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Organizing the Home

our spare room and what we did with it

14 years ago

my husband and I are all that live here and we have a 3 bedroom home, one room we keep as a guest room, but we have a library wall in there, entertainment center with lots of dvds, vcr tapes for company and an armoire with sewing and craft things in it that pulls out for working on sewing and craft things (with view of t v also)and the walk in closet stores craft and sewing projects as well as a cleaning product wall with brooms and vacuums.etc.

but the other spare bedroom we turned into a gym/storage room.

we have a lot of gym equipement in that room, a total gym, a weider 3 station weightlifting gym machine, a free weight bench and a bookcase with weightlifting books and weights, and a recumbant bike and stepper.

when we work out in there we like to use the t v..which has satellite hook up..and needed a surface to put it on..so we had one 7' long wall that we didn't need for anything in the room..so we put 7' of base (kitchen type cabinets) along the wall..7' of countertop and 7' of wall kitchen type cabinets..so it is a storage wall..we left enough room between the center cabinet and the countertop for a large t v so we can see it from all of the weightlifting, bike equipement..etc..

those cabinets sure came in handy for extra storage. We keep extra cans of paint in there to keep them from freezing in the garage, we have extra pantry items, extra cleaning supplies, paper supplies, etc..there are a lot of drawers where we keep cleaning rags, garbage bags, extra light bulbs, etc..

it was a minimal expense to put in the cabinets..but it sure does store a lot of stuff that is stuff we will use,not just clutter

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Comments (5)

jannie
14 years ago
Sounds good. I can hardly wait for one or both of my daughters to move out, I have plenty of ideas for a spare room. Including what you did with yours. Before we had kids, my husband and I each claimed one of the spare bedrooms and used it for whatever we wished. He stored books in his. I made mine into a "ladies den." Great for reading and crafts.
ronbre
Original Author
14 years ago
yeah we did the same things with the walkin closets in those rooms..the one has craft, cleaning and sewing supplies in it and the other has camping equipment, tools, vacuum cleaners (we have 7 I know I know..read roll top desk thread for explaination)..also a lot of things that cannot be kept outside in freezing conditions in our Mich weather are stored in that closet..as well as things like extra furnace filters, cat carrier, etc.
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^Agree with eld6161. First priority is the baby (congrats!). Use one of the secondary bedrooms for the nursery. Next is your husband's gaming space and a distant third is entertaining overnight guests. I know the need to nest is strong, especially during pregnancy, but I don't think taking on the basement rehab now is a good idea. As mentioned above, put those guests on a sofa bed or in a nearby hotel until you get the basement reno done - after the baby is born. Do the basement reno when time and budget permit which may be longer than a couple of years :)
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To what space does this room open ... a hallway? adjoining what... kitchen? dining? living? bedroom(s)? If you can enlarge an adjoining living/dining/kitchen with this space, do, and make it part of your indoor/outdoor living planned space. Alternately, you might consider enlarging this space by adding a screened porch or sun room outside of it . https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&id=92E5D08A6122146890FD13C69D27810EFB87E6B1&thid=OIP.gOGpmVtaHKGU1hUeBOaNywHaFj&mediaurl=http%3A%2F%2Fi3.au.reastatic.net%2Fhome-ideas%2Fraw%2F6c023297f1bb7ea85ce95769cce0cae2bbf480e20730666b01dd4d602f9368dc%2Foutdoor%252Bliving%252Bareas.jpg&exph=600&expw=800&q=small+room+for+indoor%2foutdoor+living+area&selectedindex=63&ajaxhist=0&vt=0&eim=0,1,2,6 The 9' width could end up primarily being a "hallway", unless specifically design it not to be ... such as make it the "bar" part of your indoor outdoor living area. Refrigerator in the closet. Base cabinet w/countertop and overhead cabinets approximately a foot deep all along one wall. About three feet for walk space between foot deep cabinets -- space for a bartender -- and a parallel narrow table/bar with a larger walk between space between bar and other wall. https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/williston-forge-vidette-3-piece-counter-height-dining-table-w002818995.html
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larkspur_grow
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We have 2 spare rooms, both quite small, 8x101/2 feet,I wonder if anyone has ideas on how to make the most out of this small space. We have a double bed in one and a sofabed in the other,which we use when gr.kids come a few times a year. The one with the sofa bed we also have a television on the wall and I kind of wanted it for a little T.V. room,would like some shelving further up so it doesn't take up room.Ideas anyone?Thanks
ronbre
Original Author
14 years ago
if you want to USE them..you might put a sewing machine in the one with the t v..so when you mend or sew you can have the t v on ..and then that gives you more desire to be doing those things..

the other you might want to make into a library..by adding library shelving..then a nice light and table for a drink by a seat..so you can curl up with a good book
sherwoodva
14 years ago
Our spare room is in the attic. DH is in the process of painting it, as we had the old ceiling tiles replaced with drywall. It has seven large built in drawers (two cabinets) with the drawers going under the eaves.

I use the room for my sewing/crafts room. Have a regular machine and a serger, a linen press filled with quilting fabric, and an antique larkin desk for my quilting books. In the middle of the room, I have a small drafting table for cutting fabric, etc. My crafting supplies and yarn are in the drawers.

Extra sweaters, linens, etc. are in the window seat, and out of season clothes are in the closets. Christmas decorations, boxes of family china, etc. are stored under the eaves. I'm trying to get my sister to take the china as we never use it.

We rarely have guests, and when we do, they sleep in our bed and we sleep on an air mattress in the (finished) basement. The doors on this old 1938 house are too narrow for a sleep sofa.

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