As a Christmas present for the boys, we updated Beckett’s old bedroom into a playroom and hangout room where the boys can spend time relaxing, playing, and watching movies.
We revealed this updated space to the boys on Christmas day, but throughout the past month I’ve been sharing the makeover process here on the blog as part of the New Year New Room challenge. Today I’m so excited to share all the photos of the updated hangout room!
The other seven talented bloggers participating in the New Year New Room Refresh Challenge are also revealing their spaces today! Click on the links below to see their finished rooms:
Casa Watkins Living // Up To Date Interiors // House by Hoff // Our Fifth House // Jeweled Interiors // Blue i Style // Domicile 37 // Delineate your Dwelling
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As you may recall, we originally designed this menswear themed room for Beckett when he was just a toddler. A few years later, he and Cooper begged to share a room, so we purchased bunkbeds and Beckett moved down the hall. Since that time, the boys have been using Beckett’s old room as a defacto playroom, but a few elements of the room weren’t working well anymore.
Back in Week 1 of the New Year New Room Challenge, I talked in detail about what was working, what wasn’t, and what we had planned to update the toddler bedroom into a playroom and hangout room fit for two boys who will be tween, and then teens before we know it.
We started by finally getting rid of Beckett’s old toddler bed and replacing it with a small, affordable couch. We wanted something comfortable for the boys, but we also didn’t want to spend much since… well, two boys. We bought the couch during a Black Friday sale and got it for under $300!
On the other side of the room, we added a Roku TV so that the boys can watch Disney+ and Netflix. And my parents gave the boys a small DVD player, so they are pretty much set to watch any movie they could ever want!
But we also got a little sneaky… we plugged the TV into a smart plug that mom and dad can control from an app on our phones. We’ve set a timer that turns the TV off at bedtime, and turns it back on at an acceptable time in the morning, so the boys can’t sneak in an screen time when they’re supposed to be in bed.
You can see from the smile on these boys faces that this room makeover was a Christmas hit! They were excited about the changes, but they were just as happy about the things that stayed the same, starting with the hanging play tent in the corner of the room.
This play tent has always been my favorite part of this room, and the boys feel the same way – so see knew it had to stay. A collaboration between my mom and I, the roof of the play tent is covered in neckties collected from all the men in our family – dad, uncles, grandpas, and great grandpas. Beckett (our resident book worm) can often be found reading in this tent, but it’s also a popular spot for playing Nintendo Switch.
It goes without saying that the hand-painted argyle wall also had to stay. This feature wall was a true labor of love, and I don’t think there will ever come a day that I’ll be able to paint over it. If we ever sell the house, the new owners better lie to me and promise to keep it as well because seeing someone paint over my weeks of work would break my heart. {I’m only kind of joking.}
The three frames on the argyle wall used to hold photos of toddler Beckett, but since this playroom space is for both of the boys now, it was time to update the photos with both of their handsome faces!
Another DIY project in the room the room that has stood the test of time are the shelves hung with leather belts. We installed these belt shelves seven years ago, and I worried that over time the belts might stretch and cause the shelves to tilt, but they are still sturdy and level.
I styled the shelves with some of the souvenirs that we brought back to the boys from our trip to South Africa, as well as their autographed astronaut photos (from our next door neighbor’s dad).
Below the shelves sits the chalkboard globe that I painted, along side a collection of airplane and a Denver International Airport poster in honor of the boys’ grandpa who worked at the airport for years.
The bookshelves lining the far wall of the room are simple IKEA Kallax units, but we added the bright yellow bun feet to raise them up a bit and add an unexpected pop of color.
The top row of shelves holds the boys collection of chapter books, while the bottom row provides lots of toy storage. These gray tweed bins fit the IKEA Kallax shelves perfectly, and I added the brown faux-leather number labels to make it easy for the boys to stay organized.
Above the bookshelves hang the boys’ initials – B & C. When I designed Beckett’s toddler room years ago, I wanted to some wood and metals letters from Restoration Hardware, but the price tag was too high. Instead, I came up with an easy DIY version of these vintage industrial letters that mimics the high end look on a shoestring budget.
Originally Beckett’s initials – BNR – hung in this space, but this month I created new letters to update this shared space for both boys.
I received this Fisher Price record player for Christmas when I was six, and I love that it lives on in the boys’ hangout room. They have a large collection of records, including many that date back to their grandparents’ childhood days.
As you might have guessed from their book collection, these kids LOVE to read. This library book basket helps us keep the library books separate from all of their other books, making it easy to find them when the due date rolls around. In keeping with the menswear theme of the room, I used an extra strip of leather belt and a gold paint maker to create the simple label for this wire basket.
Another piece of furniture that stayed the same from the toddler version of this space to the updated hangout room is the coffee table in the middle of the room. The two giant storage drawers hold lots of toys, and the top of the table provides a great play surface. On an average day, every square inch of this table top is covered in the boys animal figurines as they play zoo or safari.
This room originally had an IKEA dresser (that we customized with leather drawer pulls), but over the years, we’ve discovered that boys Elfa closet systems provide them ample storage, and the dresser drawers were largely unused.
As we converted this space from bedroom to playroom, we needed more toy storage, so we relocated this storage cabinet from basement up to the new playroom.
The cabinet is deep enough to hold lots of the boys’ larger toys and playsets inside, and on the top we have Cooper’s giant red barn, and the dollhouse I made (which they still play with on a regular basis).
On the weekends, we have to practically drag the boys out of this room when they’ll play together for hours and hours and on. But most days after school, you’ll find Beckett relaxing on the new couch, quietly reading a book.
When the boys are at school, however, it’s our Schnoodle, Gatsby, who curls up on the couch to enjoy a little peace and quiet. He’s totally unphased by the presence of his pillow doppelganger.
