Michigan Man Cave
Ok so I recently had my new house built and I had a bonus room added specifically to be a Michigan Man Cave. It is about 400 Sq Ft and your basic rectangle shape. I have plenty of Michigan stuff already but I am looking to really load up on merchandise. Outside of Mden do you guys have any suggestions as to where to shop to find really good pictures of the stadium, players, tradition, rare items etc...
Also any ideas for the Cave are always welcome.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:47 PM ^
ebay. you can get some really cool pieces that you won't find in a store. Old ticket stubs, programs, things like that.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:52 PM ^
Not to mention the occasional Rose Bowl ring.
I also suggest getting the Little Brown Jug. It makes a great conversation piece.
What? It's not like it's hard to get. Just beat Minnesota!
February 18th, 2010 at 1:51 PM ^
Beer.
Lots of beer - a kegerator is an essential addition for a man cave.
And then drink said beer out of enormous Michigan beer steins.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:52 PM ^
I always go to Moe's
February 18th, 2010 at 4:40 PM ^
I always got there too. I highly recommend the 2.5 foot tall Bo bobblehead!
February 18th, 2010 at 1:53 PM ^
If you're in Ann Arbor, go to Antelope Antiques on Liberty (I think it's on Liberty now). It's downstairs from the street. They've got TONS of old programs and such that would be great in the cave.
Also, you could download some high-res team pictures from the Bentley Library website and have them printed and framed.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:55 PM ^
You could also check Craig's List. You can find some pretty cool U-M stuff on the cheap. Not sure exactly what you're looking for, but it's worth a look.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:24 PM ^
Where you can find men with peanut butter asian fetishes that will also sell you a game worn Rose Bowl jersey
February 18th, 2010 at 1:58 PM ^
to check out sams club... the one by me in wixom has kiosk that is loaded with framed michigan pictures... i also recomend getting a fat head either the block M or the helmet one... i have the block M and it looks great in my michigan man cave...
February 18th, 2010 at 2:02 PM ^
I go to this Sam's Club often and they indeed have framed pictures of various michigan sports (tigers, lions, wolverines). However, from what I have seen the items can be very expensive. If you want something unique and prefossional then it's definitely worth checking out.
February 18th, 2010 at 1:59 PM ^
Several years ago I was looking for a large M flag and couldn't find any......I got in touch with the owner of the M Den and he custom ordered a 10x10 block M flag from the people their supplier.
Got an empty wall? Get something like that......cost me about $100 bucks.
February 18th, 2010 at 8:33 PM ^
that is only about the coolest idea ever
February 18th, 2010 at 1:59 PM ^
the market mall in Mackinaw City, just south of the bridge. There is an art gallery there that has some wonderful Michigan artwork of Bo, the stadium, some rivalries, a wolverine, and more. Not specifically a Michigan store.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:02 PM ^
If you're in the Ann Arbor area, as random as it sounds, I suggest you try the UM Museum of Art's store. I work in the museum, and they have some amazing framed photography of the stadium as well as the best UM coffee table book I've ever seen.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:14 PM ^
Mvictors.com often posts unique items for sale (often expensive) but if you have the money for a big Michigan room, you probably have room for some of the cool stuff that he posts.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:20 PM ^
Ann Arbor Art Fair - if youre in AA this summer, there is a ton of U of M stuff, a lot of it real original
February 18th, 2010 at 2:26 PM ^
rasterbation
http://homokaasu.org/rasterbator/
February 18th, 2010 at 2:50 PM ^
You gotta have a really nice printer to do something like that. I know there's a company that can make custom "fatheads". My idea was to get pictures from field level during the game and surround the room as if you were sitting at the 50 yard line. A little over the top, but it'd be cool as hell.
February 18th, 2010 at 3:15 PM ^
Oh to be in school and able to use my printing allotment to print endless amounts of rasterbations to the East Quad computer lab laser printer when other people were trying to print out papers and such...
My room looked great, though.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:32 PM ^
I didn't know if this post was going to be about a Michigan Man-Cave (a Michigan themed cool place for the guys to hang out, and watch sports)
or
a Michigan-Man Cave (which would be 400 Sq. feet of arrogance).
either way, it's 1/3 the size of my entire house, so color me blue with jealousy!
February 18th, 2010 at 2:41 PM ^
The Bo bobble-head. I bought this for my room this year and love it.
February 18th, 2010 at 4:00 PM ^
Yeah I have one too. I love it.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:45 PM ^
You should take a look at the official UM "Gallery" too, I suppose:
http://gallery.pictopia.com/umichigan/
Its pricier- but the photography is stunning.
February 18th, 2010 at 2:59 PM ^
Are you going to post pictures once it is completed?
February 18th, 2010 at 4:03 PM ^
I don't have unlimited funds for it so it is going to be a project done over time. Kind of like the stadium renovations...takes some time and some money but it will all pay off in the end.
February 18th, 2010 at 3:02 PM ^
After you get Direct TV I would recommend 67"-72" of Mitsubisihi Hi Def to build around. Dollar for Dollar the best buy/picture in 1080P without going LED.
