Thursday, February 24, 2011

Ed's Office Tour



Ed Skoudis is an information security geek with a good sense of humor. He's recently completed his office, and is sharing it with us:

I've long been a reader of your Steampunk Home blog, and it has greatly inspired me. You've posted amazing articles over the years, and have really helped me refine my sense of fun and style. Inspired by your work, I conducted a massive office redesign and implementation for my workplace, which is located above my garage. The whole project took about 6 months... I got so many ideas for items in my office from your blog. I'm sure you'll see various things you've linked to over the years throughout the office.

I'm so glad The Steampunk Home helped Ed "refine his sense of fun and style," because that's exactly what I try to do here. Style shouldn't be pretentious, it should be fun. It isn't just for designers or cool kids -- you can apply the same otaku and analysis to your abode as you do to coding, or gaming, or whatever your passion is.

He sets the tone from the first approach, up a darkened set of stairs (complete with a runner and stair rods), to a Van De Graaff generator on the landing.


I've recently come to the realization that most of the steampunk style lies in accessories and light fixtures (layered on top of an old fashioned background), and I think you can see that from Ed's room.


Lumen disk with some of the security books Ed has written.

Meters and robots and Dr. Who references, oh my!


The main light fixture is all pipes

What Ed describes as "a science experiment from the 1880's gone wrong"

What I didn't realize was that secret rooms are becoming a mainstay of steampunk design. (Although it doesn't surprise me -- what good mad scientist doesn't hide her laboratory?) First, Holly Black's Library, now Ed's office.




The Secret Room is where Ed hides his minions -- and if you are going to have minions, wouldn't you get better work out of them if you provide them with a workspace as resplendent as this one?


Did I say "secret room"? I'm sorry I meant to say "secret rooms", because this office features not one, but two secret rooms!


There are many more delightful details in this office. You can see the full tour, with many more pictures, even more secrets (just what one would expect of a sneaky hacker information security specialist), sources, and Ed's amusing commentary, at his web site.

Thanks for sharing, Ed!

18 comments:

  1. Wow that really is an inspiration! I love all the secret rooms :)
    Rachelle x

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  2. Did Ed happen to say where he got the rug? It's beautiful!

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  3. Thank you. The rug is actually from JCPenny, and was quite reasonably priced. I ordered it via their online catalog.

    --Ed.

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  4. So very cool! Wish our office was like that – gotta suggest, perhaps, at least half of us like steampunk anyway!

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  5. Dreamy! And those light fixtures on the ceiling = gorgeous!

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  6. Ugh, office of my DREAMS! Love, love, love it! Thanks for sharing!

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  7. Thanks, Ed! I checked JCP, but it looks like they don't have it any longer. I'll have to keep my eye out for something similar.

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  8. Very awesome! I love that you can look through Einstein's eyes--such a fun idea! Plus, you've put together so many different steampunk and sci-fi elements while still maintaining a coherent "look". Well done!

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  9. oh my goodness, i love it !! eeeee ! :D

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  10. Ed, is there any chance you remember what the rug was called or who made it? It looks like an Oriental Weavers rug, but I can't find it (or anything like it), and I was hoping that if you knew the name, I might have better luck.

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  11. Absolutely brilliant! Although I'm surprised that the staff are able to spy into the boss's lair, rather than vice versa.

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  12. I've always had a weakness for secret passages, trap doors and hidden chambers.

    A lot of time, money and effort went into this great project. Thanks for the post.

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  13. Normally I like rooms that are bright, but I'm loving the rich deep colors her. Sorta reminds me of this place http://www.aliceindesignland.com/blog/inside-look-the-plate-makers-home.html

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