Affordable Prefab Home Office Is Made to Fit in Tight Spaces

After a long, long year of lockdowns, school closures, and other big disruptions, many people are now preparing to transition back to "normal" life—well, at least as "normal" can be after a global pandemic. With an end to the crisis in sight, many employees who had been working remotely from home are being gradually called back to the office.

Perhaps not surprisingly, it appears that many office workers want to remain working from home—or at least have some kind of hybrid arrangement where they can alternate between both working from home and coming in person to the office. There are a number of reasons for this hesitancy to return: concerns about the vaccination status of coworkers, difficulty finding childcare, as well as having to endure the dreaded commute once again. The looming stress of being office-bound once more is actually prompting some people to consider quitting their jobs instead.

But what if employers met employees halfway with some kind of hybrid arrangement where they can alternate between both working from home, and coming in person to the office? Or even just do away with the office altogether, perhaps by replacing it with something that employees can use as a backyard office?

At least, that's the idea behind My Room In The Garden, an affordable prefab home office created by London-based design studio Boano Prišmontas. Constructed out of digitally prefabricated and sustainably certified wooden elements, the unit features a modular design that is made to fit easily in small spaces.

As the designers explain:

"London houses are perfect to host home office pods in backyard gardens, courtyards, gated communities, rooftops, shared amenity spaces, and pocket parks. Starting from £5,000 (USD $7,055) for the basic module, 'My Room in the Garden' is a solution for both private home-owners and for companies that could reduce their rent cost for big offices in central London by purchasing instead home office pods for their employees."

Sporting rounded corners and a 6-foot by 7.8-foot footprint (50 square feet) for the smallest module, the pods measure only 8 feet tall, the allowable maximum height that does not require a permit.

Foremost in the designers' minds was comfort and customizability. The unit is not a one-size-fits-all solution that's bought off the shelf from a hardware store. Rather, it's a customizable system where the components have been designed to be small and light enough that they can be carried through the house and yard.

According to the architects, the unit's exterior is protected with clear, corrugated polycarbonate cladding, which allows natural light to enter.

The interior is kitted out with walls and furnishings made with high-quality birch plywood, which lends an atmosphere that feels warm and natural to work in.

At one end of the pod is a full-height pegboard wall, which users can modify and recompose with pegs in order to set up their own tailored layouts for desks and shelving.

Other optional finishes include mirrored panels, which can help to provide privacy, and efficiently reflect natural light around the interior.

Besides portability and adaptability, ease of assembly was also top of mind, as the creators explain to Dezeen:

"The design is based on the sizes of corridors and winded narrow staircases of Victorian houses. We made a decision to limit the size of the pieces that need to be brought onto the site, so they can be delivered to the smallest of gardens that don't even have street access.

The assembly of the modules can be done with just an Allen key or a power drill. We like to say that our designs are easier to assemble than IKEA furniture because the construction is very intuitive and clear. Manuals are available but not necessary."

With many office workers wanting to normalize telework in the long term, and companies now wanting to cut costs on renting office space, such small-scale modular solutions may be the answer. It seems that the future of the office as we once knew it may change forever—and potentially for the better.

To see more, visit Boano Prišmontas.