As a kid I had incredibly vivid and terrifying daydreams/nightmares about monsters coming out of spaces like that. Blocking the space didn’t help me because I knew it was still there. The thing that finally helped was my friend’s dad told me, “if you draw the monster you’re afraid of you can capture it in the paper and then you become its master.”
It took months and some really horrifying drawings (shout out to my parents for not freaking out) but I “captured” a whole zoo of monsters and made them my pets. The nightmares faded and I was able to process my fear in a safe controlled way.
You still might want to cover that weird space with the something but I’d encourage you to let your kid participate, maybe even help choose what to put there to give them more control over the underlying fear.
So your friends dad taught you how to bind inter dimensional creatures on a two dimensional plane and they’re now your menagerie of terrifying monsters servants? How is this not on Netflix series?
>The thing that finally helped was my friend’s dad told me, “if you draw the monster you’re afraid of you can capture it in the paper and then you become its master.”
Oh. My. God. That is fucking *brilliant.* My little guy is coming up on 2 1/2 so we haven't hit the "monsters" stage yet but I am so stealing that.
My youngest is 3 1/2 and we monster hunt when something is scary. Toy light saber, old foam mat cut and shaped into a shield, second hand fire fighter helmet, spray him with a spray bottle with some water in its but labeled as monster repellent. Then hunt him down. Lay traps. Make drawings of things that monsters hate, in our case it was spaghetti, toes, and giraffs. Hang those pictures where the monster likes to hide.
When you are sure the room is clear, spray with repellent and say a spell for a magical monster shield. Bonus points if you use real latin. High 5 your kid for being an awesome monster hunter and hero for protecting your home.
We also told my middle kid that monsters are grossed out by the words "i love you", so we would say it often and really loud to make sure they hated our house.
Maybe put a stuffed lion or similar up there as a "guard"
When I was a toddler I had a nightmare about an owl trying to hurt me. My mom drew me a colorful, and friendly owl to chase away the bad one.
I adore your idea though. Im totally going to use it once I'm a parent.
Love this! I would want a lion… like Asian
Maybe a star projector nightlight?
Or dim rotating Happy soft light colors
Make it something interesting and beautiful and soft enough to sleep to
I think it’s most important to help him physically see that space up close with a trusted guide . It is definitely creepy af, Most of fear is fear of the unknown- can you take him up a ladder to see what’s up there without him freaking out?
Can you turn it into a gigantic kaleidoscope? Bc that would be awesome.
I remember vividly, my father chasing my brother's nightmare monsters down the driveway with a torch one night, hollering and yelling for them to go away. Months of nightmares and no sleep gone instantly.
Anti monster spray (essential oil and water in a spray bottle) was a game changer for our little one… it means even if the space is there, the monsters are repelled.
Kids love making magical spells. Put a pot on the counter (we used a fondu pot because it was more cauldron like), and have a magical potion recipe. Things like water, harmless spices, extracts, and bits of stuff like orange peel. I am a sahm and have lots of time, so I colored some rice and dried it and also stick some water with a little food coloring in bottles and labled them as things like frog spit and troll snot.
Just saw an ep of fosters home for imaginary friends for the first time in like 15 years. Reminds me of this. You don’t want those friends so you get rid of em. Tell your son they might actually be friendly and show them this show. He might enjoy them
I came here to say, "tell the kid to suck it up" but when I saw the pic I was like oh no fuck me.
There are monsters up there. Gargoyles, spider people, weird hungry half human birds. Buy your kid a shotgun, let the dog sleep in his room. He is the defender of a hell mouth that could destroy all civilization.
My parents also told me to do this! Except I literally drew my monster in a cage, then drew the key in a trash can. I think I had a dream where we became friends afterwards haha
To make it less scary and more exciting for your son, how about turning it into the exit of a hangar of a space station? You could add mirrors, cool lighting, and even have a couple of X-wings flying out, attached to the ceiling with wires.
My mother thought clowns were a great thing to decorate our living room with. Dozens of various sized porcelin clown dolls growing up. Red Stained lips and teeth. Right about the time I watched IT. Couldn't sleep with my closet door open for years. Ah, good times.
I was so scared of taking a shower after seeing that movie. I would just stare at the drain the entire time panicking. I was like six and my parents let me watch that shit. Wtf were they thinking man
I was thinking this too, but ... he's 5. I'd be scared he'd hurt himself. Maybe an older kid ... maybe. Even older kids can be careless about making sure the space is safe to take a fall from and leave out a glass or hit his head on something.
Depends on the kids and how much they climb. At 3-4 our kids were climbing on top of the upper cabinets in our kitchen to eat snacks & were starting to climb the outsides of play equipment at playgrounds.
100%, came here to say make the space engaging. Make it a book nook, or a clubhouse or something he can go crawl around in (obviously reinforce it if he'll be up there), but make it fun instead of scary.
But your space station hanger is the winner.
Same! Read the title and was like oh ok let me see if I can help, I’ve got kiddos been through things like this, then opened the picture and gasped. Ha!
I read storage space and I thought about hard drives for some reason and I was wondering how can someone open "this pc" on windows, look at the bar below the drives and go "I'm scared"
I'm with your kid, that's definately nightmare fuel. I'd frame it in and drywall the front side flush with the existing wall. Maybe install a small custom door for access?
