This may sound a little weird but I can tell I'm in a guy's room by the smell.  I'm not talking stench. I'm talking man smell, pheremones, deoderant.... whatever a man smells like. It is significantly different.  I don't know how to tell you how to do that.

Cindi

Don't change the sheets for a month. Don't vacuum, ensure the bedclothes don't match the curtains, pile your dresser with all kinds of crap (same with the top drawer, all men have a drawer full of miscellanea.  A basic pig sty should do!

My take on it is it doesn't have to be messy or smelly to be masculine, it should just be YOU and reflect your interests. In my apartment,  I go for a sort of old-fashioned gentlemen's club-meets-Ivy League frat house kind of look. Lots of dark wood bureaus and furniture, dark wooden blinds on the windows, big comfy couch, gloomy looking old prints on the walls, etc. One corner has a big TV with lots of music electronics, gaming accessories, and so on. Weights and evidence of working out lying about, and of course, the special bong altar!

I suspect some of the fellows like Nygeel (and other Anglophiles out there, like myself) would be quite comfy coming over for a pint!

dose it really matter how maculine or femenine your room is as long as you like it?
I dont find it that important, but if it is then it should be more important it fit you as a person rather than your gender.

I'm really starting to wonder if all of the 'Filthy' and 'Dirty' comments are supposed to be jokes or not (And to the ones who are being serious, I hope you realize that you're basing that off of stereotypes that I find somewhat offensive. Offensive because the meaning under these comments is that all men are pigs)
Granted, some men are dirty, yes...but I have some friends who are girls and their rooms are even messier than mine (Which is saying a lot by the way)

Getting back to the point of the thread though.
I agree with what some of the other posters have said.
Think about what makes you feel more masculine and stick with that.
Also, I'd stay away from mementos of your childhood, unless you were lucky enough to get HotWheels during Christmas.
I know for me, that I have lots of little 'treasures' from when I was a kid, that are all very girly, I got so sick of them being in my room that they're now in a box.
I still have them, but they are only for my eyes to see and no one else's.

I would however suggest sticking with darker colors, since darker colors have always been deemed more masculine. Reds, Blues, Greens, Browns, Blacks, those sort of things. I'd stay away from Pastels or really bright neon colors, unless of course, those fit your personal style.

As for a theme. A lot of guys that I know don't have a theme to their room, they seem to just sort of put anything that they like in there.
This of course, is referring to teenaged guys.
As the ones that I know older than that all seem to be married, and share a room with their wife, and of course, their wife decorates (Because women think that they have this inborn sense of interior decor...which I find BS because there are TONS of successful male interior decorators. Wow, apparently I'm feeling very confrontational today)

Anyway, I'll also mention that I'm looking to change up my room too, and I've been looking at different interior design books, and reference material from online. That could help you too.

Good luck!

all men are pigs

Bothers me too, particularly when what I see is that only little boys who think that mommy is going to clean up after them are pigs.  Responsible people know enough to pick up after themselves.  Though they are outstanding examples, the guys I know who live like feral dogs, are few.

Quote from: GentlemanRDP on January 25, 2012, 09:47:57 AM
I'm really starting to wonder if all of the 'Filthy' and 'Dirty' comments are supposed to be jokes or not (And to the ones who are being serious, I hope you realize that you're basing that off of stereotypes that I find somewhat offensive. Offensive because the meaning under these comments is that all men are pigs)
Granted, some men are dirty, yes...but I have some friends who are girls and their rooms are even messier than mine (Which is saying a lot by the way)

This isn't meant to be insulting, my comment was partly in jest but based on the majority of men i've known.
Apart from a few men i've known over the years most of my male friends have been very messy, they often keep the rest of the house tidy but most of them used their bedrooms as a dumping ground.

One friends flat was so bad that when I stayed for 6 months my mum refused to visit, his carpet was held together with best wishes & a few prayers, the kitchen was so bad I ate takeaway every day, the end of his hallway was peppered with holes from his indoor archery practice, there was a partly built bike in the attic room (he's stopped working on it because he buit it piece by piece then realised it wouldn't fit down the stairs) & he had a part built bike in the front room.

