How to Decorate an Office with No Windows

Brighten up a windowless office with statement wallpaper, lighting, and decor. Follow easy decorating tips to help you get the most of your dark space!

Hello and welcome to our windowless office reveal!! I’ve been participating in the New Year New Room Refresh challenge with 16 other fantastic bloggers for 5 weeks.

I transformed a small square room into a bright and beautiful office, guest room, and den with some blood, and sweat but no tears thank goodness.

How to Decorate an Office with No Windows

*This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience.  You still pay the same price but I might earn a small commission.  The New Year New Room Refresh challenge is generously sponsored by some amazing brands.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’m so so so grateful to our amazing sponsors and wonderful hostess Casa Watkins Living to help make my dream office possible. So without further ado, let’s get to it.

Week one: Windowless Office Decorating Ideas and Mood Board | Week Two: How to Make an Interior Design Board Super Easy | Week Three: Home Office Makeover Paint Update | Week Four: How to Install Cove Moulding the Easy Way | Week Five: Reveal – Decorating Tips for an Office with No Windows

The windowless office when we moved in.

After adding french doors but still dark.

And now!

For any challenging space, it is good to have a game plan. Here is my inspiration board with links to the products I used in the space. You can also see exactly how I came up with a design board and plans here!

Woodland Bird Wallpaper | Green Paint | Green Tassel | Blue and White Curtains | Blue Pillows | Coral Obi Pillows | Marmalade Trim | Pink and Brass Wall Sconces | Zebra Rug | Wood and Brass Pulls |Sun Tunnel | The Hallmark Desk Cabinet Collection | Courtney Transitional Sofa

How to Decorate a Windowless Office

Easy Decorating Tips

Tip 1. Add natural light where you can whether that is hanging mirrors to reflect light from another space or adding a sun tunnel.

The 14 inch Velux sun tunnel I had installed in our windowless office came with a light kit so it doubles as a ceiling light at night. You can read all about the process and see if this is a good option for you!

Tip 2. Bring in a wow factor to a windowless office with beautifully printed wallpaper. I chose the Woodland Birds pattern from Milton & King because I was immediately drawn to the interesting array of birds, colors, and white background.

I was able to install it around the entire room completely by myself. The wallpaper is applied dry so it is easy to adjust and cut around corners and frames. I prepped the room by adding cove ceiling moulding with corner details and green paint below the chair rail.

Tip 3. Add a rug that compliments your wow factor. I did just that by pulling the black and white patterns from wallpaper birds and picking out a zebra rug from Mohawk Home.

They sent a thick rug pad to go underneath the soft area rug and it feels wonderful underneath bare feet. It is also cushy enough to lounge on.

Tip 4. Install or place light fixtures. The back wall of my office is my workspace so I knew I need some task lighting for dark days and evenings.

Sazerac Stitches sent me a pair of their Julia sconces with cord kits so I could hang the lights without having to do any electrical work.

The cords and plugs are vintage styles so I complimented them with vintage amber color bulbs. They cast a warm glow and make the room very cozy. I absolutely love their modern lighting and decor!

Tip 5. Have practical storage. I think the only good thing I could think of about having a windowless office is that there is ample wall space for storage, seating, and decor.

Thanks to Home Depot and their preassemble desk cabinets I was able to build a custom built-in desk on an entire wall with help from a family friend. We even added two extra shelves and a sliding shelf between the cabinets for extra storage.

Check out these gorgeous built in desk ideas for more inspiration.

The cabinets already had classic pretty lines and high-end features like automatic closing but I added even more details with Velvet Finishes’ Alluring paint, Liberty Hardware wood and brass pulls, dental molding, and furniture feet.

I’m so pleased with how the entire desk wall turned out.

In addition to the beautiful built-in desk and cabinets, my friend and I built six floating shelves on a budget to display some of our favorite travel finds and books.

Tip 6: Polish off your space with global-inspired textiles and decor. Since our home is small I wanted our office to serve many purposes.

Its main use will be to run my home business but I also wanted guests to feel comfortable staying here and a family room to enjoy a quiet weekend when the rest of the house is noisy!

I was able to accomplish this in such a small space with a convertible couch from Home Depot and beautiful pillows from Smith Honig. I layered a pair of obi roses coral pillows behind Indian sari inspired velvet suede ones.

I also asked this awesome home decor brand to send some orange tassel fringe and a green tassel my way to add that extra something!! Find out how easy it is to add trim to curtains.

The marmalade tassel fringe is just the right pop of color on soft blue curtains and the green tassel adorns a french door handle. Whenever someone needs privacy in the guest-office-den they can simply close the doors and curtains.

Back to this fun challenge, I have to tell you that the construction didn’t end until 10 pm Sunday night which gave me one day for touch-ups, light installation, decorating, and taking pictures to write this post.

Of course, it started raining when I needed pictures!! I can’t wait to see the finished room in full sunlight. I know it will be stunning. Here are a couple of fabulous details of the space.

My brass armadillo. I do live in Fort Worth!

And a quick recap of what I accomplished in the space in a few short weeks.

1. Install french doors. (ALMOST DONE!!)
2. Have the skylight installed.
3. Sand, repair, and paint walls.
4. Add cove crown molding with corner details.
5. Install wallpaper on all four walls.
6. Install built-in desk cabinets with countertop.
7. Paint built-ins green.
8. Build, paint, and install six floating shelves.
9. Hang light fixtures.
10. Add sofa bed and pillows.
11. Add trim to curtain panels.
12. Hang curtain rod and curtains.
13. Add in office items and decorating accessories.

I can’t wait to see the rest of the participants’ reveals!! But first here are our amazing official sponsors.

And now on to these fantastic spaces!

Casa Watkins Living // The Boho Abode // Delineate Your Dwelling // Haneen’s Haven // The Happy Housie // Homemade by Carmona // House by Hoff // Jeweled Interiors // Kaleidoscope Living // Our Fifth House // PMQ for Two // Rain on a Tin Roof // Southern State of Mind // Taryn Whiteaker // This is Our Bliss // Thou Swell // Up To Date Interiors