Home Office Ideas

I am heading to NYC this weekend for a mini-getaway with my college roomates, so I won't be working on the house at all.  I do, however, have a date with my dad on Friday to check out base units for our built-in desk/bookshelves.  (When did it happen that I'd rather spend my Friday nights at Home Depot than at the bar?)  I am planning on using unfinished kitchen cabinet bases and cutting off the bottom toe-kick part to get it pretty close to the standard 30" desk height.  Here's an example of someone who did this... I think it turned out great: Home Office Before and After.  The only tricky thing I foresee is the how to do the base unit for the angled part of the wall, but we have a couple of ideas marinating.  For the wood desktop, I am between a stained butcher block counter-top (which is pretty expensive) and just throwing some 2x's together similar to this.  Normally I prefer to go with the cheapest alternative, but now that I'm a "grown-up" I'm trying to remember that sometimes it's better to spend a little extra money for something of better quality that will last longer. 

 

Check out my pinterest board to see some of my ideas for the built-ins and some other items in the room (such as the curtains and rug I just ordered from Crate and Barrel... crossing my fingers that I like them when they arrive!).  

The one thing I wanted to do for the "reading nook" in the corner is re-upholster a wing back chair that currently belongs to my dad.  I have been looking at local re-upholsterers and it seems like it could cost anywhere from $500-$700 to have it done by a professional.  Since I could buy a brand new chair for that amount, I think I might have a go at it myself.  I have been researching DIY re-upholster tutorials online and it seems like it's possible with a little skill and a lot of patience.  Now I just need to make sure my dad is willing to give me the chair :). 

Have you ever tried a somewhat complicated DIY re-upholser?  If so, how did it turn out?  Any tips?