The furniture finally arrives — Julia L Freer Goldstein

If you follow this blog you may remember that months ago I talked about remodeling my laundry room and getting a standing desk. In June I finally closed on both of those. I'm not sure how the standing desk movement will develop. Is it just a fad or will standing desks take over offices everywhere? Research showing that just moving around for two minutes each hour counteracts "sitting disease" may slow down interest. But as for me, I like my standing desk. After months of standing at my kitchen counter, I've gotten used to standing to work. It's becoming a habit - when I sit too long anywhere I feel the need to get up and move.

Here's the desk I chose, the ThermoDesk Elite from iMovr.

No, I admit it isn't solid wood, but it does use some pretty interesting technology. The desktop is made using something called 3D lamination, in which a film of laminate material is wrapped over the top and curved sides of the desk and molded to a wood core using a high temperature bonding process. I won't say the wood-grain surface looks just like wood - it's too smooth and "perfect" somehow - but I believe it will be much more durable. The fact that this manufacturing process is used in hospital environments, where the surfaces have to withstand cleaning with harsh chemicals, makes me think that the scratch-resistant and moisture-resistant claims are probably true.

The steel base is VERY heavy, which made assembly slightly challenging, but makes for a very sturdy and stable desk. I also like quiet, smooth motors and the programmable feature, because sometimes my feet want a break from standing. So I saved two heights, one for standing and one for sitting. Overall, I'm quite satisfied with my new office. And I sold my old desk and hutch on Craigslist. I am happy they found a good home, with another writer no less (who I suppose is happy to sit and write).

As for the laundry room, that turned out pretty nicely. Wood cabinets in a trendy light grey, extra deep stainless steel sink, and a lovely quartz counter top. We took the old oak wall cabinets that were above the washer and dryer and had the workers re-install them in the garage. Why waste perfectly useful cabinets (even if they do have particle board interiors and shelves) by throwing them in a landfill?