How to Adopt the “Vanilla Girl” Aesthetic in Your Home Office

How to Adopt the “Vanilla Girl” Aesthetic in Your Home Office

She is confident but calm, and manages to stand out wearing all-neutrals. She's all natural but always glowing, she's Matilda Djerf, and she's all over your phone. She is the Vanilla Girl.

The "Vanilla Girl" aesthetic, the popular new TikTok style trend, is a clean, minimal, and timeless design style that is characterised by neutral colours, natural materials, and simple forms. Currently, the #VanillaGirl trend has over 417 Million Views, and is shaping up to only grow over this year. 


To sufficiently comprehend the rise of the vanilla girl, we have to acknowledge the clean girl trend of 2022. Both became notorious for being sparsely simple with scarcely-there makeup and hairstyles that illuminated the wearer like a shining, glazed donut, which planted the first seeds of the vanilla girl aesthetic.

In no way is minimalism a new concept. As an art form, its fame began in the 1960s, with basic forms dominating art and furnishings. Eventually minimalistic home decorations became trendy, such as it was the case of Kim Kardashian’s totally white home representing the most minimalistic essence. When meditationing upon her place you may imagine only fundamental furnishings like a chair and couch painted in white without almost any wall artwork yet TikTok's vanilla girl aesthetics hold much more than that.

Want to incorporate the timeless design philosophy in your home? To adopt this aesthetic in your home office, here are a few things you can do:

1. Start with a neutral colour palette

Use shades of white, beige, and grey as the base colours for your office. This will create a sense of calm and serenity in the space. With the right colour palette, you can easily achieve the “Vanilla Girl” aesthetic in your home office.

The winter season brings great inspiration from the cold air and snow on the ground, so take advantage of your surroundings to match with the furnishings of your office! A beige or white office chair, as well as a comfy white throw or pillow can be the perfect tough to feed your vanilla girl dreams.

And don’t forget the white desk. Risedesk has the perfect white minimalist vanilla girl desk in two sizes, the classic Rise Standing Desk, and the smaller Small Standing Desk.

The best way to incorporate the vanilla girl aesthetic is your very own beige desk chair! Comfort and style are both so important to the aesthetic, so why not choose both? The Risedesk Beige Rise Ergo Chair Pro is the perfect choice for your sitting needs.

Usually $945, but currently on sale for $745!

2. Bring in natural materials

Use wood, stone, and other natural materials to add warmth and texture to the room. For example, you could use a wooden desk, a stone vase, or a woven basket.

For Vanilla Girls and their homes, silk and knitted materials are essential components. Utilising soft, smooth items are vital to establishing a notably calming and lovely setting. These fabrics will assist in forming a room that is cosy and attractive.

3. Keep it simple

Avoid clutter and unnecessary decorations. Instead, opt for clean lines and simple forms. This will help create a sense of order and tranquillity in the space. A Vanilla Girl's space is simple and clean, so your office should be too.

4. Add personal touches

Incorporate items that are meaningful to you, such as family photos, artwork, or heirloom pieces. These personal touches will add character to the space and make it feel like your own.

5. Choose the right lighting

Incorporate a mix of overhead lighting and table lamps or floor lamps to create a warm and inviting ambiance in the space. Natural lighting is ideal if possible, to add to the natural and authentic feel of a Vanilla Girl lifestyle, and the secret to cosy artificial lighting may surprise you. Many Vanilla Girls are ditching the classic big overhead lighting in favour of multiple smaller lights throughout the room for a cosier effect, so consider incorporating multiple sources of warm light throughout your office to replace the traditional bright white overhead light.

6. Pay attention to the details

Add thoughtful touches like a cosy throw or a comfortable chair that will make the space more inviting. A vanilla girl is nothing if not herself, so you should be too. If there is something that brings you joy that you want to keep in your office, it will absolutely work in line with the vanilla girl aesthetic – it is all about authenticity and calm in the end! Never bend your own values in order to mimic someone else on the internet, simply use what you can as inspiration to enhance your own experience.

By following these tips, you can create a home office that is not only stylish, but also functional and comfortable, applying the Vanilla Girl philosophy in the way that is the most true to you.



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More about the author

Lily Cooper

Writer at RISEDESK

Lily is a Rotman Commerce student at the University of Toronto, and is the Creative Content Writer at Risedesk. Pursuing minors in English and Economics, Lily is also the Film and TV Representative at RCEM, and has a passion for journalism, literature, and entertainment.