HOW MUCH DID MY OFFICE COST?

I debated publishing this post because some people can be weird about cost transparency, but I figured it can’t hurt to be transparent with how much my office really cost. It’s been over a year since I revealed the office of my literal dreams and while I am so grateful that I was able to have some items gifted and other items found secondhand at a major discount, bringing this space to life still wasn’t cheap. 

I also just want to reiterate that I recognize I’m extremely lucky to be in a position where I’m able to partner with brands for gifted product. This didn’t happen overnight and I work hard to make sure my brand partners are happy with the final outcome of our working together. 

My brand and focus is really on achieving a designer look with secondhand finds, but to be completely honest this room was not done on a budget. I think if I had spent more time waiting for secondhand finds instead of having a deadline, the costs would have been lower because I likely would have found more stuff secondhand. This was by far the most high-end room I’ve done so far and the total retail costs reflects that. 

Again, a lot of pieces in this room were purchased secondhand/discounted or gifted, but I’ll be sharing the total retail cost of this room to be as realistic as possible. The total retail cost would be how much you’d *roughly* spend working with a designer to create the same room.

Wallpaper (gifted): My wallpaper installer needed 18 single rolls of Sister Parish Dolly. $181/roll x 18 = $3,258 retail for wallpaper. I paid $1,100 for install

Made Goods Burl Dresser: $4,000 retail. Paid $1,400 + $195 for uShip from the Hamptons

Annie Selke Woven Diamond Rug (gifted): $1,298 retail

Visual Comfort Soleil flush mount: $849 retail (paid $250 secondhand + shipping from San Francisco)

Art for Framebridge frames + framing (gifted): $1,800 retail

Louis XVI Desk: found secondhand for $550 

Mainly Baskets Wicker Urn (gifted): $1,206 retail

Desk chair: $25 secondhand + $125 for fabric for reupholstery

Hwang Bishop marbled lilac Ming lamp (gifted): $1,900 retail

Floor lamp base: $400 retail (paid $200 open box eBay)

Hickory chair: secondhand $150

Lee Jofa Althea fabric for reupholstery: $267×10 yards = $2,670 retail (I paid $1,700. I did receive a very small discount from Kravet, but it was still a big chunk of change out of my pocket)

more about reupholstery costs in this post

Labor for reupholstery: $650

Sister Parish Dolly Flower Fabric for drapes: 11 yards $2,167 retail (I paid only $35/yard secondhand = $350)

Labor for drapes: $550

Carver’s Guild Bow Top Dressing Mirror: $2,670 retail (bought it at auction, paid $360 + $150 uShip delivery)

Antique foot stool: $60 (local pickup) + used leftover Althea fabric to recover

New windows + trim + labor for windows: $1,200

How much my office cost with retail pricing: $26,628

How much I paid out of my own pocket: $9,250

Where I think I could have saved $$$ is finding a corner chair secondhand without spending the money to reupholster in my favorite fabric. Or using a simple green stripe wallpaper that’s less expensive and I could install on my own. Or leaving the windows as they were. That would have saved a few thousand right there. 

If I didn’t have a deadline, I would have definitely waited longer to find more pieces secondhand as well. 

I also want to mention that I know the amount I paid out of my own pocket was a lot for me, but this project spanned over the course of 6 months, so I didn’t pay everything all at once.

I hope this breakdown was helpful!