At Cimmermann, we believe that great design begins with the space in which it is created. A thoughtfully designed home office or studio is more than a functional workspace it is an environment that supports focus, creativity and well-being. The position of a desk, the way natural light moves through a room, and the balance between storage and openness all quietly shape how ideas form and evolve.

In our Home office buying guide, we explore how considered choices in office furniture from ergonomic seating and well proportioned desks to intelligent storage and lighting can transform a workspace into something both practical and inspiring. These same principles are evident in the home offices and studios of the designers whose work we curate: spaces designed with intention, where form and function work together to support daily creative practice.

Below, we look inside some of these environments to understand how designers use their workspaces as a source of inspiration. From calm, minimal studios that encourage concentration to characterful home offices shaped by landscape, objects and personal rituals, each space reflects a distinct way of thinking and making.

 

image Heikki Havas, Alvar Aalto Museum

 

Alvar Aalto: home, studio and landscape

Completed in 1936, the Aalto House in Helsinki was both a family home and an early studio for Alvar and Aino Aalto. Designed as a complete, unified work, it exemplifies Aalto’s holistic approach to architecture, interiors, furniture and lighting what he described as total design.

The studio wing was carefully integrated into the house, connected yet distinct from domestic life through subtle shifts in material and form. Natural light, thoughtful orientation and tactile materials such as wood and brick define the space, creating an atmosphere that feels both calm and purposeful. Sliding doors and well-placed windows establish visual connections between workspaces, living areas and the surrounding garden.
The studio accommodated drawing, model-making and storage, with furniture arranged according to how the Aaltos actually worked. Aalto famously resisted the idea of creativity confined to rigid office environments, believing instead that workspaces should encourage imagination, experimentation and human comfort.

Bring Aalto’s sense of calm and proportion into your workspace with the Alvar Aalto collection including the Stool 60, 69 chair and the 45 chair.

 

 

Charles Eames: the office as creative archive

A faithful reconstruction of Charles Eames’s personal office is on permanent display at the Vitra Schaudepot on the Vitra Campus in Weil am Rhein, Germany. Reassembled exactly as it was at the time of his death in 1978, the office includes original furniture, tools, objects and desk arrangements, offering a rare and intimate view into Eames’s working environment.

What makes this space so compelling is its honesty. Rather than presenting finished designs in isolation, the reconstructed office reveals the everyday context of Eames’s creativity a space shaped by curiosity, experimentation and accumulation. It reflects a way of working where ideas, materials and references coexist, reminding us that inspiration often comes from immersion rather than order alone.

Shop the Eames collection for pieces that bring his design philosophy into your home office including the Soft pad office chair and one of my favourite Eames designs the ESU bookcase.

 

image designboom

 

Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec: The Paris Studio as Workshop

 

The Bouroullec brothers’ Paris studio is defined by conversation, iteration and shared critique. Rather than separating functions into distinct zones, spaces for drawing, discussion, prototyping and making are interwoven, supporting a collaborative and fluid design process.

Descriptions of the studio emphasise its informal, lived-in quality. Drawings, mock-ups and materials are ever-present, giving the space the feel of a working workshop rather than a polished office. Intimate and human-scaled, the studio reflects the brothers’ preference for focus and depth over scale a place designed for thinking, testing and refining ideas over time. Their studio features the Belleville chair designed for Vitra.

 

Ronan Bouroullec: A Home in Brittany as Creative Retreat

In contrast to the structured rhythm of the Paris studio, Ronan Bouroullec’s house in Brittany functions less as a formal office and more as a space for reflection, observation and inspiration. Here, the focus is not on designated work zones but on a living environment that evolves organically.

Light from the Atlantic, long views towards the horizon and a close relationship with nature shape the interior atmosphere. Furniture, objects and materials shift over time, responding to mood and landscape rather than strict organisation. This space supports a slower, more contemplative mode of creativity one rooted in atmosphere, light and distance from daily production.

For a workspace shaped by light and landscape, shop the Bouroullec collection.

 

image Herman Miller

 

Alexander Girard: The Home as Creative Laboratory

 

Throughout his career, Alexander Girard treated his workspaces as flexible, ever-changing environments. Whether in studios or homes, his spaces blended drafting tables, libraries, material archives and display areas, allowing work and inspiration to overlap. Walls and furniture were frequently rearranged, making the space itself an active participant in the creative process.

In Santa Fe, Girard’s home became a living laboratory part gallery, part studio, part archive. Walls were painted or textile-covered, niches were used to display objects and experiments, and collections were carefully organised to stimulate memory and imagination. Rather than separating work from life, Girard lived entirely within his design world, turning his home into a personal think tank.

For a workspace that feels like a creative laboratory, shop the Alexander Girard collection.

 

Finn Juhl: Integration of Life and Work

 

Finn Juhl’s house in Charlottenlund, which we were lucky to visit 2 years ago, was completed in 1942, offers a deeply personal example of how home and workspace can merge. His home office area was not a separate studio but an integral part of the living space, with architectural drawings, sketches and posters lining the walls near his desk.
Rather than a formal office layout, the space was defined by personal artefacts, art and Juhl’s own furniture designs. Natural Scandinavian light filters through large windows and terrace doors, reflecting off pale surfaces and highlighting proportion, material and form key themes in Juhl’s work.

For Juhl, furniture was never meant to exist in isolation. His home office reflects a philosophy rooted in integration, where living space becomes part of the creative process and everyday life directly informs design thinking.

Inspired by Juhl’s integrated approach? Shop the Finn Juhl collection to create a home office that feels both personal and refined. Read more about Finn juhl house on our blog At home : house of Finn Juhl

 

Designing Spaces That Inspire

Across all these examples, a shared idea emerges: inspiration is not confined to finished objects, but grows out of environments shaped by light, materials, routine and personal meaning. Whether meticulously organised or deliberately informal, these home offices and studios demonstrate how thoughtful design can support the way we work, think and create.

By looking inside the spaces of our designers, we hope to inspire you to think differently about your own workspace whether that means refining a dedicated home office or creating a flexible studio within your living space. When design supports everyday life, inspiration has room to grow.

Take a look at our curated collection of office furniture for your office, home office or studio.