Minimal Retro Desk Setup in Pennsylvania, USA

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Name: Eric Kennedy

Location: Pennsylvania, USA

Occupation: Marketing Strategist

Room size: 10 m² (112 ft²)

Cost of setup: $1,4K (including the material to build a desk like this and external hard drives/cables not seen, etc.)

Social media: Bluesky

Hello! Tell us a bit about yourself

Hello! I’m Eric, a marketing strategist by day and an amateur picture taker, casual gamer, and wannabe minimalist by night.

I have been fascinated with workspaces and desk setups since I was a teenager.

That’s mainly because it is where I spend most of my time.

From working all day at my desk, to spending a couple hours each evening at one, I’m constantly working on making the space feel the most comfortable for me….and I think I have landed on something that does just that.

Before getting into the specifics of the setup itself, I want to talk about why it is as minimal and “small” as it is, hopefully without sounding like too much of an old man.

Tech is something I have a love-hate relationship with.

However, a lot of the content I watch and the articles I read are focused on current tech.

From watching videos, to reading articles, I love seeing new things that are coming out and how tech can make our lives better.

But being born in the early 90s, my generation is the last generation to grow up before technology was fully integral in our lives at all moments.

The current generation is basically born with a phone in their hands.

There are a lot of positives to that, but it also comes with a lot of negatives.

I can’t remember the last time I didn’t have that nervous twitch to take my phone out of my pocket and check it.

So over the years, as I have attempted to add to my desk with more monitors, speakers and items, it felt overwhelming.

While it may have been easier to get some work done with more screens.

I felt like I could never get away from screens with my work and personal life being so reliant on them.

So with all that in mind, that brings us to my current minimal setup.

Take us through your setup

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The main star of my setup is the desk itself and the room it is in.

A couple years ago, my wife decided to renovate her late grandparents home that she had inherited from her parents.

The home was built in the 1950s so it has a lot of character.

While a lot of it wasn’t in the best condition, this office space in the basement only needed a few touch ups.

The office didn’t need much done because of how well her grandfather built it with exposed wood.

He built it in a way that it not only has a built-in bookshelf but it also has a built-in floating desk.

While not fully built into the wall, the way the desk is mounted makes it feel as though it is one with the wall.

This was originally her grandfather’s office which then turned into an office for her father to use as he was in school.

So it has a lot of history to it and it genuinely makes me happy to be able to use the space as it was originally intended.

However, back then I doubt he thought his grandson-in-law would be working remotely on a computer at this desk.

The only main additions that I added to the desk frame itself is I painted the inside of the desk cabinet black, and then added the back light wood paneling and mounted the small pouch with hooks to the right side of the desk.

I also added the little riser/stand in the center of the desk.

It is built with a piece of pegboard and then has little “feet” made out of dowel rods.

Also, I wanted to point out the drawing that is seen hanging in the back of the desk on the wood paneling.

My friend Billy Gartrell drew this for me one year for Christmas.

I actually had commissioned him to draw this for my parents as a Christmas present and then I printed one for myself as well.

It is my childhood home and I’m happy to have it prominently placed where I can see it each day.

With the desk being smaller, I don’t have a ton of space to work with, however that is perfect for someone who wants to be a little more minimal and intentional.

Now, I haven’t always had the exact setup here that you see today.

Previously I had built a PC but the monitor was too big for the space, so I sold it, and then I also had a laptop as well, but again it didn’t fit the space super well.

However, all of that led me to finding the perfect PC monitor, which is the all in one solution, the Lenovo Legion Go.

I absolutely love this little PC.

It is powerful enough to run most games at 60 fps at least, while also being able to add the controllers and take it on the go.

It’s truly the best minimal solution, allowing you to essentially have a Swiss Army knife approach to computing and gaming.

I mainly play here at the desk, however having that versatility to play on the couch or take on the go is amazing.

It is not for everyone, but I absolutely love it!

During the day for work, I simply just use my work laptop on the desk, and move the keyboard out of the way and just use the laptop screen and keyboard.

This helps me stay focused on work since the laptop covers my personal PC screen.

As for some of the other tech and peripherals, there isn’t anything special, but I think that’s the beauty of it.

For headphones, I use the Skullcandy SLYR for gaming and discord.

I use the Skullcandy Ink’d wired earbuds for work and connecting to my phone to listen to music during the day.

Skullcandy has always been a solid price to performance ratio for me. Always cheaper and decent sound for the money.

I also really love all of the causes they support.

For keyboard and mouse, I am using the 8BitDo Retro Mechanical Keyboard - N Edition and the 8BitDo Retro R8 Mouse with Charing Dock.

These are the most recent addition to the setup, and I love them.

I love how retro they look.

