I don't think you need a new desk what you need is some organizers your husband can put all those little slips of paper in and somewhere to put sheets of paper too. In other words you need some things so you are organized.

Then you need to sit your husband down and tell him that his mess bothers you when you use the computer and to please use the things you bought to organize his stuff or you are going to start pitching things.

Believe me no matter what kind of desk you buy he will find someway to mess it up and it will be more inconvenient than ever.

A fgw weeks ago, I posted an email address on The Kitchen Table to get a free Ikea catalog in the mail. Some MM (mean moderator) deleted my post. I wasn't promting ikea, I'm not an employee or a stockholder or anything. So watch out!

The best solution: two desks and two computers.

Oh thanks for replies but ahh me. Laugh or cry. I can tell you that pitching his papers and notes is the last thing I can do. Nothing would improve but we would be in nightmare mode FOREVER, no habits would change. I could tell stories and I guess I am not willing to force a choice: my way or the divorce. The idea is to somehow make the situation respond to the established ways of doing things, making it impossible to stash papers on a small keyboard tray. Two separate desks is ideal but no room for that. The aspvik (narrow, small footprint) will give me room to put a board or top over the two file cabinets and know that all the papers will be there, not under the keyboard or falling off the side of the keyboard tray. A regular computer desk doesn't give us any surface anyway, the space is all broken up, you know? I guess I am wondering if anybody ever tried either the aspvik desk or its equivalent and at least localized the paper mess to one area where nothing else is going on, like a table top next to the keyboard? In the future we will get a good laptop but that will also entail taking care of papers.

Can you mount a corkboard next to the computer area?

If he pins his papers to the board they are visible (this a real issue for some people) and still out of your way.

Can you mount a corkboard next to the computer area?
If he pins his papers to the board they are visible (this a real issue for some people) and still out of your way.
This will be part of the strategy. I don't have a lot of hope for it but I want to try. I have been looking for a system he can use for so long. It may boil down to "NO SYSTEM" ever. You may know the psychology -- when everything visible, we end up getting used to the 'signals' and they grow stagnant.

Look at your house/apt with a fresh eye. You need another desk. DH & I lived in a 1,000 sq ft cottage. After years of frustration, we got creative. My clothes closet also became my office. Ah, peace at last! Now, we can each be messy in our own way.

Good luck! I've been where you are.
Pat

I'm a little late to this conversation because I just found this forum today. But I recently went from a big L shaped desk to a computer armoire. I actually found a very nice one on Craigslist for $25. I didn't think it was big enough for my needs, but I figured if it didn't work out, I could sell it and get my money back.

But it is WONDERFUL!! I've modified it a bit and now it hides all my clutter and I've gotten my desk clutter better organized. AND everything is still at my fingertips. It also saves me quite of bit of horizontal space since it is vertical. The best feature is that it is a very nice piece of furniture. When I close the doors, it looks elegant in my dining room. So when I have dinner guests, I can close it up so my dining room looks like a dining room, not an office.

Here's a picture of my armoire when it's closed. The "printer stand" on the left is actually the bottom door that hides the computer tower and the keyboard drawer. It was broken off its hinges during transport. It would normally open while you're using it and give you a bit more desk surface and then you close it up when you're not using your computer. I opted to just leave it off completely and wedged it between the wall and the armoire for a printer stand. And I don't have to figure out where to put my desk chair when I close up the armoire since the bottom door isn't on it.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Here's a pic of my armoire when it's open. On the inside doors, I attached corkboard for all my sticky notes. So they're not attached to my computer monitor or cluttering up my desk. (the corkboard on the left fell off but I'm going to reattach it) The corkboard is a most wonderful tool!!!

I used to teach scrapbooking classes and have quit that and have been thinning out my supplies. And I discovered that the stackable drawers that I stored my 12 x 12 papers in fit perfectly on some of the shelves on the armoire. In these drawers, I can keep office supplies, file folders, papers, etc. And there are other shelves for other desk accessories as well as a CD rack on each side of the monitor.

