The game room is meant to be a fun, safe space, an area for family and friends to gather, laugh, talk, and make longstanding memories. If your game room could use a bit of a facelift and you’re hoping to capture a symbiotic, elegant appeal, keep these design tips in your arsenal and transform the space into the game room of your family’s dreams.
Splurge Pieces
A game room is for getting together with family and friends, playing games and taking part in the passions you love most, so make sure that passion shines through. Is your game room the designated billiards space? To achieve a more elegant look, it might be in your best interest to splurge on the main focal point—the pool table. Instead of that ratty old table you picked up at a garage sale, check out the gorgeous offerings from Legacy Billiards. Spending a bit more on the areas and items that matter (in this case, a pool table) is a great way to make a statement piece out of something useful and integral to the purpose of the room.
Use Lighting to Your Advantage
If your game room is dark and more cave-like than welcoming, use strategic lighting to brighten it up and give it an upscale feeling. If you have a pool table, poker table, or other center of focus, make sure you have overhead lighting that focuses on the area, whether it’s a brightly shining chandelier right above or inset lights that you can dim to your preference. Many game rooms tend to be converted basements without access to natural light, so it’s important to mimic sunshine with artificial light sources as much as possible to keep the area feeling light and happy. Not to mention with your new furniture and décor deserves to be seen.
Make Sure Home Decor is Cohesive
You might have an old Coca Cola ad in one corner of the room, a neon sign in another, and old sports posters lining the walls—this mélange of styles isn’t doing your overall décor theme any favors. As you make efforts to transform your game room into an upscale area of your home, it’s essential to make sure your décor is cohesive. One of the easiest ways to start is to focus on color. Choose two main colors to work with and consider a similar design motif— if you’re looking for vintage appeal, stick to vintage items sourced from estate sales or ShabbyChic.com. Want to create a modern vibe in your game room? Stick to clean lines and neutral, futuristic colors like grey.
Matching Furniture
We’re not sure what aspect of the design process lends itself to this theme, but game rooms tend to be made up of a hodge podge of furniture, mismatched and sure to cause a bit of motif confusion. If you want to achieve a more elegant look, it’s important to have matching furniture sets that follow a similar vein of design as the rest of the room. One of the easiest ways to create a refined look with couches, tables, and the like is to pursue American made furniture with classic materials. Leather and wood are the perfect combination if you’re looking for a sense of refinement.
Don’t Forget the Textiles
Once you’re working with cohesive furniture and décor, you can add a bit of personality and personal preference back into the room with strategic use of picture perfect textiles. Textiles also allow you to add some much needed comfort to a space designed for relaxation and entertainment. Lay throw blankets over the back of your couch to invite guests to curl in and cuddle up, don’t skimp on the pillows (perfect for when the kids bring friends over for sleepovers), and if you do have windows in the room, make sure you find great, modern window treatments that will add a bit of appeal to an otherwise blank wall—especially if your window looks out on a less than spectacular view.
