files or both. If your desk does not have a filing drawer, consider a pretty filing box you can leave out within arm's reach.
The Details:
You can find really nice looking desks these days or you can build one that exactly meets your needs like I did. These filing cabinets are from Office Max, and the board for the desktop can be found at Lowe's or Home Depot. It was cut to fit perfectly between two bookcases we already had. There is a metal brace underneath the desktop between the cabinets for extra support. The whole thing is bolted to the wall with L brackets to keep it from tipping. Finally, I hung a café curtain underneath to hide all the wires and power strips. There is room for both my computer and the kids' computer.
There is a floating desk in front of this with two more chairs. It is just a smaller desk with a larger piece of wood attached to the top. I cut 2" off of the legs before putting it together to get the height we wanted. This is where the kids do their homework. Plus, it gives me extra space to spread out and work.
Alternative desk ideas:
My friend took a small 8' by 8' room off her master bedroom and turned it into her personal office. She lined one wall with a hanging adjustable bracket system, and put one extra deep shelf in to use as the computer desk. She also added filing cabinets for more storage: Ikea's Antonius system is a good choice for going this route.