2. Bose surround sound.
3. Good theatre seating...dont skimp here.
4. Attached bathroom.
5. Refridgerator.
6. Bar.
Only once these items are built and secured can you begin your quest for proper M gear.
February 18th, 2010 at 3:30 PM ^
In the words of Peter Brenner, I'm going to have to politely disagree on this one.
TV - go for personal preference between a cheaper DLP that eats up some space or a wall mount plasma/lcd/led (I personally prefer plasma since it's cheaper than the others and has excellent picture quality).
Sound - Bose is way overrated in my book. Find a good soundbar (check www.cnet.com) and go with it. Saves a ton of space / installation costs / wiring crap. You could spend $300 on a great soundbar instead of $2K on an amazing surround sound.
Seating - Stadium seating? Really? Have you ever been in a man cave? You're going to need a sectional sofa or a couple of sofas, and a la-z-boy if you can fit one.
The rest of the stuff (bathroom, bar, fridge) is key. I'd recommend with the money you'll save on sound to install a keg system (not a cheap "oh look I turned an old fridge into a keg" option either). Then make sure to have various forms of scotch, whiskey, and vodka. You're set.
February 18th, 2010 at 3:39 PM ^
Beavis dude has a 400 Sq ft room...
http://choiceleatherinc.com/catalog/images/20080320160850Perth%20Home%2…
February 18th, 2010 at 4:07 PM ^
but I went with a black leather sofa instead. I am getting it custome embroidered with block M's in the head rests it should look pretty sweet. And yes I saw the leather Michigan sofa out there but they wanted over 1K for it and I saved some serious money with the one I bought. Great quality too.
February 18th, 2010 at 6:31 PM ^
Yeah, I'm gonna agree, Bose is WAY overrated. Take a look into Athena Technologies. They have great speakers. Look at the Audition Series. A couple AS-F2s, an AS-C1, and a couple AS-R1s with a nice receiver, like Onkyo or Denon, and you are set.
http://www.athenaspeakers.com/products/audition-series/
February 18th, 2010 at 3:31 PM ^
I WANNA LEAVE OHIO! (sob)
February 18th, 2010 at 3:36 PM ^
My office is painted with official Michigan colors from Home Depot. I have a block M neon sign. In addition, I have a throw rug that is marked like a football field with a block M in the middle. i think I got that from Home Depot, too.
February 18th, 2010 at 4:15 PM ^
I already have the Home Depot paint and will be putting that to good use. I am going with a fathead against the main Blue wall but I would love to add a neon sign. Where did you find the block M neon? Not to yank your idea but that is cool as hell.
February 18th, 2010 at 6:05 PM ^
I too used those same colors to paint the inner sides of my garage walls with the "wings". They cover the entire garage going down the sides, I sit in my garage a lot watch games and sip. I also found a maize-ish old fridge and painted blue "wings" going up it.
I live in Iowa so, I may have difficulty selling but...The turned up noses of Iowa fans as they walk by is satisfying.
Ps. I watch no Michigan athletics in the garage. Last game I watched in the garage was the horror...yeah. I stay inside with windows closed as to not destroy the neighborhood convenience and to avoid police intervention..
February 18th, 2010 at 3:52 PM ^
I was thinking along the lines of an igloo, with graffiti on the walls and an NFL jersey as a decoration...
February 18th, 2010 at 3:54 PM ^
the cooler of poo.
February 18th, 2010 at 4:03 PM ^
All you need is beer and a urinal.
February 18th, 2010 at 4:13 PM ^
Make it a piss trough, I hear they're awesome
February 18th, 2010 at 5:56 PM ^
If you get those hi-res images from Bentley, go to Costco's online photo store and you can upload your image (or any image for that matter) and get a stretched canvas 16x20 for like $50.
February 18th, 2010 at 6:44 PM ^
Dude, I am so jealous. I am definitely going to have a Michigan room when I am able to buy a house. I want to get a Michigan block M and a helmet FATHEAD for two of the walls.
February 19th, 2010 at 12:12 AM ^
If I may make one suggestion, make sure the carpeting is blue. My basement is the Michigan man cave with 1800 sq. feet and we had a light brown when we moved in, then changed it to navy blue and it looks a lot better. We have a blue ping pong table, blue pool table, blue card table (flips over to be a regular dining table).
Overall, just take a day and go shopping in A2, find things that are custom/original and things that you like. You are the one spending the time and money in there, so find a theme and roll with it.
Some ideas are:
Heisman wall or award winners wall or coaches wall
Helmets, footballs, banners
Have fun with it, it is a blast to add to it and enjoy it!
February 19th, 2010 at 9:21 AM ^
Photographer hired by the athletic department. Look on his website, you can order any picture framed, matted in almost any size.
Great work, I have a few myself
adamjacobsphotography.com
Check it out, let me know what you think
February 19th, 2010 at 9:31 AM ^
Those are the ones we sell in the art museum, FWIW
February 19th, 2010 at 1:39 PM ^
Thank you this is great.