Our New "Garage" Living Room/Kitchen

Renovated garage.

We have finally put the finishing touches on the garage renovation where we converted our two-car garage into a WOman Cave or guest suite.  On what had been "my" side of the garage where I stored "stuff", we now have a living area and a "kitchen-like" area (no real kitchen). 

One of the first things we did was to install a nice television.  It is super for watching sports and cooking shows.  The TV we have in the house is quite old, and we have never upgraded it. We don't watch a lot of TV, but it is nice have a better TV in the garage..  The entertainment console has an electric fireplace which is a comfort in cold weather.  It puts out a good amount of heat. 

Electric fireplace.

I have always been fond of this 1930s chest of drawers that belonged to my Aunt Jewel.  Patrick had it in his townhouse, but was happy to let us have it for the garage. 


Aunt Jewel's 1930s chest and recliner from our bedroom.

The green recliner had been in our bedroom, but we needed to get a safer chair for Dan so we moved the recliner out to the garage.  The green became one of the accent colors in the suite, and it just so happened when I was in LAZBOY looking for a chair  I spied this beautiful vase with the perfect colors..  Kelly and Brian, our neighbors, of  Kelly Odom Florist, designed the arrangement in the vase---I particularly like the use of "open cotton bolls" because I grew up in cotton country. 

Interesting piece of pottery from LAZBOY.

In the front corner I used a photo screen to obscure the broom, mop, dustpan, etc.  that sits in the corner. 


Photo screen hides items in corner.

We had looked at love seats and even sofas, but decided the space would be too crowded so we settled on a nice cushy chair with ottoman.  The ottoman adorned with a tray makes a nice coffee table, but when I'm out there I use it for a footstool. It can be used for extra seating as well.


Great place to watch tv or read.

At the back end of the room we already had a fridge and by adding a microwave and a coffee maker the "kitchen" makes a nice place for a continental breakfast.  I also keep microwave popcorn in the fridge for popping when watching basketball. 

Kitchen area at end of living area.

Coffee maker.

To keep the kitchen area separate from the bedroom, we hung a painter's drop cloth over the doorway between the two. This is very nice fabric and I was thinking what pretty curtains it would make. 


Painter's drop cloth serves as curtain between kitchen area and bedroom.

The bookcases are cast offs from Patrick.  With all the books, we can retire to the garage and spend a rainy afternoon reading. 

Lots of books to read.

Finally we decided to install a bamboo Roman shade that could be used to close off the bedroom from the living area. 


Roman shade (Select Blinds) that separates living area from bedroom.

Texture and color of bamboo Roman shade blend nicely in the room.

All in all, this has been a delightful project---harrowing at times---but we are quite pleased with the result.  We now have extra room for company---we had a couple staying there for the weekend.  And when we need to have a live-in-caretaker, the suite will provide supplemental living area.

Should we sell our house and move to an assisted living facility, the garage suite should be a plus for someone needing a mother-in-law suite or a suite for a grown kid.