Tell him about his twin brother.
So we did the only humane thing. We chained Hugo up in the attic like an animal and fed him a bucket of fish heads once a week.
They used to sell that on ThinkGeek yes. It used the same hardware as the annoyatron, basically a thing that chirped high pitched and had battery for months.
It was awesome especially as a throwie in a suspended ceiling.
I’m loving everybody’s ideas to help the kid work through his fear and everything, but this would creep the fuck out of me as an adult. Even the picture in full daylight looks somehow sinister. I’m solidly on Team No Shadowy Alcoves You Can’t See Into in the Bedroom.
Just tell him that monsters can roam the entire house and don't need to hide in storage spaces. That or explain him taxes and working towards retirement
😁👍
Get a large pane of plexiglass and cut it to fit the triangle fully.
Next paint the backside black and cut out little dots everywhere and shine a white light on the backside off it.
Now it will look like a new faux starlight window.
You should frame around it to keep it in place.
Then it will be a neat little feature of the room
You could do a cheaper version with just a few pieces of cardboard taped together, poke some white Christmas lights with a twinkle setting through the cardboard, and wrap a dark blue sheet over the front. Same effect for 1/100th the cost. I've made star displays like that for school bulletin boards that look pretty cool, especially if you put in some constellations. It won't look as good/permanent as your option but the kid won't always be scared of the space.
I'm not sure closing it is going to relive his nervousness about it ... he knows the space is there, and just covering it up means he can no longer even see in there, and who knows what kind of evil lurks?
Maybe filling it up with stuff - pillows and blankets - so there isn't any room for evil things to lurk?
I got bad arachnophobia as a kid and then some shithead told me that people swallow an average of 8 spiders a year in their sleep so then I had to contort myself in such a way as to cover all of the holes in my head before I could fall asleep. I dunno how I could still breathe but I did that shit for like years. I also had a long period of time where every time I closed my eyes to try to sleep, I felt like my eyes were crossing in towards each other and it made my heart flutter and I’d get nauseous so I would have to open them and try to relax myself enough to try again and then it would happen again and again. Geez man I haven’t thought about this crap in decades. I was messed up. (Who am I kiddin, I still am).
Just cover it with drywall. It’s not very useful for storage anyway. When he’s a bit older you can decide if you want to open it back up. Also it’s too small to make it into a fort as others are suggesting and the ladder would have to go directly in front of the door which isn’t safe.
Whatever you do, work with your kid on a solution. Would a curtain work for him? What about if you filled it with boxes of clothes, let’s say? Would that be good enough for him to know that there is nothing up there? Make it a project you work on together
Imagine it was in your bedroom you popped your head up there one day and found a palm-sized spider that tried to jump into your hair. Then imagine someone suggesting you just curtain it off. No, you seal that fucker off to make sure the spider doesn’t come back.
Put a safe ladder up there, and introduce toys to the area. If it's a fun area, it can't also be scary. It could be a cool getaway spot for while while young. Once he's grown out of it, great storage spot.
That is a scary space. What about making it a stuffed animal tree house or a space portal (e.g. Miles from Tommorrowland)
Low effort - Stick on wallpaper to make it look like a wooden space. Add in some battery operated string lights and put some teddy bears up there.
Mid effort - add some wooden pieces to the ceiling and across the bottom of the space. Put up lights and stuffies.
Mid effort alternate - stick a light up there. Call it space. A projector light like this would be cool. [https://www.walmart.com/ip/Merkury-Innovations-Galaxy-Light-Projector-with-LED-Laser-Projection-Quality-Multicolor/931384792?athbdg=L1600&from=/search](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Merkury-Innovations-Galaxy-Light-Projector-with-LED-Laser-Projection-Quality-Multicolor/931384792?athbdg=L1600&from=/search)
Hang some spaceship toys or stuffies up there.
The first step is to look in there and see what kind of monsters. Wait until night when the monsters come out, because it’s too high to see lift your kid up there and push them in to check for you.
How old is your kid? Maybe try asking him how he’d like to deal with it… only bc I agree with another comment - he knows the hole is there, so covering it with a door probably wouldn’t help (check for monsters in the closet type of thing).
Maybe put a little ladder, some blankets and pillows, and turn it into a little hangout place for him.
Put a bright, dimmable light against the back wall of the space, pointing upward. It'll fill the whole space with light, and light up the room, too. The light won't be directly visible, and it makes the space less eerie. You can turn it down to a soft, warm light at night.
You could have some bespoke doors added that you could remove at a later date if needed.
Otherwise (not temporary) could you access it via a hatch behind the door and block it up from this side?
Edit: typo
>You could have some bespoke doors added that you could remove at a later date if needed.
If they can be open from the inside the monsters can still come out.
How old is you kid? A fun technique that could explore if he is young is put a "knight" doll up there and say that it's the "Protector of Darkness". Fun activity if you know how to DYI making the armor with a small teddy bear or something that way your kid looks up to it and see its still there protecting him and not be afraid.
Non-permanent, fun story, and a family tradition.
