What to Do With an Extra Bedroom

If you have had a high school student graduate this summer, you may soon be gaining an extra bedroom. You might already have a spare room that’s meant for guests, but isn’t in use during most days of the year. If you have an extra space that is just, well, taking up space, here are some great ideas for transforming it into a functional and useful area of your home:

• Set up a home office More and more employers are allowing and even encouraging part- or full-time telecommuting. You may have hesitated because you did not have a well-organized area touse for this endeavor. It’s very difficult, after all, to simply sit down and expect to get work done in the living room or at the dining room table with the rest of the family milling around. Clean out the spare room and add a desk and some file cabinets. Your custom closet company can even install home office organizers to help you keep the space in good order. Close the door behind you and enjoy being productive in the convenience of your own home.
• Put together a man cave Does your man wish he could have a space to retreat from the noise of the household? Or maybe, more accurately, you would like for him to have a place to make his own noise while watching the big game with his friends. Whatever the case, a big-screen TV, a video game console or two, and a comfortable place to rest will have your man feeling like the king of the castle.
• Set up a reading room Maybe a library would be more your style. If you have books on every surface of your home, then a reading room would bring joy to you and organization to the rest of the house. Put together some sturdy bookcases, add a recliner and some good lighting, along with a table to hold a cup of tea and a snack. Get ready to spend rainy afternoons and cool evenings snuggled up in your own library and enjoying your novels and biographies.
• Give the kids a playroom If your kids are still small, they likely store their toys in their bedrooms and bring them all over the house in order to play. This can lead to mass mayhem when it’s time to put everything away. Having a dedicated playroom can help to contain the clutter, if not eliminate the mess. Shelving and bins will keep everything organized. A custom closet in that room will give you even more storage space to keep games and puzzles corralled.
• Set up a storage area If your home is low on storage, you can transform an extra room into a huge walk-in closet of sorts. Store clothing and accessories, canned goods and pantry items, outgrown toys, or whatever else you simply don’t have enough room for!

Use your extra bedroom space in a way that makes sense for your family. Remember, with the addition of a wall bed, it can still be an impromptu guest room on the occasions that you are hosting overnight visitors.