When your kid leaves home for college, they will also leave the room they used to stay in empty. College is a child’s stepping stone to adulthood. There will be a likeliness that your child will avoid going home to visit – except on holidays – to prioritize their studies or to simply live independently.
There will be a lingering question in your mind about what you should do to your child’s room when they leave for college. It would be a waste of space if it’s just sitting idly by while it waits for your child without any assurance if they will even return.
The fact is once your child leaves for college, they might not turn back. They will enjoy the sense of independence and will do everything they can to keep it.
Renovating a part of your home like the kitchen, bathroom, or living room is a big and expensive step. Take some time to think about it and consider these ideas on what to do with your child’s room after they leave for college.
Convert it into a home office
Home office conversion. Photo from: Style Motivation
A room of your own where you can work from home is vital. You can turn your child’s room into a personal workspace complete with a desk and storage space for your files and books. You don’t even have to convert it completely, you can keep your child’s bed so they can still use it whenever they come over to visit.
Use it as a gym
Consider turning the room into a personal gym. This can be beneficial to you if you are trying to be physically active and to monitor your health. If the room has a direct access to its bathroom, then that’s even more plausible. Alternatively, there is an option to have a bathroom installed.
Install a home theater
A home theater is exciting to have in a home. Whenever you want to just relax and watch a good movie or marathon a TV show, it’s comforting to know that there is a room that is built exactly for that purpose. Install a home theater with a widescreen TV and a speaker system in your child’s former room and just have a good time whenever you feel like it.
Turn it into a guest room
You don’t have to do anything drastic right away. Keep the room as it is and when you have guests over you can lend it to them overnight. It saves you the trouble and money of having to hire a home improvement company to renovate the room into something else.
Use it as an extra living room
Some people have an extra living room in their home, but instead of having a TV in it, it’s completely devoid of any distractions. It will be a space for people to just hang out and talk to each other. Or, it can also be a place to simply read or have a cup of tea or coffee in the morning.
Transform it into an arts and crafts space
Creative people need a place to express themselves, and an arts and crafts space is just the place for that. If you are someone who wants to have a dedicated room to express your creativity, then consider transforming your child’s former room into a place where you can paint or create stuff.
Arts and crafts space. Photo from: Pinterest
Convert it into a master bath
Some people take their baths very seriously. They want to be able to relax and unwind when they take their bath. If you are one of those people, then you should renovate your child’s old room into a master bathroom.
Install all the essentials that can make your bathing experience the best it can be – bathtubs, overhead showers, towel steamers, and the likes.
Use it as a storage space
Extra storage space can be very helpful, especially for people who value a lot of things. Hoarding can be unhealthy, but if you have a few stuff you really want to keep and hide until it provides greater value, then use your child’s old room as a storage space for you to keep your things.
Keep it as it is
If you’re not ready to let your child’s room go, then you can keep it as it is. You don’t have to move or change things if you’re not comfortable with it yet. It’s hard enough to say good-bye to your child, don’t get rid of their room if you’re not ready.
Your child’s room should still be there if they want to come back. Although they are closing their doors to enter adulthood, they will come a point in their life when they want to revisit their childhood, and their bedroom is an important part of that.
The bottom line is the best thing to do with your child’s room is don’t do anything until you have their permission.
