Designing The Bonus Room

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Having a bonus room in our homes is becoming pretty normal. Picking a use for the extra space tends to skew towards the lifestyles of the occupants. Witness the ever growing number of home offices, poker rooms, and gift wrapping spaces.

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Many people are turning their entire basements into bonus space, converting dark, cramped quarters into fabulous underground living. Here's a story about a cellar masquerading as a loft. The open floor planning includes a playroom for the kids, a fully functional living room with a plush sitting area and compact home office. Take a look.

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Home gyms have become increasingly popular as way to stay in shape without having to make the trek to the fitness center. Privacy and convenience can be achieved in the basement, or bonus room. Here's a page that give you the basics to laying out your very own, home-based, work-out space.

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Media rooms and home movie theaters are another popular option. What's the difference? "Home theaters" usually feature the special tiered seating you see in real theaters, surround-sound systems and projection style screens. "Media rooms" can be created with a flat screen and a comfy couch.

The popularity of home bars should never be underestimated. Basements seem to be the logical place to install a cool, dark bar in the house. Set it up for watching sports, playing darts, pinball, or shooting pool. The best part is uyou get to decide what time last call is and you won't have to worry about driving home, because you'll already be there.

Many left over spaces are totally taken over men, which results in a variety of renditions of the cave or "man space." Think cigars, games of chance, televisions, and liquid refreshments.

Everybody's idea of a bonus is different. Here's a story of a massive home makeover project that started off as a search for designing and building the perfect mud room.

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Here's a quick story of a basement-based bonus space that became a bar, a billiards room and an entertainment center.The first step was to eliminate the interior walls that were jamming up the flow. Support beams were moved behind walls as the space was opened up to new possibilities. But changing the look was centered on the black and chrome pool table.

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