Where It Starts Looking Like an Office
The finishing stage is where the build transforms from a construction project into an actual workspace. Plasterboard goes up, paint goes on, flooring goes down, and suddenly you can picture yourself working in here.
Plasterboarding
12.5mm plasterboard screwed directly to the timber studs. The key to a good finish is:
- Stagger your joints. Never align board edges vertically — stagger them like brickwork for strength.
- Screw at 150mm centres along edges and 300mm in the field.
- Leave a 3mm gap at the floor to prevent moisture wicking.
For the ceiling, I used the same approach but with a helper — plasterboard overhead is heavy and awkward to manage solo.
Jointing and Finishing
Taped and jointed all seams with paper tape and multi-finish. This takes patience. Three coats, sanding between each:
- Bedding coat — embed the tape
- Fill coat — build up and feather the edges
- Finish coat — smooth, wide feathering for an invisible joint
The difference between amateur and professional drywall finishing is sanding. Sand properly and nobody can tell where the joins are.
Painting
I chose a clean white (Dulux Pure Brilliant White) for walls and ceiling. White maximises the feeling of space and light in a relatively small room. It also provides a neutral backdrop for monitors — coloured walls can subtly affect how you perceive colour on screen, which matters when doing design work.
Two coats of mist coat (watered-down emulsion) on new plasterboard, followed by two full coats. The mist coat seals the plaster and stops it sucking moisture from subsequent coats, giving a more even finish.
Flooring
I went with click-fit luxury vinyl plank (LVP) in a light oak finish. It's:
- Waterproof — important in a garden building
- Warm underfoot — better than laminate or tile for long hours at a desk
- Durable — handles an office chair rolling over it daily
- Easy to install — click together, no adhesive needed
A thin foam underlay underneath adds comfort and helps with any minor floor irregularities.
The Transformation
Walking into the space after finishing is a completely different experience from the construction phase. Clean white walls, smooth flooring, working lights — it feels real. This is the stage where the vision becomes tangible.
The Design Lesson
In web design, the equivalent is going from wireframes and grey boxes to the actual visual design — colours, typography, images, spacing. The structure was always there, but the finishing is what makes it feel professional and intentional. Details matter.
Part 5 of 6 in the TsvWeb Office Build series. Final part next: the full setup reveal — desk, monitors, and the finished workspace.