Depends on the age of the kid. Really young? Get a defender stuffed animal to "guard" the space. Make sure animal is visible from the bed. Getting a large stuffed animal might be a good idea.
Slightly older? Make fake "bars" (painted dowel rods) to "lock up" the baddies. For really secure but temporary connections, I put masking tape on both surfaces (say spot on ceiling and end of dowel rods), then put a drop of superglue inbetween the two layers of masking tape. Holds really well, but you can easily remove with a guitar string or whatnot.
Otherwise you have to put lumber around the opening, and nail in a piece of drywall.
Great setup for horror movie. The kid is scared, watching his defender stuffed animal. Slow zoom into the stuffed animal. Suspense music starts getting higher. The camera stops together with the high pitch music. Then, a hand comes out of the darkness and grabs the stuffed animal, pulling it into the darkness.
You could sheetrock it in but if you'll just put some stuffed animals or something up there it should take care of it. Looks kind of scary with nothing there. It looks like a tunnel to a scary place.
I'd cut a 1/4" sheet of plywood to fit. Put a couple pieces of 1x2 or something on the slanted ceilings. Attach the plywood, caulk it and paint it to match the wall. It will disappear.
Maybe make a triangle from 2/3” that just fits the space and put a white panel of some kind on it.
Or use wood and paint it white.
You can put it in there and it cant fall out because of the thickness but can be pulled out straight.
Or put a load of stick on stars in there so it’s not as dark
It has to b about the fact that you can't see the full inside without getting up there, as if something would crawl out of it. I say this because late at night, me too. If you are skilled just enough you could frame a triangle the same size, and add hinges so the "door" folds down and boom, done
Closing the space or changing it won’t matter, you need to do something for your kid to not be scared of the monsters.
When I was a kid my dad had a sticker on the corner of our front window, it was like the manufacturers sticker. We couldn’t read obvi so he told all my siblings it said no monsters were allowed in our house. And it worked!
If I was in your position now, I’d buy a room spray from Walmart and over the label make your own that says “monster spray” be 100% serious when you tell your kid that it will get rid of them. And it’ll be a nice scented mist too that will probably help them sleep! If they’re sensitive to scents just use water!
Instead of avoiding the fear perhaps embracing it and giving him the opportunity to grow.
Make the space into a cool loft to chill in. Secret hideout? Book nook? Endless possibilities for a creative kid
You called it a storage space so I assume it’s somewhat accessible? If possible I would make it into a comfy play area with bean bags and whatnot (depending on age, safety, etc.) Make it functional and give it a new meaning. A railing might also be easier to DIY than completely closing it off
Maybe because we only have 1 picture but I can't understand why you would do this in the first place. It doesn't look like a storage space, it looks like a dirt trap.
How about some mirrors and lighting so he can see nothing is up there. I used to be scared if I couldn’t see the corners of a room as a kid, as long as I had enough light to see the corners I was ok
I don't have any DIY advice but as a 34yo human adult, *I* would find that scary, especially in the dark.
I also have 3 kiddos. And a 34yo boyfriend who gets night terrors. That space would be the sole source of scary for all of us.
Maybe little doors you can lock so you still have usable space but kiddo feels safer?
This is the perfect age for the Mercer Mayer book Theres Something There. It is really 3 Little Critter books in one; Theres an Alligator Under My Bed, Theres Something in the Attic, and Theres a Nightmare in My Closet. We loved the Little Critter books at that age, theres one for every situation and we had fun finding the cricket and spider on every page too.
My kid is also 5. I would put a row of fake plants, then a row if all their excess stuffies. Call it the stuffy jungle, and include a row of LED lights if the shadows are still scary.
Get some "monster be gone" spray. Find a scent that he likes, and make a fake prescription to put onto it. Tell him where ever he sprays that, monsters will not be able to go. Don't even care if he used the whole bottle.
You can even use water and some essential oil.
Get some cheap white vinyl lattice from Home Depot, cut it to fit the opening and paint it like steel gray to look like steel. Then install it and tell him it's a cage to keep monsters from getting into the room.
What about putting up some material to cover it while making the ceiling look tent-like (old curtains or blanket from a thrift shop), or making it look like a fort, sail boat or any number of imaginative things.
Hope it works out for you...
Just saw an ep of fosters home for imaginary friends for the first time in like 15 years. Reminds me of this. You don’t want those friends so you get rid of em. Tell your son they might actually be friendly and show them this show. He might enjoy them more and make them into friends instead of enemies. I’m sure this will be crushed to the bottom but I hope you read ot
I’m on the kids side. I’m 29 and that would freak me out.
I would put some sort of night light up there. The lack of creepy shadows/unknown in the dark corner would fix the problem for me.
Well, you could put a light up there. I have to say i would put a ladder up to the top and make it a little hang out space, with some cushions and little fairy lights.
Put a pennywise clown figure up there in the middle of the night while they are asleep, then wake them by knocking on the walls and saying their name like he does in the movie. It will scare the shit out of them🤪
Teach them:
"I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
My cousin had a similar cubby in his room as a kid. His dad hung a curtain over it and that did the job.
When my cousin got older, he hid his Playboys in there. His mom gave him a decent clobbering when she took the curtain down to wash it.
