St. Louis Blues Incredible DIY Man Cave

What happens when a St. Louis Blues fan’s wife tells him he can have the basement?

Man cave ideas begin formulating inside the brain of a mastermind and dedicated fan. But where to start for inspiration? How expensive it this going to be? What can I do to make it different than other man caves?

Meet Kris, diehard Blues fan since the beginning of time. In order to forge his ultimate man cave, he has to get creative in both design and finances. Most importantly, he did not compromise and build a mediocre cave. Kris was extremely resourceful, imaginative, and made sure that his room made a lasting impression on any who basked in its glory.

Kris shared his Before and After photos with us and also answered some questions we had that every DIY man cave fan will want to see. Check it all out below!

Part 1: Amazing St. Louis Blues Man Cave

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Part 2: The Build Process

You have seen the end result of months and countless hours of planning and elbow grease. The lesson learned here is that what you put in is what you get out. Kris’ attention to detail and staying dedicated to his vision has clearly paid dividends. Awe-inspiring would be the best way to describe your experience if you walked down the stairs and took one look at his work. Now take a look at what this “man cave” was before Kris got his hands on it.

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Part 3: Interview with the Creator

1) What was the event or point in time when you knew that simply being a Blues fan was not enough and you knew you needed an entire man cave dedicated to your team?

I have been a Blues fan my entire life, so when my wife said that I could have the basement for my man cave, I knew right away it had to be Blues themed and it had be over the top. Having the large space helped me to use all of the elements without the clutter and make it more enjoyable not only for me, but for anyone who comes down to watch a game or just relax.

2) You have some amazing custom pieces, most notably the Scottrade Center megatron that has become your TV. Did you build this yourself? And did you know it was going to turn out so professional-looking?

More than half of everything in my man cave was designed/created by me, including the player wall pictures and rink diagram, the coffee table, the bar cabinet, the refrigerator cover, the championship and retired number banners, and of course the scoreboard.

For the Scottrade Center scoreboard I built the frame and designed the boards myself, using the size of the actual Scottrade Center main video board and the size of the TV to create a ratio to make sure everything was to scale of the real thing. But I never could have imagined it would turn out so great. It took months of planning for me to be comfortable making the first cut, but all that planning and making sure everything was just right definitely helped make it look as good as it does.

3) What do your family and friends think of your man cave? Did they support you in any part of the design or motivate you through the build process?

Everyone seems to love it so far. A good friend and Blues fan was actually left speechless the first time he saw it, which was a great compliment. It’s fun to watch people seeing in person for the first time, because they tend to stand at the bottom of the stairs just looking around in amazement.

I definitely owe a lot of thanks to my family for everything turning out as well as it did. The help I got from my mom in building the scoreboard is a huge reason it turned out so professional looking. And of course, my wife for talking through all of these big ideas, and helping me make everything fit in just right.

4) What does your Blues man cave represent to you? How has it become a part of your everyday life?

For me it shows what creativity, in both design and financially, can do. I think the biggest issue you run into when building a man cave is getting exactly what you want, without spending a fortune. Creating many of the designs myself, let me make sure I got exactly what I wanted, and I found a company that printed everything in great quality at a low price. The cabinet, coffee table, and counter were less than $50 combined from the ReStore and St. Vincent de Paul. The framing for the scoreboard cost about $50 to make, and add in the foam core signs and it was still just over $150. So, by doing it myself and shopping around to find the best price for what I need, I was able to build the man cave of my dreams. Now when I am down there watching a game or just relaxing at the end of the day, I can look around and have great pride in what I was able to do with some elbow grease and a little creativity.

5) Do you have any man cave ideas you want to work on in the future? Is there a project that you have been thinking about that seems overwhelming or might be too expensive?

Eventually, I want to have one of every version of Blues jersey since inception hanging, and I want to add a Blues pool table at some point. Who knows what ideas I will come up with beyond that, but for now I’ll be happy if I have to add a few more championship banners.