Creating a FAN-tastic Game Room
Regardless of what sport, team, or brand you are loyal to, there's nothing like a fanatically detailed, thematic environment to embrace your position. Personally, I'm into Navy memorabilia, having spent a good portion of my life as a sailor on aircraft carriers and submarines. I'm lucky enough to have some space set aside in my house for a rec-room, and when someone pays me a visit, there's no doubt about my Naval orientation when they're immersed (submerged?) in the nautical theme. If they don't pick up on the career "shadow box" in the shape of a ship's wheel and the artists conception of the submarine underway, they may notice the ship's lanterns, glass-covered boatswains mate knot coffee table (with matching CD holders), ship's wheel clock and barometer set, or any number of other accouterments (including over 200 nautical coins, coasters, glasses, and even an unopened, vanity-labeled wine bottle from a Naval vessel that ran aground and sank off the coast of South America a few years back) that populate the room. Captioned with the brass plaque that reads "Captain's Quarters," my rec-room is a "safe port in a storm" when I need to take a voyage from day-to-day life. It may seem odd, but no one ever walks in and asks me what branch of service I was in, for fear I might make them walk the plank.
The rec room or game room setting is the one place that people can go all-out to promote their passions without being thought a bit odd. Team spirit can abound and it's perfectly acceptable, even expected, that anything which can be emblematic is emblematic. What starts out as a casual following with a few ornamental conversation pieces can quickly become a quest to turn the entire area into a team-oriented sports "shrine." When a visitor crosses the threshold into the room, they're in Team Territory!
The amazing part about it is how particularized the details can become, all the way down to the tips on the cue sticks. If you are a die-hard fan for any team or sport, the level of branding can span beyond pennants and collectibles. Even the furniture and fixtures, ping-pong table, and pinball machine can exude your loyalty and pride. It's your lair. (I think it is a law, somewhere, that the person with the most collectible branding wins.) But, if you are just getting started in your pursuit of team mania, where do you begin? What kinds of accessories are available to appoint your room? And where do you get authentic decor that won't fall apart, bleed, run, fade, shrink, or otherwise disintegrate?
Let's start with some categorical items. In a broad sense, you should plan out your rec room in advance so the end result is not half-baked. Make a checklist and prioritize it based on budget. Consider the following:
The Furniture: Chairs, Tables, TV Trays, Bar Stools, Television Screens, Refrigerators, and Mini-Drink Machines.
The Games and Entertainment: Arcade Games, Pool Tables, Air Hockey Tables, Pool Tables, Foosball Tables, Dart Boards, Pinball Machines, and officially licensed derivatives of popular board games like Monopoly, chess, etc.
The Game Accessories: Ping-pong Balls, Billiard Balls, Cue Sticks, Dart Vanes, Paddles, Racquets, Playing Cards, Poker Chips, etc. The Decor: Light Fixtures, Bar Fixtures, Bar Ware, Clocks, Pennants, T-Shirts, Flags, Autographed Equipment, Coasters, Throw Rugs, Pictures, Posters, Wall Coverings, Trophies, Cased Goods (showcased in glass, plastic, or plexiglass), and any other type of emblematic keepsake.
Budget can be a major factor in your initial and ongoing outfitting. If money is no object then you're good to go, but for the rest of us, the decision on what to buy (and how much of it) comes into play. Decide whether it is more important to have that one or two, special conversation pieces as focal points in your room, such as the big screen TV or billiard table, or you would rather fill the room with trinkets, trophies, and trivia that give the room an overall team feel. If you are a general sports or hobby enthusiast, you may want to include related items from a variety of teams, rather than a team-specific look and feel. You can glean some great ideas from the December, 2005, Washington Post article titled "A Side of Decor" (Michael Tunison) which illustrates an eclectic collage of themes on the wall at T.G.I. Friday's restaurant. If it's a team-specific look that you're after, you can aspire to have a room decor similar to what is pictured at collectible sites that combine pro team and college team memorabelia (example). The amount of available wall space, flooring square footage, and your own personal style will largely determine whether you work with an abstract, overlapping look of the former, or an everything-in-its-place look of the latter.
Once you have made the tough decision on how to budget your money, it's time to start shopping. Now comes the challenging part: getting quality while saving money. If you are fortunate enough live in a mecca area of your favorite team or sport, you may have an advantage. For example, it's fairly easy to find a surplus of NASCAR materials in the southeastern states, or a "Terrible Towel" souvenir if you live in Pittsburgh, or a Dallas Cowboys pennant if you're in Texas.
You must be careful, however, as there are plenty of "knock-off" imitations on the market, and what you see isn't always what you get. What do I mean? Learn from my story: I remember finding a heck of a good price on a pair of running shoes when I was abroad in Hong Kong back in 1996. I thought I had purchased a legitimate pair of shoes, but when they fell apart prematurely (within days), I realized that the embroidery on the heel was labeled "Nikee", a cheap spinoff, with the second "e" made to look confusingly like a registered " " symbol. My $8 bargain wasn't such a great deal after all. I felt ripped off, let alone feeling foolish and guilty of ignorantly buying an illegitimate product. Believe me, you don't want to buy unlicensed products that don't last, whether it's clothing that shrinks the first time you wash it, or chairs in which the upholstery splits at the seams when you cheer for your team's touchdown. Officially licensed products are usually approved and tested for quality and durability before a team is willing to place its logo on them.
Recognized major-chain retail stores must ensure quality, or they would have major legal issues with manufacturers, teams, etc. But the trade-off for your peace of mind is price. To remain profitable, large specialty and department stores must inflate prices to offset their high overhead of employees, rent, insurance, and so forth. Smaller stores that are "discount" sporting goods shops (often found in tourist traps around home-team areas) are a gamble. Buyer beware.
To be safe (peace of mind) and affordable (budget oriented), consider finding your collectibles on the Internet. Again, you need be selective, but here are a few observations and suggestions to help you save some hard-earned cash:
- Web-based stores have lower overhead, so their prices are usually better.
- When shopping online for team merchandise, look for legitimate businesses that conspicuously advertise "officially-licensed" items.
- You have a high degree of consumer protection online with your purchase by credit card if merchandise is faulty, imitation, or non-delivered.
- Online stores often offer discounts, coupons and promotions to attract business on search engines, so you end up saving money.
- You have access to hard-to-find items, and a selection of merchandise that may be "regionally scarce", for example, collectibles for a Purdue Boilermakers fan living in Miami, FL, or a New England Patriots fan living in San Diego, CA.
- Depending on your location and the location of the online store you buy through, you may not be liable for sales tax. (Be sure to check this out for where you live, specifically).
- Look for quantity discounts on shipping, or better yet, FREE shipping.
Although it may take an extra couple of days to receive your items from your online purchase, you can literally save hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars as you put together your dream game room! The savings translates to either doing the job right the first time (as opposed to doing it in bits & pieces as money becomes available), or going the extra mile (or nine yards, depending on the sport you follow) to really jazz it up and be the envy of the neighborhood. Whatever path you choose, just be sure to pick a winning team!
Go Navy, Beat Army!
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