It’s surprisingly hard to find a retro mouse aesthetic and I think this one nails it.

8Bitdo is a cool company is making some really cool peripherals. 

Under the mouse and keyboard is a desk pad from Deskr called the Pixel Palace Deskpad. It was on sale one day and I loved the retro vibe to it.

I definitely recommend checking out their collection of desk pads. There is definitely one for everyone.

For speakers, I chose to not add any to keep things simple.

I mainly just use headphones when I’m down here, but in a pinch I can use the built in speakers on the Legion Go, but they are not great.

I will use the speaker on my phone when wanting to listen to something without headphones though.

For my controller, I am using the 8BitDo Ultimate 2.4g Wireless Controller.

I really like it since it has the dongle rather than bluetooth which really helps with input latency.

I also like that it came with the included stand so that it is always charged and looks nice on my desk.

On the left side of my desk I recently installed a built-in, “invisible” wireless charger.

So under my phone is a slim wireless charging pad that connects to the main unit below the desk, allowing cables to be off the desk and all you have to do is set your phone down to charge.

It’s awesome and works for desk widths under 1,5 inches.

I just got it off of Amazon, so there are a good number of options on there.

The phone I am currently using is an iPhone SE 3rd Gen.

I love having a small device, and have tried to be on my phone less and less, so having a smaller screen has definitely helped with that.

I also recently got the leather sleeve case you can see in the photos so that the screen isn’t always visible.

As for other items on my desk, I just have a couple shoutouts.

The panda was purchased by my wife as a Christmas present for me.

I really like pandas and they bring me a lot of joy.

In a very chaotic world, I think it’s good to disconnect and focus on the beauty of nature and animals.

Everytime I watch a video of a panda it puts a smile on my face.

And the last shoutout is the camera on the top right of my desk.

This camera was brought back from Germany in the 1940-1950s by my grandfather.

He served in the military and had bought this Kodak Retina IIa which I have shot a couple roles of film on.

They didn’t turn out the best, but I probably just need to get it cleaned/serviced.

As a photographer myself, I love seeing old cameras, so I’m glad I have this one as a nod to my love for photography as well as my love for my late grandfather.

If you would like to check out my photos, please follow me on Bluesky.

I really hope you enjoy looking at my setup and get some inspiration for your own setup.

Being featured on Maker Stations is an honor as I have always loved desk setups and have admired other setups from afar.

So to be given space to tell my story is really special. Thank you!

What’s your favourite item on your desk?

My favorite item on my desk has to be my late grandfather’s Kodak Retina IIa camera that he brought back from Germany in the 1940-1950s.

It’s a really beautiful camera and makes me think of him every time I glance at it which makes me happy.

What apps or tools do you use to get things done?

While I use a lot of programs for work, my favorite app to use currently is simply the DuckDuckGo browser.

Websites are constantly tracking everything we’re doing so by using DuckDuckGo I can hopefully limit some of that, and it’s been a joy to use.

What books, blogs, or podcasts recently caught your attention?

I love listening to the Waveform Podcast to get the latest tech news from Marques Brownlee and team.

I also love Hasan Minhaj Doesn’t Know.

Hasan is amazing because he delivers politics and big world news in a digestible, funny way, while also giving you factual information about various topics.

And last shoutout is a podcast called Radio Rental.

It is hosted by Rainn Wilson acting as a character named Terry Carnation.

It is a “video rental store” where he plays scary and weird stories talking about peoples’ near death experiences, or weird things that have happened to them.

It’s a lot of fun to listen to if you like creepy things.

The book I am currently reading is called A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers.

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It takes place in a dystopian world and talks about the relationships between humans and tech robots. It’s a good read for sure.

Any tips for other makers who want to improve their workspaces?

I think my best tip for making your setup is remember that it is YOUR setup.

There are tons of setups that work for a lot of people, but at the end of the day it has to work for you.

So just keep experimenting and researching and eventually you will land on something perfect for you, even if it’s something as unconventional as my setup.

Also, get as much second hand as you can.

It definitely takes a little bit more time and making sure that it’s in good condition, but it can really help you save money.

What does your typical day look like?

I work hybrid remote for a Fortune 500 retail company so I’m mainly at home, but go into the office a couple days every other week.

I work in the digital marketing department so we primarily focus on sending promotional content to users that have shown interest in our brand and products.

I’ve been there for just over five years and it’s been a great place to work.

Excited to see what the future holds!

Your tips for working from home?

Honestly, it’s different for everyone, but I think having a dedicated work space as well as dedicated time off work is important.

Unfortunately my desk is both work and play, which sometimes gets to me, but being able to put work aside, whether that’s physically moving your laptop, or moving to a different space really helps you turn work mode off and transition to your personal time.

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