How to Turn Your Basement into a Rec Room for Your Family Home Decoration Home Furniture Home Improvement by Annabelle Smyth - July 31, 2013 When embarking upon the project of turning your home’s basement into a rec room for the whole family, the first and foremost thing to do is talk about it. Let everyone in the family talk about what the purpose of the rec room should be, what they would like to have in a family rec room and how it can best serve the entire family. Basement rec rooms can be invaluable family space to be enjoyed in all kinds of weather by family members of all ages. It is always a wonderful addition to the family home. Media Center One of the most popular uses for a family rec room in the basement is a media center. If a media center is what your family wants, then by all means, give them a great one. Install a good sized television that is big enough to really enjoy yet won’t cause headaches or neck strain. The television can be used for tv watching, movie watching, video games and even as a computer monitor these days. Once you have all the equipment desired, such as DVD players and video game consoles, turn your attention the comfort factor. Choose big, comfortable couches and chairs with ottomans that are made for settling into for a while. Snuggling with loved ones is a wonderful part of family tv or movie time. Some families like to add refrigerators and cabinets in the media center rec room, making it easy to keep snacks and games near for easy access. Whatever you choose, choose it as a family in order to ensure hours upon hours of shared enjoyment. Play Space Another great way to turn your basement into a family rec room is to make it a fun play space for kids. What exactly you put in there depends upon the ages and interests of your children. For older children, the media center setup plus some tables for drawing or board games will do the trick nicely. The comfortable couches and chairs will work perfectly for quiet reading times as well. You can paint a wall with chalkboard paint to facilitate creative drawing and notes. For younger children, you can scatter bean bags for curling up to read or nap. Younger children love toys arranged in centers—a corner for dress up, tables for legos, space for drawing and creating. Have lots of soft toys, bean bags and pillows for little bodies to land on as they play, for kids love to throw their bodies around. Active Space Some families have been known to turn the basement into a seriously active space with concrete floors for roller skating, mini trampolines on cushiony flooring as well as pool tables and ping pong tables. This is a great way for families to stay active when the weather outside is frightful. If your family’s basement has been largely used for storage, you can box up those things and store them elsewhere—such as a santa rosa ca storage unit company. Getting the boxes and things you don’t need out of the way will open up the space into a blank canvas waiting for your family rec room design. Image License: Creative Commons image source