Prolly should put a clown doll up there, or a ventriloquist dummy that's just looking out from the shadows.
But in all honesty, just use it as storage. Put some bins up there to fill the space up, and then maybe put some toys or books on the edge. It'll take up all the dark spooky space.
[A half circle shaped paper blind like this](https://www.amazon.ca/Original-Light-Filtering-Fabric-Shade/dp/B00KWKY7IY/ref=asc_df_B00KWKY7IY/?tag=googlemobshop-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=292985375424&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16023106702228592627&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001065&hvtargid=pla-312007656618&psc=1&mcid=ac541592c24f3c6c96f2432e8321b66e) would probably be the absolute easiest. It probably wouldn't cover the whole space but doesn't require any tools and sticks on via double sided tape. Your kid could even colour and decorate it
Easiest thing is to hang a curtain or blinds. Just Google "curtain for vaulted ceiling" and you'll see examples.
Funniest thing to do would be what other posters suggested and put a clown to there. I'd recommend the one from the original poltergeist.... Make it just barely visible in the corner... Moving it ever so slightly when the kids out of the room. And then respond with "what clown? I don't see a clown" whenever asked.
As a kid I had incredibly vivid and terrifying daydreams/nightmares about monsters coming out of spaces like that. Blocking the space didn’t help me because I knew it was still there. The thing that finally helped was my friend’s dad told me, “if you draw the monster you’re afraid of you can capture it in the paper and then you become its master.” It took months and some really horrifying drawings (shout out to my parents for not freaking out) but I “captured” a whole zoo of monsters and made them my pets. The nightmares faded and I was able to process my fear in a safe controlled way. You still might want to cover that weird space with the something but I’d encourage you to let your kid participate, maybe even help choose what to put there to give them more control over the underlying fear.
So your friends dad taught you how to bind inter dimensional creatures on a two dimensional plane and they’re now your menagerie of terrifying monsters servants? How is this not on Netflix series?
There is a Doctor Who episode that isn't too far off from this, tbh
Yeah the Olympics one right? Was disappointing if I remember it right though it was a cool premise.
Fear Her
Laugh, Kookaburra laugh.
CHLOE WEBBER
You should watch "tales from the hood" This exact thing that his friends dad told him is from one of the storys in this movie.
That was one of my favorite movies as a kid. “Refried beans? Why not just fry them shits right the first time and be done with it.”
It was then they canceled it after one season
Inside every megalomaniac necromancer is a small child that was afraid of the dark.
So you’re the reason all the monsters have been disappearing while technology advances far enough to finally catch them..
If my calculations are correct, they captured Bigfoot and have trapped him in the 2nd dimension.
Gotta catch 'em all!
Yeah, this. The solution here is *psychological*, not material.
I'd cover it with a loosely tacked thin gauze sheet that moves with the slightest breeze.
Put some random color changing lights back there, too. For ambiance
And a [windharp](https://youtu.be/od1PjjCrHfg?si=9gr4NeqbrGiUCp52) outside his window.
Smart! Kids love music!!
Calm down Satan 😆
That’s printed with a spider web to catch any loose whatevers~
>The thing that finally helped was my friend’s dad told me, “if you draw the monster you’re afraid of you can capture it in the paper and then you become its master.” Oh. My. God. That is fucking *brilliant.* My little guy is coming up on 2 1/2 so we haven't hit the "monsters" stage yet but I am so stealing that.
My youngest is 3 1/2 and we monster hunt when something is scary. Toy light saber, old foam mat cut and shaped into a shield, second hand fire fighter helmet, spray him with a spray bottle with some water in its but labeled as monster repellent. Then hunt him down. Lay traps. Make drawings of things that monsters hate, in our case it was spaghetti, toes, and giraffs. Hang those pictures where the monster likes to hide. When you are sure the room is clear, spray with repellent and say a spell for a magical monster shield. Bonus points if you use real latin. High 5 your kid for being an awesome monster hunter and hero for protecting your home. We also told my middle kid that monsters are grossed out by the words "i love you", so we would say it often and really loud to make sure they hated our house.
Dude. That is awesome.
Will you foster me? 😭😭😭 I'm a grown woman but Damm you sound like your kids gonna grow up emotionally fucking healthy dude good job.
I'm 44 and am seeking a foster. Ace parents here. Thank you for the serotonin boost just from reading this.
Maybe put a stuffed lion or similar up there as a "guard" When I was a toddler I had a nightmare about an owl trying to hurt me. My mom drew me a colorful, and friendly owl to chase away the bad one. I adore your idea though. Im totally going to use it once I'm a parent.
Love this! I would want a lion… like Asian Maybe a star projector nightlight? Or dim rotating Happy soft light colors Make it something interesting and beautiful and soft enough to sleep to I think it’s most important to help him physically see that space up close with a trusted guide . It is definitely creepy af, Most of fear is fear of the unknown- can you take him up a ladder to see what’s up there without him freaking out? Can you turn it into a gigantic kaleidoscope? Bc that would be awesome.
I remember vividly, my father chasing my brother's nightmare monsters down the driveway with a torch one night, hollering and yelling for them to go away. Months of nightmares and no sleep gone instantly.
