With the advancements made in audio/visual technology over the last decade, it has become less necessary than ever to go out to the movie theater to see a film in HD or 3D. Instead, you can create a far more user-friendly entertainment room in your home for the whole family.
Entertainment rooms
There are many different styles you can use as inspiration for your home entertainment room. You can opt for the bar-room entertainment area, which gives you the feeling of being out in a public bar while in the comfort of your own home. You could also replicate the theater experience by having a large television screen installed on one wall and rows of comfortable seating all facing it – perfect for teenage sleepover parties. You could also combine the idea of an entertainment room with a playroom for the younger members of your family, using beanbags rather than chairs. For the older family members that are nevertheless young at heart, you could also have video games, a dart board and comfortable seating for lazy evenings.
What is essential for the perfect entertainment room? Obviously, the television screen, and ideally this should be as large as possible to suit the room. It would not be comfortable to have an overlarge screen in a small room that meant you had to sit close to the screen. Instead, work out the optimum screen size for when you are sitting no less than six feet away. While researching where your seating is best placed, investigate the same for your speaker system. To achieve the ultimate in home entertainment, you will need to go for a surround sound system, but these need to be positioned in specific places to achieve the best all-round sound.
An alternative to buying a television screen is to purchase a projector screen that hangs against the wall but can be taken up into a ceiling cavity when not in use. An even more budget-conscious choice would be to paint one of the four walls with white paint and use the wall in place of a screen.
Whatever style you choose, you are going to need to be able to block out the light when you are viewing a movie. Blackout curtains are a good idea, but they can be difficult to pull so that there are no gaps letting light in. A better choice would be to install wooden shutters, such as those found at www.theshutterstore.com. These have the advantage of letting light and air into the room when you want it, but providing a tight seal against the sunlight when you do not.
In terms of color, it is best to adopt a neutral color palette, such as fawn and tan brown, or even gray and black for the walls, flooring, and soft furnishings. In terms of lighting, emulate a real movie theater and have spotlights inset into the ceiling and strip lighting for the walls.
Create the perfect entertainment room in your home to watch your favorite movies and TV shows when you want, without having to buy a ticket. You can even bring your own popcorn.