The term “man cave” harkens back to prehistoric times, when men hunted, gathered, and built with their own two hands. When it comes to your own home’s man cave, though, you don’t want it to look like a Neanderthal put it together. To prove a sophisticated man (or his sophisticated wife) took charge of the space, consider how to upgrade your man cave on a budget.
Make Themed Lighting Fixtures
Your first option—make some DIY lighting fixtures to set the tone for the space and brighten up common spaces. Proper lighting helps you see the entire room, and you can make a DIY lighting setup fit any theme. Whether it’s baseball, comic book heroes, football, cars, music, or something else, there’s a way for you to craft a light or several lights. For example, if you’re big on the drums, put together a DIY drum pendant light. If you’re looking to dabble a bit more, experiment with lighting the room up according to a sports team’s iconic colors, perhaps using this idea for recessed lights.
Liven Up Your Bar With Accessories
Another idea is to add small touches to your bar, which is a feature that commonly accompanies a man cave. While changing your wood trim and getting new chairs is important, it’s surprising how significantly getting seemingly minor bar accessories and décor changes up things. Including themed coasters or interesting wine glasses, along with similar items, often does the trick.
Commission Your Little Artists
When upgrading your man cave on a budget, you can also bring your kids into the fun. While you could hang another jersey from a favorite basketball team, there’s nothing too special about that. Instead, adorn your walls with precious illustrations your kids made for your man cave. Beyond looking nice, this helps your kids feel welcome and included.
This way, your man cave transforms from an intimidating space into one where your kids are welcomed and even celebrated. What’s more, you can pay these little Picassos a couple of dollars for their hard work.