A home theater room is where you will spend a considerable amount of time enjoying movies with friends and family. Creating a comfortable and inviting space requires thought and planning. We’ll walk through the choices and accessories you may want to buy or build yourself to customize your very own home theater room.
Ideas for a DIY home theater include easy to build accessories and painting considerations for the entire room. Custom touches will also add a comfortable and inviting feel to make you proud of the space you have created.
How Can I Decorate My Movie Room?
To get the right feel for your movie room, you probably want to decorate it to look like a theater. That means:
- adding movie posters
- setting up lighting
- and having comfortable seating.
Don’t forget about painting the walls with added accent colors and installing blackout curtains.
For painting the walls you generally want to go with a somewhat dark color, but it is up to you. This doesn’t mean it has to be dull and bland, don’t be afraid to use a color that pops to really make a statement.
Installing blackout curtains make sense so you can block out all unwanted light to achieve that movie theater experience.
As for lighting, choose dimmable lighting options and or LED light strips along the baseboards or flooring.
For the walls think about hanging movie posters or signage related to movies. You can also make your own DIY lighted movie poster boxes for a nice touch. Avoid using mirrors or glass as these reflect light and may distract or interfere with the viewing experience.
Seating options will depend on the number of people in your household. Think comfy reclining seats or a big cozy couch placed in the center back of the room. Some people like to build a small riser for the back chairs to sit on so they are a bit higher than the seating in front.
Having carpet or rugs on the floor plus adding wall hangings will help reduce echos or reverberation noises from the home theater speakers. If this is an issue acoustic panels can be made or bought and placed around the room.
Read my article: How To Conserve Water At Home | How Can I Lower My Water Bill? for great water saving tips and ideas.
Must Have DIY Home Theater Accessories
- A great accessory is to build a lighted poster box to hang on the walls.
- Decorate your own pillows with movie themed designs.
- Build a movie marquee from MDF wood and insert LED lights.
- Take you own pictures then frame and hang them up for a personalized feel.
- Install LED lighting along the baseboards of the theater room to provide safety lighting.
- Create or buy signs to place or hang in the movie room. You can find great inspiration on-line.
- Build a riser from wood for the seating in back to be a little higher.
- Build acoustic panels or a sound diffuser using fabric.
- Build a snack bar for candy and drinks. It doesn’t have to be big, just something to hold the extras within easy reach when you need them.
- Instead of buying a popcorn machine, make you own popcorn and serve in small fun decorated bags. The kids can even help make them.
- Lastly, paint or buy glow in the dark stars for the ceiling to provide a sense of being under the night sky.
How To Make Lighted Poster Boxes
There are probably countless ways to design and build a lighted poster box. I will talk about a couple of those ways and what materials to look for.
- Opt for an LED light strip as these are pretty cheap these days and don’t produce the heat that other bulbs do.
- You will need a double sided movie poster, these allow light to pass through them where you standard poster has a white backing which blocks most light. You can find double sided posters on sites such as eBay and Amazon.
You basically build a wood frame or box, place the LED light strip on the inside panel, then place and attach a framed double sided poster on the top.
You can also buy plexiglass panels to sandwich the poster instead of using an already framed poster.
Here are two great examples of building your own DIY lighted poster box:
TheQueenBeeOfHoneyDos.com and
TheWoodWhisperer.com
They both cover the details of each step very well and their end results are great.
Again, you can come up with your own design using a double sided poster and an LED light strip.
What Color Should I Paint My Home Theater?
If you have a dedicated home theater space, the common option is to paint a dark color. This helps reduce any glare from the screen but also mimics the look and feel of a theater. Choose a paint that has a flat or matte finish.
You might want to consider painting the ceiling as well to complete the look and further reduce glare.
Painting a basic black on the wall behind the screen works well and then choose another dark color for the rest of the room. To break up the colors try painting any accents such as baseboards or molding a complimentary color that is a little lighter.
What Should I Put In A Media Room?
Obviously you are going to need a projector and screen that matches the size of the wall, along with a surround sound stereo system.This article is about accessories and DIY projects. For information on stereo equipment see Crutchfield.com‘s article.
- Use materials that will absorb sound and not bounce it around the room. Think about carpets or rugs, plus acoustic panels and large couches or chairs.
- Large chairs or recliners will provide comfort but you can also use a large sectional sofa.
- For the walls, hang movie posters or build your own lighted poster box. Also hang signs that have a movie theme.
- Shop around for accent pieces such as a popcorn machine.
- For a DIY project, build a riser to use for stadium seating, and place the back row of chairs upon them.
How Do You Blackout Windows In A Home Theater?
Simply buy or build blackout curtains to cover any windows in your theater room. You can find these in many shades and colors as well as different styles. The styles can be roll-up or large drapes that will also help absorb sounds.
Be conscious of how these are installed, if they hang in front of the window light may be able to filter around them. So look for ones that can be closed tight to the window frame.
Conclusion
Create an inviting home theater space by making custom accessories with easy to do DIY projects. Your home theater will provide comfort and entertainment that will be enhanced with your personal touches. Start planning your DIY home theater projects today.
