Happy Father's Day – Elements of the Man Cave

June 15, 2012

In honor of Zander, I've decided to post on what I would love to actually give him for Father's Day, a Man Cave!! Here are elements every man deserves and needs in his man cave. And if you don't think the father near you deserves one, leave him alone with the kids for a month...

Wow, do I love photoshop! I made this little collage with some of my favorites from each recommended element of the man cave. Here we go...

Leather leather everywhere. Of course everyman needs a manly piece of leather furniture, comfortable enough to recline, modern enough not to include a flip-up foot rest. (No, there is never an okay Lazy Boy). The Uno chair by Moroni is at a price point that's sensible for your man's special chair (retails at $1500, but easily found closer to $1000), and is incredibly handsome distressed leather on polished metal.
And, yes, in my collage I have absolutely attempted to cover the walls in leather. Leather walls and floors are absolutely a do. Especially on the floor, where boots can give the floor a worn look, leather grows with the room and enhances it's ambiance. It can also be done in combination with a wainscott. Maybe leather up the wall to, say four feet, then walls from there to give you plenty of space to display...

Charts, maps, directories - framed information of all sorts, but especially historical information.  I love these maps from House on Chambers because the writing is still by hand! The more historical, the better. There are plenty of great maps in color, but the problem is most mappers were not also expert colorists or concerned with their colors looking good on my wall. So... I always tend towards black and white.

Horn is to man what gold is to women. Get horn, put it everywhere. I'm iffy on the whole taxadermy animal thing, but if you're ready, be bold and go for it. Otherwise, do what I do, use horn and hide to accent the man room. This is the Horn Lamp Low by Roost.

Campaign furniture is not only hugely back (ie- Hansel, so hot right now..), it's also very manly.  This campaign chair by Anthropologie is made in partnership with South American furniture maker Melville and Moon. This style is based on early furniture created to follow camps around during war campaign. The Napoleonic Campaigns through the civil war, there are fantastic opportunities to get some history into your man's room, and as men love to be stately and historically-informed, an antique piece will add depth and interest to this Dad's room. And, by the by, you should have at least one good shelving installation for all his books, read or unread! (Via)

This bar cart is sleek and stylish. Restoration Hardware is a good spot to find a piece you need to have.  Sleek and stylish, these might not be the ultimate statement makers, but they are always chic and fitting. And your bar cart should always be stalked with whiskey, bourbon, or scotch.

If you can't afford a full sized Riva, get a model for your man room. Zander lives for gorgeous boats, he prefers sail, but the Riva is soo good looking, and Italian motors are soo masculine. Yum!

Exposed beams, are great. I love these cabin-style logs, but reclaimed beams are also gorgeous. The more rustic, the better (as long as we're not compromising structure!). In construction they say to never show a man wood that's spec'd to be painted, or it will never get painted. Men love the look of wood, varnished, waxed, oiled, unfinished - you could have an entirely wooden room and Zander would sit in it, happily sipping cappucino on his computer for a full day. To see more on this Toledo apartment, click here.
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY Z!! xo liv

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