Home Office Product Roundup

It's not entirely easy when your children (finally!) move out … but the home office you can create from that newly empty bedroom can definitely help make things a bit better. Start your desktop decorating project now with these smart picks for accessorizing your wonderfully kid-free workspace.

Stray paperclips, keys, pencils, letter openers, and all the other odds and ends of daily office life can find a home together in Kaleido's collection of powder-coated steel plates. Available in a kaleidoscope of colors and in various sizes, they stack for easy storage or spread out for use around your workspace.

To buy: The Future Perfect, $18

With no kiddos rifling through thousands of drawers looking for scissors to “borrow” (i.e., “use and lose”), you can finally score a pair that you can call your own. Give this sharp-looking find a place of honor in your office—just make sure your spouse doesn’t come calling once there’s packages to open or shirt tags to cut.

To buy: Alice Supply Co., $32

Timeless pint-size Mason jars painted in quiet blues and a pop of metallic are a fresh take on humdrum pen and pencil holders. Best of all, they can work double duty: Use one as a vase for a bouquet of flowers and add a quick burst of much-needed color during working hours.

To buy: Beach Blues, $15 for 3 jars

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Stick it to standard-issue black or beige models and instead opt for a design that adds more than just utility to your space. This bold and bright tape dispenser with a weighted base comes in an astounding nine color options, so you’re sure to figure out the hue that suits you.

To buy: Poppin, $12

With the procurement of an iPad (and, in some cases, a Kindle, too), you’re certainly using less paper these days. But that doesn’t meant you can’t decorate with a classic desk accoutrement: the paperweight. Yoran Morvant's one-of-a-kind Pierres Graphiques stone with its hand-drafted pattern easily fits the bill—and even looks good standing sans paper as an art piece.

To buy: Ashes & Milk, $100

Keep it together with the vintage Ace design that knows a thing or two about looking smart in the office. Durable with its all-steel construction and gleaming chrome finish, the clean-cut stapler has been the shining star of many a workspace since it was originally introduced in the 1930s.

To buy: Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co., $32

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OK, so not every day is a picnic now that your kids have left the nest (for you and for them). But you always taught them that it’s the little things that keep you going, right? Send them cheery thoughts via mail (and take the occasional note) using this chipper, mood-enhancing notepad.

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Leave no hint of handwritten mistakes behind with an eraser pack created by a Czech Republic-based brand, Koh-i-Noor, that’s been making art and office supplies for over two centuries. Crafted in a range of candy-colored shapes and sizes, they’re always useful and cute enough to keep on display.

To buy: Madewell, $14

Available in of-the-moment graphic shapes, Waka Waka's no-frills plywood bookends might just be the piece your style-conscious daughter tries to snag when she’s back for a visit. But you must resist: Their simple form and whimsical, mismatched nature make them classics to keep.

To buy: Sight Unseen, $160

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One of the quickest (and most affordable) ways to decorate to your workspace? Download a free desktop wallpaper for your computer’s background. There are loads to discover online, but one site consistently offers cool options: The Desktop Wallpaper Project. Check back every Wednesday for new picks, compliments of some of the best artists around.

To buy: The Fox Is Black, free