2020 has been a year. Our daily lives and routines have shifted, and for many Americans we’re spending our days at home. One of our favorite pastimes was the movies, heading to the local cinema every Friday night and catching the newest flicks, from touching animated family fare to the latest and greatest in superhero spectacle. Nowadays though the place we’re keeping an eye on for new releases, more often than not, is Netflix, Hulu, or other video on demand options. So why not make ourselves a home theater? This time on the Budget Blinds blog, how to create your own home movie theater!

Your Home Movie Theater

There are plenty of guides out there to walk you through actually building your own theater, and while those are great, it’s a bit outside our scope. We’re not looking at building new rooms, framing walls, and running new wiring, no! This is a stripped-down, simple approach, only the absolute necessities to make any room into a home theater, hopefully, this will see you through the rest of this strange time. So, what are the stripped-down needs of a home theater?

What You Need

Somewhere to sit
Something to watch
Someplace dark

Somewhere to Sit

You probably already have this covered! Your home couch, chair, or sectional is also probably much more comfortable than even higher-end theater seating so that’s great! If you do find yourself looking to upgrade, look for some automatic recliner sofas.

Something to Watch With

Home theater equipment is becoming more and more available (they’re cheaper and easier to manufacture) as well getting more impressive. Whether you’re using a projector, or using a 4K TV, when it comes to crisp pictures there’s nothing a theater can do you can’t replicate at home, okay, aside from the IMAX!

Don’t forget the right sound set up! Half the theater experience is feeling the rumble in your chair! This is especially critical if you’re using a projector. There are a wide world of options when it comes to great sound from a simple soundbar that replicates surround sound all the way up to a full 7.1 surround sound setup.

Now… about finding someplace dark...

Making it Theater Dark

Now we’re in our area of expertise! Unless your current living/tv room is somehow specifically positioned in the dead center of your home without any windows, you probably have a few windows that need to be taken care of. When it comes to getting the fullest room darkening effect there’s really two options for it: cellular shade, and roller blinds.

Cellular Shades

Cellular shades are a great, affordable solution for changing your living room into a glorious theater room! With a wide range of fabrics and light filtering options you can find the perfect solution for controlling the light. Cellular shades also don’t have the large gaps on the sides like roller blinds so they can block out even more of the light. All that and they are at an affordable

Roller Shades

Roller shades are another great option for blacking out your windows. Pair them with side channels and even a bottom channel and you’re looking at the pinnacle of black out potential, if that’s what you are needing! The fabric of roller shades come in a variety of different ‘openness factors,’ from 1% to 25%.

Upgrade the Shades

Either of these options will serve you well, its just a matter of style at that point. Want to take them to the next level? You can with automation and Lutron! The ultimate in convenience, control, and luxury, Lutron makes your window solutions better than ever.

While we still haven’t quite figured out the perfect popcorn recipe (just how much butter is too much?) we hope you’re able to enjoy a theater-like experience at home. Need some help getting it all set up? We’re standing by to help our Tempe and Phoenix neighbors, give us a call and Ken will give you a free consultation in no time!