As most Suburban Zen readers know, I have a love/hate relationship with my TV. I like to watch movies and Survivor with my family, I love the Food Channel, and whenever I come across a Mythbusters or What Not to Wear episode, I’ll watch it. I dislike having to talk over TV, having to compete with it for my family’s attention, and every time my children start arguing over what TV show to watch I hide all the remotes and declare a temporary electronic blackout.

Because of my dysfunctional relationship with my TV, I’m always looking for the perfect media storage solution that looks pretty, hides all our stuff, and has doors that close so I can hide the TV from my family when I want them to pay attention to me.

I’ve come across some pretty great solutions in my quest :

I'm always a fan of the armoire as a solution, because it looks pretty when it's closed and has lots of room inside for all the other stuff I want to hide. I prefer a vintage clothing armoire that's been converted to fit media components, rather than one that's been designed for media storage, as the attention is paid to the design of the face, finish and hardware that's sometimes sacrificed on a piece that's designed purely for function.

Many people are putting their TVs in wall alcoves and covering them with art, photos, mirrors, or a pair of vintage doors.

I've toyed with the idea of painting an unframed canvas and hanging it over my TV.

And if I must look at my TV, this is a pretty cute idea:

But honestly, I'd still rather look at this:

I think I feel a blackout coming on.

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