Clever Ideas for What to do with a Spare Room
Many homes have a spare room, either an empty room used for storage or it’s just a guest room that’s sitting empty most of the time.
Instead of leaving it like that, start a repurposing project and transform the room into something that will be truly usable and functional.
There are so many options for a spare room, from a place you can take up your hobby to a home office.
Convert the Spare Room to a Study Corner
If you work from home, or you have children, you can really benefit from converting your extra room into a study corner. It’s a great way to make sure you can focus on the task at hand.
In this example, we can see how all the necessary supplies are organized on the shelves, keeping the desk space clear and distraction-free.

STUDY CORNER
Make it an Organized and Peaceful Home Office
If you tend to work from home relatively often, you might want to use your extra room as a home office. You can then focus on your work without distractions, and everything you need is in one place.
Decorate the room in colours that you like so you will feel comfortable and inspired there.

PEACEFUL HOME OFFICE
Transform it into a Music Room or Recording Studio
Do you play an instrument or love to play around creating different beats? Maybe you have always wanted to start your own podcast. Why not transform your spare room into an at home recording studio or a music room?
You can start small, by putting in your instrument or whatever gear you need for your project. With time, you can put more money into the project and start sound-proofing the walls and getting higher-quality equipment.

MUSIC OR RECORDING STUDIO
Use it as an Old-Fashioned Dressing Room
If you’re a fashionista, you may want to use the spare room as an old-fashioned dressing room. Think vanity, shoe and accessories organizers, and tons of mirrors. You can also add in a vintage screen to get changed behind.

OLD-FASHIONED DRESSING ROOM
Create a Dedicated Kids Playroom
For those with kids, you might want to think about using the spare room as a kids’ playroom. You can really keep all their toys organized, and create a big space with room for them to play and be active in.
Think about getting a large area rug so it’s more comfortable to sit directly on the floor. Be sure to stock the room with plenty of arts and crafts supplies for a rainy day.

KIDS PLAYROOM
A Sofa Bed is Perfect for Versatility
If you want to keep the bed in the room for guests but you don’t have a lot of space to work with for a multi-purpose spare room, invest in a sofa bed.
There are surprisingly a lot of comfortable beds that can be converted to sofas without sacrificing style.

ADD A SOFA BED
Relax With a Home Theater
Another great idea for a spare room, although a bit higher budget, is to create a home theater. Large screen TV, surround sound, comfortable couches or loungers, the works.
This room looks completely comfortable and a great place to curl up and watch a good movie.

HOME THEATRE
Use it for an Artist’s Studio
A spare room can be just the place to set up an artist’s studio. Turn it into a peaceful and inspiring place where you can be creative and removed from all of life’s distractions.

ARTISTS STUDIO
Treat Yourself with a Full Room Closet
Do you find that your bedroom closet is too small? Do you constantly have clothes lying all over the place, or you want to get rid of your dresser to make more space in your bedroom?
Use your spare room as a full, walk-in closet. In this example, there are a lot of racks to hang clothes, a full shelf for shoes, and even a cabinet on wheels in the middle of the room for accessories.

FULL ROOM CLOSET
Set Up a Fun Board Game and Activity Room
Larger spare rooms can be converted into an activity and games room. A large table is great for board games, so you don’t need to keep using the kitchen table.
If you prefer other activities, you can put in a ping pong table or a foosball table. Just make sure to measure the space so you have room to move around the table with ease.

BOARD GAME AND ACTIVITY ROOM
Make a Multi-Purpose Guest and Study Room
If you do still have some guests that come visit your home regularly, you might be more inclined to keep your spare room as a guest bedroom. However, that doesn’t mean the room needs to be unusable for the rest of the time.
You can add a study corner with a desk in a corner of the guest bedroom and keep things organized so that the room is still useful even when there are no visitors.

MULTI-PURPOSE GUEST AND STUDY ROOM
Create a Crafts and Project Space to Be Creative
An extra room can easily be converted to a crafts or project space for those who like DIY, scrapbooking, and other craft hobbies.
Have fun with the decor of the place since you want it to be inspiring and fun, especially for such a lighthearted hobby.

CRAFTS AND PROJECT SPACE
Get Year-Round Produce by Putting in a Garden
Convert your spare room into an indoor garden and it will be just as rewarding as outdoor gardens, especially if you can control the temperature and light coming in.
The best part of an indoor garden is that you never have to worry about the cold, and you can get fruits, veggies, and herbs year-round.

INDOOR GARDEN
Lounge Around with a Cozy Snug
A smaller spare room can be used as a more intimate, cozy location for a snug. If your budget allows, you can put in a fireplace like this one, a large bookshelf, and a comfortable couch with throw pillows and blankets.

COZY SNUG
Build a Floor to Ceiling Bookcase
Fans of reading will absolutely love this idea for a spare room, which involves floor-to-ceiling bookcases.
Finish off the room with a few comfortable chairs and couches so you can curl up with a book in a more private and quiet setting.
These shelves are easy to build yourself, or you can get some custom-made wooden ones for a more upscale look. Be sure that the lighting is good in the room.

FLOOR TO CEILING BOOKCASE
Play Around with Unique Concepts
This is a multi-purpose spare room, but it’s been designed in a way that’s unique and visually appealing. The guest bed is set up on a raised platform, and underneath it is a large lounge chair, a desk, and some bookshelves.
A large boho area rug and plants make the room more welcoming and stylish, and there is a ton of natural light coming in. It’s a great choice for a multi-purpose room in a smaller space.

UNIQUE CONCEPTS
Make a Glamorous Home Bar Area
For those who love entertaining, you can switch up your spare room from blah to wow by putting in a glamourous speakeasy-style bar and entertaining area.

GLAMOROUS HOME BAR
Turn it into a Sewing and Knitting Space
We’ve seen a lot of examples of hobby spaces and craft rooms in the extra room, but this example is dedicated to only sewing and knitting.
There’s a large table for the workspace, a sewing machine and a lot of sewing accessories on the desk around it. There are lots of storage for supplies also.

SEWING AND KNITTING SPACE
Create a Relaxing at Home Yoga Studio
A yoga studio is a good idea for the extra room in the house, particularly if you like to spend time with your own practice and you can’t often make it to a yoga studio.
Clear out all of the clutter in the room, put in your yoga mat and add a few inspiring quotes. You may also like to add a diffuser or a salt lamp.

HOME YOGA STUDIO
Get Your Own Home Gym by Putting in Equipment
This is an amazing home gym with everything you would need. I you don’t have a lot of space, you’ll have to think about the equipment that you want in there, whether it’s a cardio machine, rowing machine, weights, or a punching bag.

Turn the Room into a Retreat and Meditation Space
If you like meditating but don’t want a yoga studio, you can have a dedicated retreat and meditation room that is an oasis from the rest of the house.
The lack of clutter makes this room very peaceful, and the large plants are relaxing and comforting.

RETREAT AND MEDITATION SPACE
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