Man Spaces: Create a Room Just for Him

Page 1 of 3 ( 1 2 3 )

Any real estate agent will tell you investing in the kitchen and bath areas will bring homeowners the biggest bang for their buck, meaning the greatest return on investment. From stellar cooking areas to luxurious bubble baths and super If you have the square footage, a pool table can be an entertaining addition to any man space. © Francis Harvey & Sons. Photo by Christopher Navin. showers, these areas are always a smart place to put your money. But those areas, and most other household spaces, are generally places where women want their style voices to be heard—and don’t want the space cluttered with a lot of memorabilia. As people put more of their own personalities into their homes, men are beginning to speak up for their own space. If you’re contemplating adding one of these masculine spaces into your home’s design, here are a few things you should consider when planning your little slice of Y-chromosome heaven. Marking Your Territory “At one time, you could depend on a ‘man cave’ being in the basement or garage, furnished with cast-offs and curbside finds liberally patched with duct tape,” says C. Davis Remignanti, lead design consultant for several home design Web site, such as FurnitureFind.com. “But the media caught wind of the phenomenon, and suddenly the man cave has gone upscale.” No longer relegated to areas that rarely see the light of day, these handsome hangouts are now centerpieces of many homes’ entertainment areas. When you’re choosing your space, however, you may want to keep in mind the effect on your home value. The return on investment (ROI) of such a personal space isn’t always stellar. Brick or stone veneers can give any room a more masculine, authentic feel. © Eldorado Stone “The decision to proceed with creating a custom space must always be based on something other than resale value,” says Jill Westfall, a real estate reporter for Money Magazine and the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. “It’s difficult to optimize ROI when doing custom spaces.” So when you’re staking out your testosterone territory within the home, consider how long you think you’ll stay in the house, how much enjoyment you’ll get out of the space and how much you want to spend on a space that may not appeal to many buyers. If you really want a man space, however, don’t let the resale implications discourage you. Just take them into account, particularly when you’re deciding if you should turn that vaulted-ceiling living room into an acoustically perfect video room complete with a full-service bar and disco ball. “I usually advise my clients that using a space that is not part of the functionality of the household is best,” says Designer Charisse Lombardo, president of CLM Interiors, LLC in Ridgefield, Conn. TV Time In a space where there’s no one to scold that the television is too big or the speakers are too ugly, men are usually inclined to go all-out with their technology. “Electronics are fun,” says Chuck Abbot, owner of Abbott’s Technology Design Group in Las Vegas. “Ever since the day electricity was invented, men have wanted to use it for entertainment. We can really make an entertainment room out of just about any size space, but in a man’s mind, it’s typically, ‘the bigger, the better.’ ”

...Continued - Page 1 of 3 ( 1 2 3 )
Next Page >