Interiors

A garage to playroom conversion – the big reveal

A converted playroom, desk and cupboard side - Rainbeaubelle

Playroom side with desk Rainbeaubelle

It’s a little more than six months since we moved house and I can now reveal that project playroom is complete. In fact, it was finished a few days before Christmas but it has taken me a while to get round to posting an update about how it all went. Part of my excuse is the lack of any bright daylight around to photograph the room, as I wanted it to look its best and on the days when I’ve been off work it has mostly been grey and dreary, just typical January!

I’m so pleased with how it turned out and the space is working really well for us as a family. The room was originally a single garage joined onto the side of the house which had been semi-converted into a room.

From the outside it still looked like a garage, which a non-working door on the front and plasterboard on the inside. The floor was covered in laminate but there was no insulation and it was dark, cold and pretty unusable. In summer it was ok, but in winter you could see your breath in there, and even Florence, who is three, was telling her friends about her ‘cold playroom!’

You could access the room from the kitchen as the previous owners had made a doorway there, but there was a step down into the room and no natural light apart from from the glazed back door.

Playroom converted from a garage looking towards garage door - Rainbeaubelle

You can read more about how the project started and see its progress in my two earlier posts, a garage to playroom conversion and a playroom conversion update.

The work I had done was as follows:

Remove the garage door and plasterboard behind, and replace with an exterior wall and window.

Remove the plasterboard inside the room and replace with insulated plasterboard.

Insulate the floor and bring to the same level as the kitchen, removing the step down.

Insulate the roof and board out the loft space, adding a loft ladder to create easy access storage.

Add some electrical sockets and move existing ones.

Plaster the interior.

Lay new laminate flooring and add skirting boards.

Decorate the interior with white emulsion.

Garage to playroom converted wide

I’ve been left with a light, airy room which feels like a real extension of our living space. When we first moved in we did use it as a playroom, but it was more of a dumping ground for toys which lacked organisation and order.

There’s nothing like moving a room full of stuff and storing it around your house to make you feel like your home has shrunk! Just like in the children’s book A Squash and a Squeeze, the house felt so much bigger once we’d regained the playroom and I could get the living room back to a nice calm, more grown-up haven.

As this happened the day school broke up for Christmas, it meant we could get the room sorted, the house tidied and a tree up just in time for some festivities.

It’s taken a few weeks to get things in place but now it’s really starting to feel like one of my favourite rooms in the house. The window has made so much difference, the light it brings in is lovely and really makes it feel like an extension rather than a conversion.

The builder I used to do the work – Lee from Gray’s in Burley-in-Wharfedale – was fantastic and there were absolutely no snags throughout the project. I’m so pleased with how he matched up the stone on the outside of the house so the window and wall at the front look like they’ve always been there.

The loft space is great too and has meant I’ve been able to store some of those boxes I had hanging around from the move.

My desk in the converted playroom - Rainbeaubelle

A converted playroom, desk and cupboard side - Rainbeaubelle

The finished room is kind of a multi-purpose area for all of us. It is primarily a playroom and really handy space for Flo’s dolls house, the toy cupboard, and a perfect place for teatime discos, of which we’ve had a few!

It’s also serving as an office for me as I now have a desk and writing area, right next to the window to maximise that natural light. My desk from Kit Out My Office is so handy and I love having that bit of the room for me. It will be perfect for a homework area as the children get older too.

Above the desk I have some gorgeous shelves from Cox and Cox, which are great for displaying pictures, plants and postcards, whatever I feel like really. These are called wood and metal industrial shelves and are £50 for two. I like having decorative shelves so I can switch up some of my favourite things and give the room a slightly different look when I feel like it.

The main piece of furniture in the room is the wooden storage cupboard from Habitat, a saviour for storing away toys, games and stray Lego. I’d really love a sofa in here one day as the plan is to add a wall-mounted TV for the kids to watch DVDs and play games when Sam manages to convince me to buy him a console, I’m not quite there yet!

