Back in the day, men could retreat to their library or study. Later, males found their havens in the basement or garage. Today, with men more vocal in their need for a space of their own, the testosterone-drenched sanctuary has become the celebrated room called the man cave, manland or manscape.
At home, but at a remove from the domestic hub-bub and female-centric preferences in décor, man caves are perfect for indulging in favorite pastimes, such as watching sports and films, tying fishing flies, brewing or raising orchids. Retrofitted into older homes or specifically designed into new ones, man caves bring happiness to all parties involved. (You think women aren’t pleased to have masculine clutter out of sight?) Valley businesses are happy, too, to help those men achieve their own space.
When Tre Peacock of Peacock General Contractors was building his house last year, he planned ahead and carved out a large man space. “Instead of my wife kicking me out to the garage in a few years, I have a man cave now. It also means I won’t lose the garage down the road.” With a 20-foot ceiling and a loft, Peacock’s manland is not at all cave-like, but it qualifies on other counts. It has comfy theater seating facing a big television screen, a full bar with a smaller screen, and sports memorabilia that includes baseballs and a Houston Astros shirt. “It’s not fully decorated yet,” Peacock said. “The memorabilia is not all in cases.”
The focal point of most man caves is the big screen. D-Tronics, which started off supplying car and home sound systems 22 years ago, has a McAllen showroom that focuses on home entertainment: screens, sound systems and automated environment controls.
D-Tronics’ 14 home entertainment showcase rooms (perhaps the most at any Texas store, according to manager Ricardo Martinez) let customers immerse themselves in the various equipment configurations to get the sight and sound impact. Whether customers are interested in a 60-inch screen, a 115-inch screen or a retractable outdoor screen, the demonstration rooms provide the man cave or media room experience as it could be in their homes.
“We’re showing how you can make a small room very attractive and appealing. You can make most any room into a personal space where you can relax. It becomes your weekend getaway,” said Martinez. “A lot of people are enhancing their homes, remodeling and updating the house with technology. They are making a space that feels like a vacation. They want a great place to relax after working hard.” About half of D-Tronics’ home entertainment systems go into new houses.
“We educate customers and work with them to try to achieve their dream within their budget,” Martinez said. “You can do a man cave from $4,000 to $30,000 — screen, speakers, amps.” D-Tronics’ most popular room package costs between $5,000 to $8,000 for the screen, sound system and controls, installed. “A lot of people don’t think a nice room can be that affordable.” But it is important to match the screen size to the room. Options include retractable screens and projectors as well as the ‘simple’ screen that looks like a mirror when turned off.
“In a man cave, you end up with the best seat in the theater. All of sudden you are interacting with the screen,” Martinez said. “The sound is what enhances the pictures. It’s so precise and dynamic, you are not only engaged visually. This is what the movie producers wanted, the whole effect.”
Man caves now occupy remodeled bedrooms. A stand-alone guest house can become a high-end theater complete with 12 leather recliners and Cinecurve screen. Bars and poker tables add more diversions. While Martinez has seen women initially reluctant to invest in a home entertainment system, he said they soon change their minds.
“In the next few years, we are going to double the resolution to 8k, which is phenomenal,” Martinez said. “Now we are playing with 4k on the best.”
Design
“People want autonomy, control and comforts. They escape from work technology to be in control of technology at home,” said interior designer Tina Bailey of Garbo Bailey Designs. “They are trying to get in touch with their senses and do it through the way they arrange their environments. Leather chairs, soft pillows and tactile elements are important. We don’t have as much sensory experiences in the real world now. People may be looking for sensory experience on their own terms, in their own space.” She compared this response to the Arts and Crafts movement, when people craved handmade items that appealed to the senses and the soul.
The man caves and masculine environments Bailey has designed reflected the clients’ interests and family history. With elements ranging from pine desks and a mesquite drafting table to musical instruments and walls hung with mounted deer and fish trophies, the theme of each retreat is very personal, Bailey said.
A man cave doesn’t require a large space, according to Hunter’s interior designer Katherine Scales. One of her clients, a model train collector, had an elevated custom track built that ran around the entire room. “This space is where a man expresses and enjoys his passion. It’s very personal,” she said.
Man caves are increasing in number and becoming more acceptable, Bailey said, if done in good taste with good furniture. “The days of men retreating to cinder block basements and the garage are gone.”
Five years ago when realtor Lupe Gonzales and his wife were remodeling their house, he decided the time had come. “I wanted my own room, my own space.” Just steps from the freezer stocked with chilled glasses, the soundproofed man cave has a 60-inch television, surround sound and electric recliners. It is also where Gonzales displays some his prized collection of original movie cartoon art, especially Speedy Gonzalez. Some of the production cells of Speedy, Bugs Bunny and Yosemite are signed by their creator, artist Fritz Frelung. Gonzales began collecting Speedy memorabilia and the celluloid art years ago, and the man cave is the ideal place to display them.
Yet his man cave puts out a welcome mat for all visitors. “When we have a party to watch football, everybody is in here, male and female,” he said. Girls are allowed in man caves, nowadays.
For more information, see d-tronics.com, garbobaileydesign.com, Hunter’s at 618-5055.
March 2014 cover story by Eileen Mattei