Home offices are notorious dumping grounds for furniture that doesn’t fit anywhere else (either style-wise or physically). It’s no fun moving around offices crammed with huge desks or space-hogging cabinets. Sound familiar? Fear not. The right furniture – combined with a little creativity (and the right tips) – can help you make the most of your home office space.

Modular furniture makes it easy to change your office layout (photo courtesy of Hooker furniture)

• Modular furniture – like the grouping on the right from Hooker Furniture – is easy to move around and lets you change your office as your needs change. I liked my old home, but I wouldn’t use built-ins again. Modular furniture would have allowed me to change my office on a whim. Flexible is better. Built-ins limit your options.

• Sturdy shelves or tall bookcases can make a big difference in a home office. It’s too easy to have stacks of books all over your office if you don’t have a place to store them. Getting books off the ground will open up your office and make it safer to walk around.

• Make one piece of furniture serve more than one purpose. The top of a lateral file cabinet can double as an extra surface for a printer, copier, etc. An antique dresser can look nice – and still be functional.

• Be creative and use two file cabinets with a board across them for an extra surface. This trick used to be reserved for starving college students, but I’ve seen expensive home offices furnished this way using high-quality file cabinets and durable surfaces. Pottery Barn uses this method to create desks and credenzas.