A man cave is a space in your home that is specifically designated for a man to relax and hang out. It can be decorated however you want, and it's a great place to store all of your guy stuff. The first step toward making a man cave is to find or build an area that will be yours. Once you have the space, you can start planning how your man cave will look and what furniture to use.
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Here are 15 tips on how to make a man cave
Make Your Own Entertainment Centre
If you want to store your TV and other entertainment components in your man cave, you'll need somewhere to put them. Man caves usually have some sort of cabinet or shelving system built into the wall. Or if you don't like the idea of building your own custom storage area, there are many pre-made options available. Storage pros point out multi-purpose storage installations as a magnificent solution.
Add Personal Touches
You can make your man cave feel like you by adding personal touches and memorabilia. Decorate the walls with sports team signs, posters, and jerseys to give it some personality. You can also add one of those gigantic goalie masks or a recliner that's big enough for two people (or just for you to collapse into after a long day).
Install a Sound System That's Right For Your Space
If you and your friends like to watch movies or play video games, a home cinema system is another must-have for your man cave. You'll also need decent speakers. If you want the best sound possible, think about installing floor-standing speakers rather than wall-mounted ones, as these tend to produce better quality audio.
Set Up an Arcade Section
Choosing a few of your favourite arcade or pinball machines will go a long way toward making you feel at home in your man cave. If you don't have the space for a full arcade, you can always choose a tabletop machine instead. Pinball is currently experiencing somewhat of a resurgence, so there are plenty of great options on the market.
Use Ceiling Lights and Minimal LEDs
If you're going to have a wall that's mostly windows, then you need to use ceiling lights to illuminate your man cave instead of recessed lighting. And try not to use too many extra decorative light fixtures, as these might detract from the overall aesthetic.
Find a Way to Cool Off
If your man cave is located in an area with warm climates year-round, you might need some sort of cooling system, like air conditioning, in order to make it comfortable in the summer months. You can also install a decorative fan if this isn't an option or if it's not enough.
Install a Humidor
If you like cigars, then consider installing a humidor (a storage space that maintains the humidity at around 70%) in your man cave to keep them fresh and flavourful. If you don't think this is necessary, though, it's not something worth spending money on or devoting extra room for.
A Built-In-Bar
If you like to entertain guests at your man cave, then consider building a bar into the space. Having one will make it easier (and more fun) to mix cocktails and keep drinks coming for you and all of your friends. You can find many tutorials online about how to construct your own or you can hire a professional to do it for you.
Open Seating Arrangement
If possible, choose furniture with no backs (or leave the back off of any chairs or couches you buy) for an open seating arrangement that will allow friends and family to easily move around and mingle in your man cave. You want plenty of room to have fun, so keep this in mind as you pick out the pieces you'll need.
Find the Right Display
If you want to watch TV or movies in your man cave, then think about getting a projector and screen for a high-definition viewing experience. Or for a more traditional approach, go with a big flat-screen TV. If space is limited, then you can always go with a wall-mounted option and save on square footage.
Central Game Table
A nice big table that everyone can gather around will serve as the focal point of your man cave and give friends an easy place to play games together. This might be an obvious choice for a game room, but including it in your man cave design will ensure that you have a space for hanging out with your buddies.
Metal or Wood Theme
The colour scheme of your man cave is up to you, but metal and wood are some popular options. These materials can be used on the outside of cabinets as well as on furniture, flooring, and ceilings. You can also paint furniture or walls a darker colour to create contrast with your metal and wood elements.
Workbench Space
If you're into woodworking or other DIY projects, then you'll need room for a workbench. You can build your own if you have carpentry skills or simply buy one to save time. Either way, the bench should allow room enough for tools and supplies so everyone in your man cave can get creative together.
Display Your Trophies, Medals, and Collectibles
If you have military medals or other awards, then consider displaying them proudly in your man cave so everyone can see what you've accomplished. You could also put your favourite trophies on display to show off your winning side. You can either use frames or build shadow boxes that will allow people to see everything clearly without taking up too much space.
Use the Walls for Storage
If you have a lot of stuff that needs to go somewhere, then consider putting it on your walls instead of taking up any extra floor space. Shelves and open wall display cabinets are good options for this, or you can stack boxes to create an interesting design element without sacrificing too much room. Just make sure that whatever you choose is sturdy enough to hold everything.
Wrapping Up
A Man Cave is a perfect place to gather friends and family for an exciting afternoon of gaming, sports, or just hanging out. If you're thinking about how to design your own man cave, then take the time to consider what would make it most appealing and functional for you and your guests.
There are many considerations that go into this process including lighting choice (do you want natural light or LED?), furniture layout (open seating arrangement vs closed), storage needs (wall mounted shelving vs cabinets on the floor) as well as colours and decoration choices such as metal/wood theme versus something more modern like white walls with pops of colour here and there. A lot will depend on preference but even so, we hope these ideas have given some good insight into how one might go about setting up a man cave.
