Our back door opens to a flat concrete patio complete with roof, the perfect spot to enclose for winter play with the addition of two sides of roll-up PVC blinds. I can see it now……
That’s on the wish list.
A very rainy first weekend of the school holidays was a sign – it was time for action.
With no funds for an extension, a reno or just those roller blinds ( Lotto wth?), I figured I had to get creative with what we have. Move over mower, it’s garage time.
We don’t actually use our garage for its intended purpose, that is, no car has ever been parked in there. That would be weird right???
Pro tip > If you’re thinking about checking the suitability of your own little concrete den for a playroom transformation, I’d totally recommend actually scoping out the space before hand.
Not me. I just dived right in and went shopping.
With Nixon.
In the pouring rain.
Once environmental factors had been taken under consideration (torrential rain!) it was obvious that this was going to be a one-stop-shop affair, so Nix and I headed to The Warehouse where I was pretty sure I could find most things on the Pinterest board that existed only in my head.
I was right thank goodness, we found everything we needed at #thewarehousenz…….and maybe some things we just ‘wanted’ oops!
Pro tip > It actually might help to curate a Playroom Pinterest board! I’ve made one for you to give you some inspo, check it out here!
Start from the ground up
You can’t hang out in your garage during winter on a concrete floor. I wanted something thick, hardwearing and that didn’t look too out of place in a garage. Jute is perfect for the job, helping to blur the lines between trying to put an indoor space in an external garage lol. There were probably 5 rugs I was agonising over but I was so pumped at finding the large Jute rug one first, so I took it as a sign!
Furniture
I wanted two seating options, one for Nix and one for Big People. I wasn’t planning on a Paw Patrol Moon Chair tbh, but if you saw his little face when he spotted it……..anyway, it’s in the garage, he loves it and I LOVE my styley, geometric beanbag. Our wifi reaches to the garage so Dave and I have a comfy spot to sit and work while Nix paints and plays.
An easel has been on Nix’s wishlist for a while so I really couldn’t deny his artistic expression any longer (considering I was putting together a messy play area!). It was another ‘AHA’ moment when I found the Kids Caboodle Whiteboard/Easel combo in the furniture department. Many I’ve looked at are very lightweight and flimsy – Nix would knock these over in a flash, cue the end of painting! There was also a matching shelving unit with lots of little coloured boxes for DVD and book storage which has been fully utilised already!
Add in a plastic kids table for arts and crafts and a heavy duty storage rack for ALL the toys I’m going to be moving out of the house and I was finished in the furniture department.
Time to Decorate!
Let’s face it, it’s a garage, there’s only so much you can do!
I used a vintage sheet to cover up some ‘garage-y stuff’, hung some cahh-yoot Frozen bunting and whacked some nails in the beams to hang some banners I spotted in the Homewares department. On trend and at the right price, these are perfect for any kids space. Don’t forget a snuggly throw for watching movies or reading on the bean bag!
Add the Fun
No messy playroom would be complete without Kinetic Sand, Paints, Markers and a BIG cardboard play shop that you can DRAW ON!!! Found on clearance for $10.48!!!! How could you not?? Nix was freaking out when I assembled it, it’s definitely his favourite part of the whole playroom.
We were storing an entertainment unit and a little TV in the garage so I picked up a baby DVD player for $39 WHAAATT?!? Couldn’t believe that one, cue #bargainfeeling! So now on yucky days, one or both of the boys can head out to the garage and chill out with Doc McStuffins or Star Wars.
End result? We freaking LOVE this little corner of the garage! It’s so nice to have created a usable space without taking out another mortgage. We’ve combined unused items we already owned with some key new pieces and a little re-organization and voila! At least one corner of our garage is totally awesome and ready for school holiday fun.
If you’re looking to grab any of these playroom essentials, I shopped three main categories at The Warehouse for this little project;
Or, check out my Pinterest Board for all shopping details and please share if you decide to tackle a Bargain Playroom at your house!
This post was made possible by our friends at The Warehouse.
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