How To Decorate A Home Game/Recreation Room

Decorating and furnishing a recreation or game room takes time, money, and a splash of creativity. If you've not attempted to do this on your own before, you might be having some uncertainty. What should I hang on the walls? Which pieces of furniture go best in this room? To help make your decisions easier, we looked at scores of different game and recreation rooms from homeowners across the country. When you're finished with this post, you'll come away with a better idea of how to decorate a home gaming or rec room.

Determine what theme you are going for based on what your interests are. Then, incorporate that theme onto the walls, and affix the right kind of lighting to showcase it. Make the room comfortable for your and your guests by selecting the right furniture and accessories, then add amenities to enhance your time spent in this room.

Now that we know where to start, let's take a closer look at some of the styles that homeowners have put into use. You might also be curious about where to properly hang a neon sign, or maybe you'd like to know if it's ok to place home gym equipment on carpeting. To see what we've discovered, read ahead in this post. 

modern game room with billiard table in the middle. How To Decorate A Home Game Recreation Room

Let your room glow with your interests

We all have ideas and themes we're passionate about. Why not let your gaming or recreation room reflect the things that you love and make you happy? Here, we'll look at several creative room themes that might inspire your decorating.

Modern class

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modern class Luxury game room lounge with a bar and pool table

This recreation room was made by converting an unfinished basement into an elegant and sleek hangout. This spacious room has dim, soft lighting that shines upon newly lain hardwood flooring and dark furniture tones. This room is completed with a new pool table, accompanied by a short wet bar. Note how the dark colors of the walls pair great with the dark and stainless steel furniture.

Sports theme

It's no surprise that there are countless examples of recreation rooms decked out with sports memorabilia. We found this one on Pinterest and admire the style this homeowner incorporated into the room. This rec room blends classic Chesterfield furniture with vintage sports memorabilia in a warm and dimly lit setting. Each tabletop is utilized, but not in a cluttered way. 

Vintage mid-century

In this example, we have a much brighter and sunnier room. The lights fall on a booth from what looks to be from a coffee shop or diner from yesteryear. This is paired with a vintage-style jukebox from that era, with old soda and snack signs in the background. 

Console gamer's heaven

This homeowner has set up a room that is perfect for enjoying his or her console gaming systems. The wrap-around sectional sofa is placed in front of a large, widescreen television set. Below the screen is a long console table, which has separate compartments for storing each gaming system. The room is also equipped with a great sound system, as you can notice the floor speakers flanking each side of the console.

What is a good color for a game room?

Selecting the right color for your game room doesn't have to be challenging. The colors are all about how bright or dim you want the room and should be considered accordingly. 

For a dimly lit room, consider dark browns and grays. Couple this with lamp lighting and soft bulbs, and you've got a cozy place to entertain.

If you want a bright and sunny atmosphere, yellows, whites, and tans are perfect. Good overhead lighting shouldn't be overlooked here, but try to stay away from fluorescent bulbs. This type of light will distort the colors in the rest of the room.

Where can you put a neon sign?

Swirly neon sign for a seedy cocktail lounge

One of the most quintessential pieces of bar decor is the classic neon sign. Every bar seems to have several of them. If you get one of your own, where should it be placed?

Neon signs are lightweight and easy to hang. They can be placed on any wall in your recreation or gaming room and look amazing with a pool table or a home bar. Wherever you hang your neon sign, remember that it will need an electrical outlet close by. The cords on these signs are usually six to eight feet, but extension cords can be employed if you don't have an outlet as close as you'd like.

Should you put a rug under a pool table?

If you'd like to add an area rug to help accentuate your rec room's pool table, you'll find a lot of great options out there. Placing this gaming equipment on a rug is safe, as the weight of the pool table is uniformly distributed and will settle into place once its weight presses down the rug's fibers.

billiard table in a recreation room with rug underneath

Can you put a home gym on carpet?

If the room you're considering placing home gym equipment in has carpeting, you'll want to read this before you move it all in. Setting up gym equipment on carpeting is dangerous. The equipment needs to be on a totally flat surface. Placing it on a carpet can create a slight imbalance, resulting in the equipment moving when you don't expect it to.

It's also worth mentioning that the sweat from your workout will make your carpet smell pretty funky after a while. Constantly having to clean this carpet from workouts would be a real hassle and time waster. Of course, having the gym equipment on the carpeting will subject it to other stains as well.

If you don't want to remove your carpeting, there are gym floor mats that can be purchased and laid out before you haul your equipment in. This flooring will provide a uniform and level surface for whatever heavy equipment you place on it,  as well as protecting your carpeting from sweats and spills. 

In Closing

Decorating a gaming or recreation room can be a perfect way to showcase your passions and interests. There are countless examples out there of how different people have decorated these rooms based on what makes them happy. Selecting the right lighting, color, and furniture will ensure that the room you play in will bring you joy for years to come.

If you enjoyed reading this post on game rooms, we believe you'll like reading the following home decor posts:

11 Amazing 12X18 Living Room Layouts

How Much Room Do You Need For A Card Table?

How To Create an Entryway in an Open Floor Plan

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