I can only comment based on my life experience & apologise for any offense caused

  Add one of the neon beer signs to your wall! Lol my friend has like a dozen or so different beer signs and poster's in his room or "man cave" as he calls it.

I've always felt like I have a mix of a teenage boy or 5 year old boy's room. Or just a mix. Here's an idea if this helps.

Spiderman poster, Marines stuff everywhere, my xbox for some reason makes me feel masculine, my guitars are out, my rifles and handguns out, old broken skateboard on the wall, my hats are hung on the walls, really neutral bedding, pull up bar in my doorway...it doesn't scream "girly" but I never really thought of if that said "manly" either.

QuoteAs for a theme. A lot of guys that I know don't have a theme to their room, they seem to just sort of put anything that they like in there.
This of course, is referring to teenaged guys.
As the ones that I know older than that all seem to be married, and share a room with their wife, and of course, their wife decorates (Because women think that they have this inborn sense of interior decor...which I find BS because there are TONS of successful male interior decorators. Wow, apparently I'm feeling very confrontational today)

I know more married than unmarried people, and I haven't seen many themed bedrooms outside of housewares catalogues.

Quote from: Felix on January 25, 2012, 08:30:55 PM
I know more married than unmarried people, and I haven't seen many themed bedrooms outside of housewares catalogues.

Me either. I know plenty of married people, I have yet to see a themed room, including my grandmother's, who has the nicest house I have ever been in. As a guy married to a gay guy, our room is just a room; it's not manly or girly. I didn't know rooms could be gendered. As a kid I just had things I liked in my room. That's pretty much the way it is now too. All I care about is everything being neat and clean so I can find stuff when I need to. My house is organized under the same idea; everything has a place and it is full of things that my husband and I like.

I don't count things like game systems, comics or work out equipment as being masculine or feminine. I mean, I have plenty of game systems ranging from a SNES to a PS3, but I have my Harvest Moon game collection (the most manly of games - a farming/life sim) on proud display. I have comic books right next to history texts and books on transsexual experiences and rights. My work out equipment is between my yoga ball and my ball python's tank. I still have stuffed animals on my bed, including my penguin that I have had my whole life and the stuffed Litwick (yes, I have stuffed pokemon and penguins) my husband just bought me for the holidays. I've had my female friends tell me I have the most ordered, well stocked kitchen and spice rack they've ever seen.

I guess what I am saying is, put stuff you like in your space(s). If you like the things, it should feel right to you.

And for the record, I live in an apartment on a college campus. I have been to plenty of male friends in the dorms that I have visited. I have never seen one room even a quarter as messy or disgusting as some of the descriptions of how a guy's room is supposed to look that I have read in this thread. The worst I've seen is chinese takeout boxes that were a few days old, or a dirty shirt or two on the floor. ANd I am talking about guys from about 18-26. Not even my teenage brothers (17, 14, and 13) are even close to that messy.

I found out pretty early on that if I didn't want my mom in my room all I had to do was keep it clean.  Much easier than having her find everything.  Most everyone I know is anal about tools, and if they are out and about it means the job isn't done yet.  If the job is done, they get put away - or else they tend to walk away.

I have - I don't know about 'theme' per se, but my bedroom is very pastel, faces the sun, very bright, light wood, light wood frames and all the framed stuff is very primary/pastel, flowers and fem, mirrors on two walls - cheerful. 

My office however, the desk goes round the corner in 3 sections, smoked black glass and black anodized aluminium.  The file cabinets are black, and the dressers are dark walnut.  About the only bright thing is a chrome storage unit, floor to ceiling.  It faces the interior courtyard and it's dark.  There are blue LED running lights under the desk, and twinkle lights wrapped in fabric over the window.  The posters are all framed in black, tending toward skulls, and stuff in dark colors.

Two very different feelings - in part because of the light and which rooms get it.  And in part because I like a dark office.