Text by Francoise O’Neill • Photography by Rick Szczechowski

Brad hand-carved the decorative trim, “all 116 notches of it!” (a) Adorned with ribbons from Sunday’s collection, embellished labels identify the contents of painted wood storage boxes. Framed atlas pages remind her of favorite trips, including a recent visit to China. Fabric panels hide beat-up, Formica-topped filing cabinets.

file finesse
(b) Cardboard files hold copies of the many magazine stories Sunday has produced. Straw baskets are a cinch for carrying props. (c) Homemade, personalized labels identify the contents of each file. Wallpaper, Waverly.

For six long, disorganized years, Sunday worked out of her dining room, but when her son, Madison, moved to his own place, it was Brad’s idea to turn his bedroom into an office. “He flew into action and finished the job in three weeks,” she says with a grin. “It was when we first met and he was trying to impress me. It worked!”
Besides being practical, the office reflects her exuberant personality. “Unconsciously, the fabric hiding the file cabinets and the prop storage area was influenced by a trip I took to China—and by my budding romance with Brad. The stylized pattern has an Asian feel, and the color evokes the beginning of a new life.”

pretty purposeful
(d) Brad outfitted the closet with shelves for office supplies and camera equipment. Painted to match the décor, thrift-shop bulletin boards are both good-looking and functional. Adornments, Sweetpeas and Snapshots. What’s behind the curtain? Props. Split Pea, one of Sunday’s three feline assistants, supervises from a resin chair.

creature comforts
(e) Painted window boxes hold current projects. (f) A Sunday original. (g) A cozy armchair is a must. Fabric, Waverly. Throw, Pine Cone Hill. Blinds, Smith+Noble. Why waste time with the door when you can load props directly from office to car? “I always park right outside the window.”

“Proper labeling saves so much time in an office,” Sunday says. “I buy manila tags and dress them up by gluing on a favorite piece of wallpaper and a printed label. The dimension of the tags depends on the size and type of the file.” Her daughter, Manhattan, developed her favorite filing system. “When she was little, I ‘hired’ her to do my files of sources. Her labels included ‘chotchcees’ (her phonetic spelling of ‘tchotchkes’) and ‘yadda yadda yadda’!”

hide and seek
(h) When everything was done, the ugly fax machine and printer stood out like sore thumbs, so Brad designed a “garage” with the same cut-out ornamentation he used for the main shelving. “The fabric shade is easily lifted when I need access to the machines.”

clutter control
(i) Painted drawers and boxes with wallpaper labels, and (j), keep every item in place. “It’s such a timesaver.” Kitty Peaches knows that “C” stands for “cat.” Wallpaper, Waverly. Throw, Pine Cone Hill. (k) The color scheme is soothing and stimulating at the same time. “Just what you need in an office.”

SUNDAY’S TIPS FOR LOVELY LABELS
1. BEAUTIFY Use scraps of lusciously patterned wallpaper or gift wrap
2. COPYCAT Decorate with favorite photos, downloaded clip art, or swipe art
3. SPELL IT OUT Print labels with fonts large enough to quickly identify contents
4. STRINGS ATTACHED Affix labels to boxes and files with ribbons, raffia, or beaded wire
5. UNIFY Repeat label patterns, font types, and colors to create harmony