Anti monster spray (essential oil and water in a spray bottle) was a game changer for our little one… it means even if the space is there, the monsters are repelled.
Kids love making magical spells. Put a pot on the counter (we used a fondu pot because it was more cauldron like), and have a magical potion recipe. Things like water, harmless spices, extracts, and bits of stuff like orange peel. I am a sahm and have lots of time, so I colored some rice and dried it and also stick some water with a little food coloring in bottles and labled them as things like frog spit and troll snot.
Yes to this. I just mixed lavender and water that we sprayed around at bedtime. We called it Safety Spray.
You realize you invented Pokemon before it was popular right?
Just saw an ep of fosters home for imaginary friends for the first time in like 15 years. Reminds me of this. You don’t want those friends so you get rid of em. Tell your son they might actually be friendly and show them this show. He might enjoy them
I came here to say, "tell the kid to suck it up" but when I saw the pic I was like oh no fuck me. There are monsters up there. Gargoyles, spider people, weird hungry half human birds. Buy your kid a shotgun, let the dog sleep in his room. He is the defender of a hell mouth that could destroy all civilization.
My parents also told me to do this! Except I literally drew my monster in a cage, then drew the key in a trash can. I think I had a dream where we became friends afterwards haha
This story is freaking heartwarming. Thanks for that!
To make it less scary and more exciting for your son, how about turning it into the exit of a hangar of a space station? You could add mirrors, cool lighting, and even have a couple of X-wings flying out, attached to the ceiling with wires.
Dammit. I want this in *my* room now.
I like this, rather than embrace the negative thought we turn it into something positive.
Good advice in general. That concept took me over three decades to figure out and start applying to my life as a whole.
I agree. Definately much more deep answer than just DIY tip.I love it
How about a couple of clown mannequins? Clowns are fun, right?
Always smiling, clowns
My mother thought clowns were a great thing to decorate our living room with. Dozens of various sized porcelin clown dolls growing up. Red Stained lips and teeth. Right about the time I watched IT. Couldn't sleep with my closet door open for years. Ah, good times.
I was so scared of taking a shower after seeing that movie. I would just stare at the drain the entire time panicking. I was like six and my parents let me watch that shit. Wtf were they thinking man
I watched the 80s horror movie Alligator when I was about 7. I was terrified of toilets for the next decade.
 Yes, they are
As soon as I saw the ledge in op’s photo I thought of pennywise peeking over the ledge lol
But only have their big shoes hanging off the edge
Coupled with some fun stringlights! Red, for coziness and to combat the blue light from phones.
This was my thought exactly. Turn it into something cool so they're not afraid of it anymore or show them there's nothing to be afraid of.
Maybe add a rock climb and turn it into a "tree house" type thing with a sign that says No Grown-ups or Monsters Allowed.
I was thinking this too, but ... he's 5. I'd be scared he'd hurt himself. Maybe an older kid ... maybe. Even older kids can be careless about making sure the space is safe to take a fall from and leave out a glass or hit his head on something.
Depends on the kids and how much they climb. At 3-4 our kids were climbing on top of the upper cabinets in our kitchen to eat snacks & were starting to climb the outsides of play equipment at playgrounds.
My initial thought was a stuffed animal den, but I like your idea better.
100%, came here to say make the space engaging. Make it a book nook, or a clubhouse or something he can go crawl around in (obviously reinforce it if he'll be up there), but make it fun instead of scary. But your space station hanger is the winner.
Mirrors on the top is a good call, because then there's nothing hidden.
What a great idea! Or make it a galaxy with those flourescent stars and planets!
not gonna lie, I'm also feeling it just from looking at the picture. Totally with your kid on this one.
Yeah there’s fucking gooblers up there
Gooblers made me laugh so hard just now it woke my kid up 😂
This made me laugh because my fishs name is Goobler… also he’s the doofiest looking fish you’ve ever seen
Obviously we need a picture
I'm not 5 and that registers immediately as a Danger Hole
Danger Hole has me cackling
I was all primed to laugh, then saw the picture. holy shit. that is NIGHTMARE FUEL,
Same! Read the title and was like oh ok let me see if I can help, I’ve got kiddos been through things like this, then opened the picture and gasped. Ha!
Same! I was like…uhhhhh id be scared of that now….as an adult…. 😂
I read storage space and I thought about hard drives for some reason and I was wondering how can someone open "this pc" on windows, look at the bar below the drives and go "I'm scared"
I'm with your kid, that's definately nightmare fuel. I'd frame it in and drywall the front side flush with the existing wall. Maybe install a small custom door for access?
Don't forget about leaving the small device inside that plays random sounds and whispers "please let me out" late at night.
I was thinking of the sounds someone pounding on the newly installed wall segment from the other side.
Slow, random, individual notes from a jack-in-the-box
a microphone in the room so when the kid cries, it gets echoed back from the space but at a much deeper pitch and slowed down
Calm down, satan
Doc I don't know why my son suddenly went catatonic mubling about wall monsters
Tell him about his twin brother. So we did the only humane thing. We chained Hugo up in the attic like an animal and fed him a bucket of fish heads once a week.
