This is a sponsored post, however, all thoughts are my own. You can read more about this in my disclaimer here.

If you’ve been following me for a long time then you will already know that I have a soft spot in my heart when it comes to Southern California.

While it may seem unusual given all of the far-flung places I have had the opportunity to travel too, Orange County and Los Angeles will always feel like a second home to me as when I was 19, I moved there for a short period of time. If I’m being honest, I feel like it’s where my love affair with travel truly began. 

Photo: Kaye Ford

At the start of this year, I was lucky enough to revisit for the first time since living there and honestly, it confirmed that California will always be somewhere I consider home, no matter how long it’s been since I had an address there.

As soon as I got back in January I immediately started planning my next trip back and as we all know, COVID-19 had other ideas. Before I’d even got a chance to finish paying off the accommodation I had booked, my trip had to be cancelled with no ‘return’ date in sight. I was gutted, but I know that California will always be waiting there for me when I’m able to return.

Bringing My Love Of California To My New Home Office

While I’m used to working at home, I’ve never really had an office space. I’d go from working on my sofa to working at the kitchen table and while it wasn’t practical, it did the job for a good couple of years, mainly because a lot of the time I was on the go.

This year, of course, has been a little different and having spent the last nine months at home, I realised that I’m going to need a proper workspace to work at if I’m going to work comfortably and efficiently at all.

I moved a couple of things around in my kitchen and found the perfect corner for a desk and suddenly realised that it didn’t feel like a space that I felt inspired. The blank walls around me made me feel as though I was constantly staring at a blank page and I was starting to feel as though I was better off working from the sofa.

That was until I realised that I could fill the space with something things that inspire me.

It wasn’t long before I decided that a ‘California-inspired’ office was going to be the perfect space for me.

Having created a stunning gallery wall with Desenio before, they were the first place I thought of when I had come up with my theme. I knew that they’d have a wide range of stunning California prints to choose from and so using their gallery wall builder, I was able to put together a wall that inspired me and motivated me to work every single day.

I started by using the City Of Cars gallery wall as a base, however, I decided to remove the palm trees and swap it for a campervan picture instead. I then added a couple of travel-inspired prints that were a little smaller, including one that says ‘never stop exploring’ and a black and grey watercolour map of the world. Although these are not specifically California inspired, I feel like they get across my love for travel perfectly.

Finally, I couldn’t resist the ‘do more of what makes you happy’ print as this is going to be my mantra going into 2021. This year has been incredibly difficult and if I’ve learnt anything, it’s that I need to start saying YES as often as I possibly can.

You can view all of the prints I ordered here – the skyline of Los Angeles is definitely my favourite. 

I’ve decided to call my office space the Plus Size Travel Too HQ and honestly, I couldn’t be happier with it. I feel motivated, inspired and incredibly hopeful about what the future holds. Who knew having an office space could make so much difference to your mood? 😉

If you want to order your own prints from Desenio, I currently have a code that you can use. For 25% off prints (not including frames or personalised/handpicked prints) all you need to do is use the code KIRSTYLEANNE at checkout. It’s valid until 10th December, so you’ll have to be quick!