Creating the Perfect Media Room or Home Theater

Okay. So you long for your own private media room or home theater. And the room that you envision is filled with deep, cushy, comfortable leather recliners, complete with drink holders. You’re surrounded with upholstered leather walls and ceiling, all soundproof, of course. Your room screams comfort, relaxation, and casual drama. Let’s talk about a few of the practical aspects of creating such a dramatic hideaway as well as some additional “creature comforts”. Plasma televisions are all the rage! No well appointed media room would be without one!

But, if by chance, your media room has to double as a family/recreation room, then you might be interested in considering some clever options for displaying your new TV. Today’s furniture manufacturers are truly jumping to the task of displaying and more importantly hiding these sets when not in use. Beautiful entertainment centers, in a wide variety of design styles and wood tones, have been created with clever disappearing television shelve units all operated by remote control. Now you see it now you don’t! And another TV option is to consider installing it above your fireplace unit especially if you have the option to include this feature in a newly constructed home. By placing your plasma TV above your fireplace area and including cantilevered doors, once again, you have the option of “now you see it now you don’t”. A deck of cards, popcorn, and a soft drink or two!

Today’s media rooms can be expanded to include a variety of additional design options. How about including a game table? Did you know that many of the game tables available today can actually expand or flip over? You can use one side for poker and when it’s flipped over, the other side features a backgammon board. Whatever your pleasure, it’s important to take stock of all the activities you wish to incorporate into your new room.

Do some careful planning to ensure your completed design is absolutely perfect! If you have an area that you can dedicate to a home theater, you have other options such as a stepped floor for a raised seating area, atmospheric lighting, and wall sconces and pillars. You may want to consider a more elaborate home theater projection system. Home theaters usually have the same features of a public theater and they vary tremendously, depending on the budget you set for the project. They can be quite simple or extremely elaborate. It’s a common challenge in almost every home. Where to put the TV and how to arrange a room full of furniture around this all-important home entertainment unit! And, as with many electronic products today bigger is definitely better.

So where to begin? How do you accommodate the 42” plus TV unit? Is it possible to hide or at least disguise these units and their components?

The answer to these questions is a resounding YES! It can be done! All it takes is a little pre-planning and some imagination. Today’s beautiful and functional entertainment centers and armoires are specifically designed to “close in” televisions and their component equipment. When creating a furniture arrangement, plan for the media room or home theater, it is important that you first make a list of the activities and functions the room will encompass. It’s important to think about how this room will ultimately be used. What is your desired seating capacity? Is traffic flow around your furniture important? Are pets a consideration? What specific types of activities will be enjoyed in this room? Taking stock of exactly how you desire to use your room will ultimately help you work with a professional decorator to help design and implement your plan.

Once you’ve analyzed your space, the next step is to div ide your space into primary and secondary plans. It’s also critical that you take into consideration the positions of windows and doors, the direction of room exposure, and the placement of heat vents before determining locations for various pieces. Naturally, placing your television directly opposite a wall of windows facing east would be less than ideal. Exposure to strong sunlight, humidity, extremes of heat and cold, and even less extreme but frequent changes of temperature may affect various pieces of furniture limiting their possible placement. Furniture arranging is a fun and often challenging experience just like putting the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together. Successful furniture arrangement is not a hit and miss matter. It’s a skillful process and can be done easily, and beautifully, when you take advantage of a knowledgeable professional.

For more information and a free in-home consultation, contact Eileen Narozny, Owner/Decorator Interiors by Decorating Den at (407) 488-2590 or eileen.narozny@yahoo.com. Visit my website at http://decdens.com/enarozny.