We have a large game room, but we wanted it to double as our son’s bedroom. Believe me, having our boys share a room is a recipe for disaster. I know some people say your kids should share a room, but for our family’s sanity we knew our boys needed their own separate spaces.
Bookshelf Room Dividers
Originally, we had Ikea shelves (paid link) dividing the game room-our son had the back third of the room and the rest was for everyone’s use. It worked pretty well for a couple years, but they do take up more space than curtains. Also, the girls liked to poke their heads through the shelves, so there was the privacy and annoyance issue. And since we bolted the shelves into the wall, the space wasn’t versatile and our son’s room was starting to feel cramped the more he grew.
Depending on how big your space is and what you want to do with it, the bookshelf idea might be a great solution. It’s nice how it also doubles as storage space.
The Versatility of Using Curtain Room Dividers
For our situation, we thought curtain room dividers would be the best way to go. We decided to divide our game room into three sections and hang two sets of curtains. We bought four curtain panels (paid link) from Amazon (grey, 10’x8′) and put two panels on each system.
The RHF Privacy Room Divider Curtains (paid link) were even nicer than I expected. They feel really, really soft, look great on both sides, and aren’t see through. They’re also machine washable. I was worried that the grey color wouldn’t look good, but it’s a beautiful color and adds a bit of a modern feel to the plain beige room. In that brand, there are also black and beige (paid links) color options, and several different sizes.
Now we have a spacious “bedroom” for our eleven-year-old, and when we have friends over, we can convert it into a spacious game room/theater room.
The “Bedroom”
Our son’s bed is in the back of the game room. Most of the time the curtains next to his bed will be pulled to the side, while the other set of curtains form a “wall.” So his “bedroom” is pretty big most of the time.
How to Hang Curtain Room Dividers
You can get a tension rod (paid link) to go with the curtains, but with our little kids running around we knew that wouldn’t work for us.
There are also ceiling mount brackets (paid link) for drapery rods, but again, that wouldn’t work for us. We had a vaulted ceiling to work with.
So my handy hubby came up with a solution. He used steel cable, 2×4’s, and different hooks and doodads (and, of course, a little duct tape) to make his own curtain “rods.” It’s not the most elegant solution, but it does the job well, and the curtains don’t sag. Comment below if you’d like me to give more detailed information on the materials he used.
Game Room/Home Theater
Another plus is that we can use one curtain panel as a movie theater screen, and with our mini portable movie projector like this one (paid link), we can convert the room into a home theater! Yes, I will take credit for that brilliant idea. I’ll take pics and update this post the next time we set up our theater.
I love how it all turned out! Now I’m thinking of adding a curtain in the girls’ bathroom (I’ll use a shower curtain though). We miss the bathroom they used to have, where the toilet was separate from the sinks. I remember in my freshman dorm how my roommates and I could all squish into the bathroom and use it at the same time because of all the curtains.
Curtain room dividers (paid link) are a great way to add a little privacy and space to your home!