In the meantime I have a few bright cushions and these really cool bean cubes from Room to Grow. They are called Mini B-Boxes and are covered in handy stretchable, cleanable, waterproof PU fabric in bright pink and blue. They are available in 11 colour options but these are the ones my children chose and I think they look great in the room. You can actually use them as seats or tables, or even footstools if you put them next to a sofa! They are a great addition to our new play space.

The corner of the room is housing the tumble drier, which I don’t have room for in the kitchen, and is also a good spot for drying laundry when I’m out during the day and it’s not warm enough to use the washing line.

If you’re thinking of converting a garage into a family room I would absolutely say do it. It’s been a brilliant move for us and although it cost around £7,000 to complete I have no doubt it has added value to the house. Although I’m using it as a playroom it would also make a great study, dining room or second lounge.

You can always check out my Pinterest board if you’re looking for more inspiration.

x Julia

Playroom finished Barbie side Rainbeaubelle

A look inside the converted playroom from the kitchen - Rainbeaubelle

Just in case you haven’t seen the previous posts – here is a photo of how it looked in progress.

playroom before - Rainbeaubelle

Thanks to Room to Grow and Cox and Cox for sending me the bean bags and shelves to see how we liked them. We do!

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10 Comments

  • Reply
    Mrs H
    February 14, 2017 at 8:22 pm

    Oh Julia, it looks brilliant. It will definitely add value to the house. I particularly love your desk and writing area. Hugs Lucy xxxx

  • Reply
    Rachel @ The Ordinary Lovely
    February 14, 2017 at 9:04 pm

    It looks bloody brilliant. Well done! I bet the kids love it too, don’t they? x
    Rachel @ The Ordinary Lovely recently posted…Simple home styling to welcome springMy Profile

  • Reply
    Notmyyearoff
    February 14, 2017 at 9:26 pm

    It looks so so good and it really will add so much value to the house. I now wish our garage was attached to our house. I’d love to do something like this to it and turn it into some kind of office or play room. I think we’re probably going to have to move instead 🙂
    Notmyyearoff recently posted…Baby E at 18 months oldMy Profile

  • Reply
    Anne
    February 14, 2017 at 11:22 pm

    Your new room looks amazing and it will adapt and grow with your family I’m sure. I’d love somewhere like this for me and my kids, sadly we don’t even have a garage.
    Anne recently posted…Cadbury Chocolate History, Gifts and GiveawayMy Profile

  • Reply
    RachelSwirl
    February 19, 2017 at 12:34 am

    What a fabulous space, I love the desk setup.

  • Reply
    Hayley @hayleyfromhome
    February 20, 2017 at 11:26 am

    Oh Julia I dream of having a playroom! It looks so nice all finished, you must be so pleased. I love the wooden storage cabinet and the little space for you to work looks perfect. It must make such a difference to have a space for the kids, I so wish I would claim our living room for myself! xx
    Hayley @hayleyfromhome recently posted…Spicy Dahl and Jacket Potato with McCainMy Profile

  • Reply
    Caro | The Twinkle Diaries
    February 20, 2017 at 12:14 pm

    It looks AMAZING!!!!! What a difference — I love the before pics — you can really see how much work has gone into it!!! Fab — bet the kids are chuffed to bits!!!! 🙂 xxxx
    Caro | The Twinkle Diaries recently posted…206 weeks today | {Siblings February}My Profile

  • Reply
    Nicole @ Wallsauce.com
    February 21, 2017 at 2:03 pm

    Love how you’ve styled your desk 🙂

  • Reply
    maria | tilecentre
    March 1, 2017 at 10:43 am

    lovely job…..Final result shows your hard work.Like the pinky rack of doll.

  • Reply
    Tracey Williams
    March 5, 2017 at 12:58 pm

    It looks fabulous Julia and I agree that you have definitely added value to your home. We also have a playroom which is off our kitchen, and it is invaluable. Though as my kids are getting older it is becoming more of a second living area which works just as well. I am thinking that I could also squeeze in a desk too. I bet the children are over the moon with it, and hurrah for more loft space. We use the loft over the playroom much more than our loft upstairs. Infact I dread to think what crap is hiding up there x
    Tracey Williams recently posted…Little Loves – School Trips, Cheeseboards and High School DecisionsMy Profile

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