DIY Boy’s Bedroom Makeover

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Welcome to Lake and Lumber! I am so excited to help you gain the confidence to pick up the power tools yourself and start tackling DIY projects in your home!

Hi, I'm Melissa

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If you’ve got a pre-teen or teenager who is obsessed with video games and/or music (Eminem specifically!), then they’ll LOVE this DIY boy’s bedroom makeover!

Not only did my 10-year-old son absolutely love his room, but I was able to create this amazing space myself on a budget. His bedroom makeover included all of his “must have” items; a brick wall, dark colors, neon lighting, and all of the gaming/Eminem decor I could find! This might be controversial, but I love letting my kids have bedrooms that match their personality–even if that means it isn’t my style or doesn’t match the ‘aesthetic’ of our home.

So if you’re ready to do your own gamer boy’s bedroom, here’s what I did to give my son the room of his dreams!

Picking the Perfect Moody Paint

Choosing a paint color is one of the first steps in redoing any room, and it can have a huge impact on the final results of your space.

For this bedroom makeover, we wanted a darker color that would add to the gamer room ambiance. There are so many great moody colors to choose from, that it can be hard to narrow it down to a few favorites.

Dark blue-gray paint in a Behr Marquee paint can.

After picking a handful of color options, we used peel-and-stick paint samples from Samplize to make the final decision. All we had to do was choose the colors we were debating between, and then Samplize sent us a peel-and-stick sample of each color for a really affordable price.

Samplize has so many color options available, and all of them are created using the actual paint from each manufacturer. After viewing all our paint options in my son’s room, he ended up choosing Waterloo by Sherwin Williams.

Waterloo turned out to be the perfect choice! After filling in holes in the walls (from a dart board purchase that had felt like a great idea at the time), we painted all of the walls except for one.

Two people painting a bedroom wall for a boy's bedroom makeover.

For the last wall, he had requested a brick wall. I had used a faux brick product in the past that I loved, but it was VERY expensive. That wasn’t in the budget this time, so I ran to Lowe’s and purchased some inexpensive faux brick panels. I was very skeptical as to whether I could make them look real (I had never seen someone be able to hide the seams), but it was in the budget, so I gave it a shot!

With some innovation and the right materials, I created a super authentic, beautiful faux brick wall!

Adding an Accent Wall

Having an accent wall that matched the theme of the room elevated the space in the best way possible.

The faux brick added a lot of personality to the space, and it was easier to do than you might think!

Reveal of the final look of the a bedroom makeover with gaming chair, pillow, desk, wall calendar, lava lamp, and Eminem poster.

I’ve written up an entire post detailing How to Build a Faux Brick Wall with step-by-step instructions for anyone wanting to tackle this DIY project. It’s definitely worth it.

Of course, a faux brick wall isn’t going to be for everyone–but any type of accent wall in your kid’s bedroom (or any room really) will greatly add to the room’s overall appeal.

You can search my Instagram for more accent wall ideas, but here are a few of my favorites:

Island Bedroom Mural for my daughter’s room
Board and Batten for a nursery
Double-Striped Accent Wall for a dining room

After all your walls are finished, it’s time to install lighting. The right lighting can take any room from basic to breathtaking!

Use Impactful Lighting in Unique Ways

Intentionally selected and installed lighting fixtures and features add tremendous value to any space. I installed fun lighting elements in this bedroom to complete the gamer look we were trying to achieve.

To get special lighting for this boy’s bedroom makeover, I knew Enbrighten would be the best choice.

Colored lighting shining on a work board over a desk.

We used Enbrighten Landscape lighting in our yard and found it was incredibly easy to install. Knowing it would be a simple installation process, I knew I wanted to use rope lights in my son’s bedroom as well.

Enbrighten lights are Wi-Fi-based and can be controlled by Alexa, which makes turning them on and off, changing colors, and changing modes really simple. They come in a large variety of colors that are all gorgeous and bright.

Installation is quick and easy. To install them, simply plug them into an outlet and use the mounting clips (drilled into studs) that they send with each light.

You can use these lights no matter how large an area you are trying to cover because the strands seamlessly link together. I used these lights to surround the entire faux brick wall, highlight under his metal loft bed, and illuminate behind his TV. Enbrighten has many different types of lights, and these flex lights make the room feel put together and cohesive.

Boy’s Bedroom Makeover with Finishing Touches

After setting the mood with paint, an accent wall, and the perfect string lights, we were ready to add the finishing touches! Furnishing this room was so much fun, and it really came together once we added the unique decor that matched my son’s personality and style.

One of the furnishings we added was this high metal loft bed that allowed us to put a budget-friendly futon underneath for gaming. Next, we added a desk and this cool Wall Control Peg Board for him to store all his things (like empty Prime bottles, IYKYK).

I also added a gaming chair, mounted a TV, and hung this DIY basketball hoop. To round out the gaming theme, I added other gaming-themed decor like pillows, rugs, and a cool color-changing light for his desk area.

Last up, my son loves Eminem, so I hung framed posters of Eminem in his room to give it some aditional personality. Once I added all the finishing touches, the room was done and ready for some epic gaming sessions.

Products Needed for a Boy’s Bedroom Makeover

Here’s the list of everything you’ll need all in one place for easy reference:

And while you can’t buy this, you’ll definitely want to reference this Faux Brick Wall tutorial and DIY basketball hoop tutorial if you want to recreate the entire look!