How to Design a Recreation Room

Your rec room should be designed with entertainment in mind.

Your rec room should be designed with entertainment in mind.

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Designing a recreation room in your home allows you to create a haven for family fun and socialization activities. Take into consideration the ages of the people who will be using the room and their entertainment preferences. For example, if you are a family of gamers, you may opt to create a room specifically designed around video games. On the other hand, if movies are more your style, a recreation room designed as a home theater may be more on par for your lifestyle.

Walls and Flooring

Start with a blank canvas of a room. The design of the room’s walls and flooring should reflect the main theme or purpose of the room. For example, if you're creating a loungelike recreation room, wood flooring, wood-paneled walls and heavy drapes will set the tone. If your plan is to design the room around a pool table and vintage video arcade games, consider office-style, low-pile carpet that is easy to clean and bright primary wall colors and window coverings that will add a touch of pizzazz to the room.


The furniture you select in designing your recreation room should reflect the theme and general usage plans for the space. For example, a gamer room should feature beanbags, floor pillows and rocking gamer chairs, while a lounge environment is more suited to overstuffed sofas, comfortable leather wingback chairs and occasional tables. A retro game room might feature vinyl couches and soda fountain-style stools, while a home theater would include theater-style reclining chairs, sconce lighting and adjacent drink trays. Opt for furniture that is well-made and easy to clean so it can be enjoyed over the long term.


Recreation room accessories should follow the design theme of the room as well. For example, a tavernlike environment lends itself to neon signs and taxidermy mounts, while a family game room should include decorative shelving for storing board games, task lights for reading, comfy throw blankets and framed family photos. A movie room might boast vintage movie posters or velvet ropes and a wall-mounted shelf stocked with movie candies. Other recreation room entertainment necessities include a television, stereo system, laptop or computer desk and a snack refrigerator.

Special Features

Select unusual features to showcase in your entertainment room. For example, choose a full wall mural made of a map or even a blown-up family photo; an extra-large aquarium with unusual fish; a retro refrigerator or old-fashioned stand-mounted popcorn popper; or a jukebox loaded with family favorite tunes. If yours is a family of sports fans, design the room around your favorite sports teams. Display pennants, jerseys or even a showcase of trophies family members have won in their own sporting endeavors. Perhaps you are superhero buffs, in which case you could frame your favorite comic book covers and use them as wall art, decorate with your favorite superhero emblem or follow a color scheme that fits your superhero profile.

About the Author

Lisa McQuerrey


Photo Credits

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