How to Convert a Formal Dining Room to a Family Media Room

Walls

• Apply a light wall color with a warm tone -- creamy yellow, buff beige or smooth ivory -- to offer an inviting visual contrast against furniture pieces with dark-colored wood. For light-colored furniture, select soothing wall hues in a slightly darker shade, such as taupe, caramel or sage green. A gray shade delivers a cool, neutral appeal to any space. Avoid busy wallpaper designs and brightly painted walls that can be distracting when your family watches television or movies.

Windows and Floors

• A darkened media room is essential for optimal television and movie viewing. The darkened space helps family members retain focus on the movie without distractions. A darkened room also intensifies color contrasts on the screen and reduces annoying glare. Cover the windows with draperies in a heavyweight, dark fabric, such as velvet or suede with an attached blackout liner. Fabric draperies also absorb wayward sound waves that can make a television's sound effects seem harsh or muffle a movie's dialogue. Add large area rugs over a hard-surfaced floor to provide a soft place for kids to lounge while increasing the room's sound absorption. Or add wall-to-wall carpeting over hard-surface floors to boost the room's overall comfort level and acoustics.

Electronics and Lighting

• Pick the size and type of television to suit your family's media needs. Mount a flat-screen television on a bare wall to maximize floor space in a small dining room. Install a pull-down movie screen paired with a ceiling-mounted projector to keep movie equipment out of the way until needed. Surround-sound speakers enhance the movie-watching experience, while adding a digital video recorder allows family members to watch previously taped shows. Electronic game systems deliver hours of virtual entertainment for the entire family. Furnish your media room with table lamps for task-related activities, such as reading and hobbies. Dimmer switches offer the ability to control the amount of artificial light in your media room.

Furniture and Accessories

• Furnish your new media room with comfortable seating. Cushy sectionals, plush sofas, recliners or theater chairs offer versatile seating options that suit personal preference and available space. Situate an oversized double-duty ottoman in front of a sectional or sofa as a place to prop up feet or offer a convenient place to play board games. A good-sized media cabinet keeps electronics, DVDs and CDs concealed and organized. Nestle a small dinette set into a bare corner to for a place to use a laptop, eat a snack or sip coffee with friends. Situate an accent table between armchairs or at the end of a sofa for a place to set drinks and snacks while watching movies. Deck the walls with a few of your favorite framed movie posters or cinema-related metal sculptures, such as a film reel and movie tape. For sound privacy, install a door to close off the family media room if the dining room doesn't have one already.