WFH 101: How to Revamp Your Space with Houseplants

Working from home has its benefits. You can set your own schedule to some degree, wear whatever you want, and design a space that’s tailored to your style preferences. While you might not be able to give your green thumb a workout in the office, you can definitely do that at home!

Adding a few plants to your workspace can help clear the air — quite literally. Many plants are natural air purifiers, so you’ll breathe easier with some lush foliage in your presence. Inviting a touch of the outside world to your WFH environment can also elevate your spirits. There’s a therapeutic, almost spa-like quality about deep green leaves and colorful flowers. You’ll love the way they transform your home.

But it’s not always enough to simply snap up a few plants and position them around the house. Decorating with houseplants is something of a fine art — maybe not in the Picasso sense, but in a more strategic way that can work in your favor, both emotionally and physically. Here’s how to give your workspace a naturally beautiful makeover.

Choose the Right Plants

There are so many amazing options out there, from the usual hip and trendy suspects you spot on your social media feeds to the tried-and-true classics everyone knows and loves. All of these offer their own unique advantages. The beloved ZZ plant is a modern-era darling, what with its hardy composition and minimal maintenance needs. With its graceful silhouette, it’s one of the most attractive and practical houseplants for anyone to keep — even those who’ve never been particularly garden-savvy in the past.

Another home office favorite is the pothos plant. Bearing bold, heart-shaped leaves with a waxy finish, glossy pothos is both eye-catching and relatively easy to maintain. It handles low-light conditions well and looks just as great perched on a shelf as it does on the corner of your desk. If you prefer something that you can suspend from the ceiling, however, consider the spider plant. This feisty plant features distinctive hanging leaves that seem to swoop over its pot. Talk about a conversation piece!

If you’ve hardly so much as watered a plant in your life but want to bring some of its beauty into your WFH space, stick with one of the simplest — and most attractive — options of all: the humble cactus. It’s one of many succulent plants that’s renowned for its ability to thrive even without much TLC. Since it holds water in its fleshy leaves and stem, it doesn’t need too much attention. All that you really need to do is position it in a spot where it receives ample sunlight so that you replicate its preferred desert environment.

Set up Your Space

Once you’ve got the right plants, it’s time to throw on your interior design hat and get decorating. You might choose to keep things simple, especially if space is limited or you don’t have too many surfaces available to you. In those cases, placing a plant on your desk, in the corner of the room, or on the center of a table works perfectly. Just be sure that there’s sufficient lighting available based on the plant’s needs.

You can also utilize your vertical space in creative ways once plants enter the picture. Look carefully around your work zone. If the walls are a bit bare in spots, consider hanging a plant to bring it to life. Keep it simple — too many hanging plants can overwhelm the space, especially if it’s smaller. If you’ve got more room at your disposal, hanging a couple of plants throughout can instantly transform the tone and character of the room.

Smaller plants don’t need a lot of effort to stand out, but you can use this opportunity to turn your greenery display into a true work of art by nestling them in decorative pots. Think big — this is your chance to show off your style! Choose a rainbow of colors if you want to draw the eye to your plants and add a dose of good cheer to your workspace at the same time. Or indulge your inner artist and get to work creating a few DIY pots in different shapes. Play with vessel shapes, too.

If you’re going to position your plants on the floor, take into account its scale in comparison to the rest of the room. It should serve as a complement to everything else in the space without overwhelming those elements, but it shouldn’t be so discreet that it barely makes any impact on the design. Floor plants are a great alternative to more furniture — they fill gaps and breathe new life into the room at the same time without adding clutter.

You might be particularly inspired by your newfound appreciation for greenery, too. In that case, you may want to make it a more integral part of your working environment by dedicating an entire space to plants of different sizes, shapes, and colors. Select a shelf on the wall, for example, and line it in a slightly haphazard way with different plants. Just remember to stick with sizes that are relatively within the same family so that one doesn’t overwhelm the others.

If wall space or shelving is limited, try a table or rolling cart instead. Don’t be afraid to be a little adventurous by lining both the top and bottom shelves of your table or cart with plants. The effect is earthy and eye-catching, and it’s sure to bring a smile to your face during those inevitable moments of distraction and exhaustion during the workday.

Little Things to Remember

You might be excited about embarking on your plant-decorating mission, and who can blame you? It’s fun to introduce powerful new elements to important rooms where you spend considerable time. Just keep in mind a few significant factors that may impact the health, vitality, and appearance of your plants.

At the top of your list should be the lighting situation. In a dim room without much natural light, you’ll need to steer clear of light-loving plants and opt for those that are more tolerant of darker conditions. Fortunately, there are quite a few, like English ivy and peace lilies, that perform just fine without being drenched in the sunshine

Finally, consider how much time and commitment you can give to your houseplants. As a key part of your workspace, they help brighten up the room and energize your spirits. If they start to wilt or lose their luster, however, they’ll have the opposite effect. Low-maintenance plants are an excellent option if you’re short on time! With the right plants and a clever design plan in mind, you’ll find that your houseplants make WFH life so much more enjoyable.