Media Room Construction Begins!

In April of 2008, Sarah and I purchased our first home in Keller, Texas. We've spent the last 8 months doing all the things new homeowners do such as paint, purchase furniture, fix the odds and ends the previous owner neglected (because they were busy being foreclosed on!), and spend a fortune on a few drapes. Typical new home ownership drudgery if you ask me. It all needs to be done, and it helps make the house look more like a home. I think we're finally getting there!

Our house is a relatively typical home by suburban standards. Downstairs it has a split floorplan consisting of a master suite with sitting area, bathroom and walk-in closet, 2 additional bedrooms down a hallway with a bathroom, an office/study, kitchen, formal dining room, and a breakfast nook downstairs.

The upstairs consists of a single room...a 'bonus room' as the builders call it. It is approximately 400 sq. ft. and includes a full bathroom. Most in our neighborhood add a closet to this room and transform it into a second master suite or the dreaded mother-in-law suite. When we first toured the house with our realtor we knew exactly what purpose this room would serve for us...it would be our Media Room.

Now that the basic rooms downstairs have been furnished, we've decided that it is time to begin the task of transforming that 'bonus room' into a home theater/media room. We'll do our best to document the progress of the room and detail the lessons we learn and the decisions and purchases we make along the way. This blog will probably be a little less boring than watching grass grow...barely. That's ok by us. What does it say about YOU that you have nothing better to do than read this sad excuse for a blog?

Here's a few pictures of what we're starting with:

View of left rear corner of room showing uncovered windows and unfinished wiring boxes

View of left front corner of room showing attic door and MORE unfinished wiring boxes

View of right front corner of room showing bathroom door

Obviously we've got a lot of work to do before we can call this abandoned area of the house a full media room. We've got uncovered windows, unfinished wiring, brightly colored walls and ceiling, and ugly features such as the midget attic door and a bathroom door on the planned projector screen wall to deal with. Our goal is to have the room up and running in time for March Madness Final Four weekend. Considering we'll be doing all the work ourselves, I think that's an achievable goal unless we run into issues along the way.


First things on the list are to get the windows covered, the wiring plan figured out, the fixtures removed, and prep the room for painting. Over the Christmas/New Years break, we hope to do all that plus paint the room. More later...