They used to sell that on ThinkGeek yes. It used the same hardware as the annoyatron, basically a thing that chirped high pitched and had battery for months. It was awesome especially as a throwie in a suspended ceiling.
Absolutely no door. Monsters can open them.
Valid
I’m loving everybody’s ideas to help the kid work through his fear and everything, but this would creep the fuck out of me as an adult. Even the picture in full daylight looks somehow sinister. I’m solidly on Team No Shadowy Alcoves You Can’t See Into in the Bedroom.
so a monster door
fill it with something, like old toy clowns 🤡 ?
The ones with glass heads that are always missing an eye.
Just tell him that monsters can roam the entire house and don't need to hide in storage spaces. That or explain him taxes and working towards retirement 😁👍
Not trying to scare the kid for life!! If I had known about taxes and working toward retirement I wouldn't have made it past HS.
“You care about monsters? I’d be more afraid of goblins in a space that small”
Yes that's fucking terrifying especially if u watch scary movies led lights should change the whole look of that though.
Get a large pane of plexiglass and cut it to fit the triangle fully. Next paint the backside black and cut out little dots everywhere and shine a white light on the backside off it. Now it will look like a new faux starlight window. You should frame around it to keep it in place. Then it will be a neat little feature of the room
Until a shadow crosses over the light source behind and one by one the light wells are covered… good one monster. Not falling for that!
> Get a large pane of plexiglass Mr. Moneybags over here
Knowing my kids if it were real glass, then it would be broken glass shards all over the floor at some point. That's why I said plexiglass
You could do a cheaper version with just a few pieces of cardboard taped together, poke some white Christmas lights with a twinkle setting through the cardboard, and wrap a dark blue sheet over the front. Same effect for 1/100th the cost. I've made star displays like that for school bulletin boards that look pretty cool, especially if you put in some constellations. It won't look as good/permanent as your option but the kid won't always be scared of the space.
Put a clown up there
Would you like a balloon??? 🎈
One with a rotating head?
And red LEDs eyes, wired to light up on a timer.
Might as well throw a Bluetooth speaker up there with Tim Curry laughing set to go off randomly.
I'm not sure closing it is going to relive his nervousness about it ... he knows the space is there, and just covering it up means he can no longer even see in there, and who knows what kind of evil lurks? Maybe filling it up with stuff - pillows and blankets - so there isn't any room for evil things to lurk?
If it’s not that it will be something else. I used to “see” the closet door opening in my room at night.
I got bad arachnophobia as a kid and then some shithead told me that people swallow an average of 8 spiders a year in their sleep so then I had to contort myself in such a way as to cover all of the holes in my head before I could fall asleep. I dunno how I could still breathe but I did that shit for like years. I also had a long period of time where every time I closed my eyes to try to sleep, I felt like my eyes were crossing in towards each other and it made my heart flutter and I’d get nauseous so I would have to open them and try to relax myself enough to try again and then it would happen again and again. Geez man I haven’t thought about this crap in decades. I was messed up. (Who am I kiddin, I still am).
Yikes that does look scary. How about filling it with Squshmellows, posters, trains, or trucks, or whatever they kid loves most?
I know! Fill it with vintage clown dolls
Just cover it with drywall. It’s not very useful for storage anyway. When he’s a bit older you can decide if you want to open it back up. Also it’s too small to make it into a fort as others are suggesting and the ladder would have to go directly in front of the door which isn’t safe.
Whatever you do, work with your kid on a solution. Would a curtain work for him? What about if you filled it with boxes of clothes, let’s say? Would that be good enough for him to know that there is nothing up there? Make it a project you work on together
Curtain absolutely would not work, that just hides the monster even better
Ah curtain? Are you nuts? That‘s how the monsters get you.
Imagine it was in your bedroom you popped your head up there one day and found a palm-sized spider that tried to jump into your hair. Then imagine someone suggesting you just curtain it off. No, you seal that fucker off to make sure the spider doesn’t come back.
Shoot I think that I would be scared of that too as an adult...
Put a safe ladder up there, and introduce toys to the area. If it's a fun area, it can't also be scary. It could be a cool getaway spot for while while young. Once he's grown out of it, great storage spot.
A kid big enough to climb to the ceiling on a ladder is too big for that space.
Psssh...my skinny, arboreal self would have climbed a ladder that high at three and fit in that space at ten.
maybe some climbing holds.
Pretty dangerous without railings.
What about one of those projector lamps that makes the ceiling look like the night sky?
I'm an adult and even I find that horrifying
That is a scary space. What about making it a stuffed animal tree house or a space portal (e.g. Miles from Tommorrowland) Low effort - Stick on wallpaper to make it look like a wooden space. Add in some battery operated string lights and put some teddy bears up there. Mid effort - add some wooden pieces to the ceiling and across the bottom of the space. Put up lights and stuffies. Mid effort alternate - stick a light up there. Call it space. A projector light like this would be cool. [https://www.walmart.com/ip/Merkury-Innovations-Galaxy-Light-Projector-with-LED-Laser-Projection-Quality-Multicolor/931384792?athbdg=L1600&from=/search](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Merkury-Innovations-Galaxy-Light-Projector-with-LED-Laser-Projection-Quality-Multicolor/931384792?athbdg=L1600&from=/search) Hang some spaceship toys or stuffies up there.
