How to Design a Man Cave

The term “cave” is simply a metaphor for a special part of the house where a guy can get away and spend time on his hobbies, occupational pursuits, or just to hang out and unwind. And these days, as teleworking has increased, the austere corporate office is often replaced with a home-based hybrid area for work and play.

A man cave should reflect the man’s personality and tastes. Although there are some masculine commonalities, each man cave will sport features displaying unique preferences. And women, beware: you won’t find ruffled curtains at man cave windows. Don’t even mention them! You’ll need to give your man latitude to design his space his way, even though it can be a cooperative effort.

Where to find the space for a man cave? Depending on your budget and home size, you might use an existing room to dedicate to the purpose, or you could add onto your house (which can incur substantial expense and requires a building permit). For the purposes of this article, we will assume you have an area in your home that you can turn into the perfect cave.

Following are some helpful tips for successfully setting it up:

Decide on the main purpose of the man cave. Figure out what activities will be most important. Is it a place to watch sports on TV? To play video games? Or just a general hideaway in which to relax? From there, you can springboard into choosing a space and deciding on the color scheme, furnishing arrangements, and suitable lighting.

Choose the space. The attic, part of the garage, the basement, or even a decent little hut or shed in the backyard can be transformed into a man cave. Or you could clear out a “junk room” that’s taking up valuable real estate. Depending on how he wants to use the space, it might just need to be big enough for him to sit and stretch his feet.

Select a visual theme. Perhaps a focal point could be a wall featuring revered trophies, sports memorabilia, and pennants. Or you could “paper” the wall in a collage of his favorite rock band posters. Then paint or paper the wall in a color of his choice so he’ll be comfortable with his special abode.

Pick appropriate lighting. Fluorescent lights are too glaring; the man cave would be better off with varied lighting options, including dimmer lights for watching TV or playing video games. That way, lighting can be adjusted to match preferences and ambiance.

If your man needs occasional time out from his worries and cares, consider helping him organize a man cave. It will be a team effort that can reap rewards for years to come.