Background context (you can skip this and go straight to problem solving but if you have questions they may be answered here)
– We purchased my fiancés family home when his father passed and I inherited his late mother’s home office (truly her battlestation). She got this desk made custom for her height which happens to be just 1 inch shorter than my height. We’re keeping the desk for the foreseeable future because 1. It’s MASSIVE 2. We are trying to be frugal and make the most of the furniture we inherited (we know that this is a privilege and a gift and don’t want to waste it) 3. It is incredibly rare to find a desk made for my height, let alone one made of real wood! The aesthetic is more traditional but I have everything I need and I’m a media student that enjoys the look of old tech and real quality materials anyway. It has several storage options designed for old tech and also has a functional power bank thingy.
The problem:
Obviously this desk was made for y2k era tech so the functionality isn’t great for a modern set up. I have OCD and a dysfunctional workspace is really distracting for me, but I also think I can make use of most of the features of the desk with some creativity. I’m planning on drilling some strategic holes for better cord management in the future but want to wait until I have it set up better so I know where to drill.
The biggest issue is the giant angled back area that’s meant for an old computer monitor. It’s such a huge space yet setting up my monitor and laptop is never quite right there. Ideally I want to use this side of the desk for my tech partially because there’s already a keyboard tray installed (other reasons too) but when I put the monitor further back with the keyboard tray out it’s miles away from me. Also, the keyboard tray isn’t at the best height for me anyway and I’d like to swap it out.
Lastly and most annoyingly, if you look at the space under this part of the desk and the angle of the keyboard tray / desk front it’s not at the same angle as the large angled space and makes it super awkward to sit and type with the screen centered in front of me. It’s honestly wildly annoying and may be the worst issue for me.
What I’m thinking?
I feel like using some kind of monitor arm and stand for my laptop that are mounted to the back of the desk top could potentially work if the stands offer decent flexibility. I used to have a keyboard tray at work that came out and up and could be angled that may work here too. I’m wondering if anyone has thoughts about this or recommendations for specific trays and mounts, or lessons learned when trying to use them? Any other thoughts on using this well with modern tech?
Posted by Girlnextstate
1 Comment
That desk is nostalgic af