Sophisticated Office Spaces

Sunny Yellow Home Office

Designer Julie Kays created this cheerful space for the Pasadena Showcase House of Design with the aim of counterbalancing the original room’s dark wood trim. Soft yellow walls, painted trees and birds that adorn the perimeter of the ceiling, and a hand-blocked statement fabric combine to create a space where work mixes with pleasure.

The sunny hue was used to reflect the light rather than absorb it, explains the designer. Gray was folded into the color scheme to temper the vibrant yellow palette. Atop a yellow-and-cream Mahal rug covering dark wood floors, Kays repurposed a Chinese library table into a desk. The shapely silhouette of the black-painted desk pops against the luminous window behind; pale gray linen dresses the hostess chair at the desk.