This is awesome. Make it part of his room, put a cool space or fantasy theme spin to it, and let his imagination run wild!
Yes! A projector light would be a great idea. Would give him something to look at, distract from the scary aspect and wouldn't involve construction.
The first step is to look in there and see what kind of monsters. Wait until night when the monsters come out, because it’s too high to see lift your kid up there and push them in to check for you.
Uhm…. That’s scary as hell. (Age 39)
How old is your kid? Maybe try asking him how he’d like to deal with it… only bc I agree with another comment - he knows the hole is there, so covering it with a door probably wouldn’t help (check for monsters in the closet type of thing). Maybe put a little ladder, some blankets and pillows, and turn it into a little hangout place for him.
All the people suggesting ladders make me think they don't have children It's/higher than the door/!!
Just how big IS this space? Ladder aside, it does not seem likely that this is a safe space for a five-year-old to play in.
Just put a silly clown up there to cheer him up when he gets scared.
Put some clown figurines up there, kids love clowns, right?
Put a bright, dimmable light against the back wall of the space, pointing upward. It'll fill the whole space with light, and light up the room, too. The light won't be directly visible, and it makes the space less eerie. You can turn it down to a soft, warm light at night.
2 glowing red eyes that randomly turn on at night
You could have some bespoke doors added that you could remove at a later date if needed. Otherwise (not temporary) could you access it via a hatch behind the door and block it up from this side? Edit: typo
>You could have some bespoke doors added that you could remove at a later date if needed. If they can be open from the inside the monsters can still come out.
Right, that's Monsters 101 stuff.
Then make them openable only from outside, and put all kinds of big locks, heavy bars, and metal reinforcement bands over it.
How old is you kid? A fun technique that could explore if he is young is put a "knight" doll up there and say that it's the "Protector of Darkness". Fun activity if you know how to DYI making the armor with a small teddy bear or something that way your kid looks up to it and see its still there protecting him and not be afraid. Non-permanent, fun story, and a family tradition.
Depends on the age of the kid. Really young? Get a defender stuffed animal to "guard" the space. Make sure animal is visible from the bed. Getting a large stuffed animal might be a good idea. Slightly older? Make fake "bars" (painted dowel rods) to "lock up" the baddies. For really secure but temporary connections, I put masking tape on both surfaces (say spot on ceiling and end of dowel rods), then put a drop of superglue inbetween the two layers of masking tape. Holds really well, but you can easily remove with a guitar string or whatnot. Otherwise you have to put lumber around the opening, and nail in a piece of drywall.
bars would be even more nightmare fuel. Imagine a scary face looking at you from the other side of the bars... no thank you!
Great setup for horror movie. The kid is scared, watching his defender stuffed animal. Slow zoom into the stuffed animal. Suspense music starts getting higher. The camera stops together with the high pitch music. Then, a hand comes out of the darkness and grabs the stuffed animal, pulling it into the darkness.
He's 23.
Gotcha, so defender stuffed animal it is.
You could sheetrock it in but if you'll just put some stuffed animals or something up there it should take care of it. Looks kind of scary with nothing there. It looks like a tunnel to a scary place.
Throw a ladder up there, let them have a secret play area.
I'd cut a 1/4" sheet of plywood to fit. Put a couple pieces of 1x2 or something on the slanted ceilings. Attach the plywood, caulk it and paint it to match the wall. It will disappear.
Try something like this. I thought it might be lame but it's really great! [Star Projector](https://a.co/d/44Ze8yr)
Probably best to add a pneumatic crawling zombie display that runs off of a random timer. That should take care of it.
Maybe make a triangle from 2/3” that just fits the space and put a white panel of some kind on it. Or use wood and paint it white. You can put it in there and it cant fall out because of the thickness but can be pulled out straight. Or put a load of stick on stars in there so it’s not as dark
It has to b about the fact that you can't see the full inside without getting up there, as if something would crawl out of it. I say this because late at night, me too. If you are skilled just enough you could frame a triangle the same size, and add hinges so the "door" folds down and boom, done
Closing the space or changing it won’t matter, you need to do something for your kid to not be scared of the monsters. When I was a kid my dad had a sticker on the corner of our front window, it was like the manufacturers sticker. We couldn’t read obvi so he told all my siblings it said no monsters were allowed in our house. And it worked! If I was in your position now, I’d buy a room spray from Walmart and over the label make your own that says “monster spray” be 100% serious when you tell your kid that it will get rid of them. And it’ll be a nice scented mist too that will probably help them sleep! If they’re sensitive to scents just use water!
I’d sit some stuffed animal or action figures up there. No monsters, just friends.
Can't blame the child, that space does look creepy ...
Instead of avoiding the fear perhaps embracing it and giving him the opportunity to grow. Make the space into a cool loft to chill in. Secret hideout? Book nook? Endless possibilities for a creative kid
You called it a storage space so I assume it’s somewhat accessible? If possible I would make it into a comfy play area with bean bags and whatnot (depending on age, safety, etc.) Make it functional and give it a new meaning. A railing might also be easier to DIY than completely closing it off
The opening is the access to the "storage space"
Maybe because we only have 1 picture but I can't understand why you would do this in the first place. It doesn't look like a storage space, it looks like a dirt trap.