Another accessory I found for my desk is a monitor shelf--an elevated shelf that my monitor sits on and I can store more files/papers right under the shelf.

I LOVE this armoire. I highly recommend it for your situation. I think you could find a similar one on Craigslist or at a flea market/antique store for less than $100. You could find something that matches your decor and modify it like I did. I found the corkboard and scrapbook paper drawers at Hobby Lobby. (If you'll sign up for their emails, about every other week, they'll send you a 40% off coupon to use on any one item. Print several and use them during different visits to the store.)

If you and your husband are going to share the desk, he needs to learn to be considerate of your need to use the space. Maybe he can be trained to tack all his little notes on the corkboard doors.

Hope you find a solution.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Wow! you really got a deal and I appreciate all the work you put into your post. You may put me on the right track yet. I went to Craig's list and saw several nice armoirs and I'm sure more will come up. I still haven't gotten around to making a decision; right now I'm in the middle of a big project.

Part of the reason I looked at Aspvik is that I just want to do away with any desk space AT THE KEYBOARD because my husband piles his stuff up there and then he can't find anything and I have to clear it out and help him, etc. Another post suggests just get two desks. That will be a little hard but I have thought of getting a full size laptop for myself. This project hangs over my head because even now, here I sit at that messy desk!

Im wondering what sort of papers these are? are they work related? or general receipts?

There has to be a system instead of piling it up. At our house we have two desks and two computers (there is no way we could share a desk). we each have those plastic stacking paper trays on our desks where things get quickly filed into categories, e.g. one tray is for work invoices to be paid, another tray is for bank statements, but once they get paid and entered into the bookwork they go into a filing cabinet under "suppliers".

I keep other things in my trays like work related postal receipts and once they've been entered into the bookwork I file them in the cabinet under "postal receipts". It's a system that means they only stay on the desk as long as needed.

DH used to have his desk piled high with business papers waiting to be dealt with and it was such a huge job every couple of months to go through and deal with it all for both of us

once you get a proper system of dealing with this stuff your DH might feel more comfortable knowing things arent getting lost and they are right where they should be.

I could pile my desk up with papers and sticky notes as well. The corkboard on the doors of my armoire solve the sticky note problem for me perfectly.

The 12 x 12 drawers I stacked on the shelves help deal with the paper clutter. You can set him up files for the different kinds of papers he has and let him file them in the drawers above the desk.

If you eliminate the desk space, where will your husband begin piling up his papers? On top of your keyboard maybe? He'll have to put his papers somewhere, so it might be best to have an organized system to accommodate them. Hopefully he can be trained to file them and keep the desk tidy if he has a system that works for him. Good luck!!

I have a nice big keyboard drawer under the desktop. I need the desktop for current projects I'm working on (or for my lunch tray. LOL) so I try to keep it clean and ready for use. Also, when the doors are closed, the desktop sticks out an extra 6 inches from the doors in front. So if I have too many papers on the desk, they'll stick out from under the doors and that drives me nuts--another incentive for keeping the desk surface clean.

Another option: If you get an armoire like mine, you may have vertical compartments on one side that are designed for books, clipboards and file folders. You might be able to file some of his papers in those vertical dividers. I don't know if you can see them clearly in my photo above; they're above the single white drawer. They're on the upper right of my cabinet--3 vertical compartments that hold my envelopes, notepads and a book.

Also, my armoire has a CD rack on each side of the monitor. But the racks can easily be removed. Then you could attach some wall pockets on each side of the interior armoire to file his papers. They'd then be right there within easy reach for him.

Another option which I used on my old desk is a divided monitor shelf. I can't remember where I got these shelves. I actually have four stackable shelves, each with two compartments. I'm using two shelves under this fax machine in the picture below. On my desk, I used two shelves as well. I could slide papers and files into the compartments and keep most of the desk clear. And it elevates the monitor to eye level.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Thanks for all these suggestions. I have a few excuses to make for myself -- about why I'm coming up with these odd ideas! Right now I'm in the middle of something but I will write as soon as I can.