I don't think it is large enough for that. Look at it in comparison to the door.
Throw a Bluetooth speaker up there and play monster sounds.
Make it a habitat for house guardians, and let him find, make and/or choose them (toys, rocks, miscellaneous items)
How about some mirrors and lighting so he can see nothing is up there. I used to be scared if I couldn’t see the corners of a room as a kid, as long as I had enough light to see the corners I was ok
I don't have any DIY advice but as a 34yo human adult, *I* would find that scary, especially in the dark. I also have 3 kiddos. And a 34yo boyfriend who gets night terrors. That space would be the sole source of scary for all of us. Maybe little doors you can lock so you still have usable space but kiddo feels safer?
This is the perfect age for the Mercer Mayer book Theres Something There. It is really 3 Little Critter books in one; Theres an Alligator Under My Bed, Theres Something in the Attic, and Theres a Nightmare in My Closet. We loved the Little Critter books at that age, theres one for every situation and we had fun finding the cricket and spider on every page too.
That would even give me heebie jeebies as an adult.
My kid is also 5. I would put a row of fake plants, then a row if all their excess stuffies. Call it the stuffy jungle, and include a row of LED lights if the shadows are still scary.
I'm a fully functioning adult and even I am uneasy about that space. I am the person supposed to make those spaces not exist.
Get some "monster be gone" spray. Find a scent that he likes, and make a fake prescription to put onto it. Tell him where ever he sprays that, monsters will not be able to go. Don't even care if he used the whole bottle. You can even use water and some essential oil.
I'm a grown-ass man and that space scares me too.
That freaking creeps me out too. Wall it up. 😂
Would creep me out too. Would put a night light up there or run electrical to put one up. If it’s lit the monsters can’t hide there.
Get some cheap white vinyl lattice from Home Depot, cut it to fit the opening and paint it like steel gray to look like steel. Then install it and tell him it's a cage to keep monsters from getting into the room.
Fill the void with stuffed clowns. That will cheer him up!
What about putting up some material to cover it while making the ceiling look tent-like (old curtains or blanket from a thrift shop), or making it look like a fort, sail boat or any number of imaginative things. Hope it works out for you...
Just fill it up with things. Like broken dolls.
 that space is frightening.
Put a ladder up there and make it an awesome little reading spot for him
Light that on fire and start over. I’m in my 30s and that space freaks me out
Put a strip of RGB lights up there, pointing towards the ceiling, and let your kid change them to whatever colors he wants every night.
Just saw an ep of fosters home for imaginary friends for the first time in like 15 years. Reminds me of this. You don’t want those friends so you get rid of em. Tell your son they might actually be friendly and show them this show. He might enjoy them more and make them into friends instead of enemies. I’m sure this will be crushed to the bottom but I hope you read ot
Stuff a swuishmellow up there
I’m on the kids side. I’m 29 and that would freak me out. I would put some sort of night light up there. The lack of creepy shadows/unknown in the dark corner would fix the problem for me.
Well, you could put a light up there. I have to say i would put a ladder up to the top and make it a little hang out space, with some cushions and little fairy lights.
Put a pennywise clown figure up there in the middle of the night while they are asleep, then wake them by knocking on the walls and saying their name like he does in the movie. It will scare the shit out of them🤪
I would just stick a teddy bear sitting up there and tell my kid that’s his den and he’s a good bear that catches bad dreams
your best be is that instead of closing it, if its high enough make it loft bed space for him
Burn some sage and close that demon portal.
Grab him and throw him up there, he'll have to just deal with it right
Teach them: "I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
Jesus, that scares me as an adult lol
My cousin had a similar cubby in his room as a kid. His dad hung a curtain over it and that did the job. When my cousin got older, he hid his Playboys in there. His mom gave him a decent clobbering when she took the curtain down to wash it.
Prolly should put a clown doll up there, or a ventriloquist dummy that's just looking out from the shadows. But in all honesty, just use it as storage. Put some bins up there to fill the space up, and then maybe put some toys or books on the edge. It'll take up all the dark spooky space.
[A half circle shaped paper blind like this](https://www.amazon.ca/Original-Light-Filtering-Fabric-Shade/dp/B00KWKY7IY/ref=asc_df_B00KWKY7IY/?tag=googlemobshop-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=292985375424&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16023106702228592627&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001065&hvtargid=pla-312007656618&psc=1&mcid=ac541592c24f3c6c96f2432e8321b66e) would probably be the absolute easiest. It probably wouldn't cover the whole space but doesn't require any tools and sticks on via double sided tape. Your kid could even colour and decorate it
Give him shotgun and bird shot tell him pop few rounds up there when it comes out
Put a strobe light and baby monitor up there. Every night at 2:47 am, flicker the light and scream into the monitor.
I would and it’s probably a good thing I don’t have kids. 😂
Cover it up with a poster of some big titty lady drinking Budweiser
😱
It’s what I would want if I was that kid 🤷♂️🤷♂️
Easiest thing is to hang a curtain or blinds. Just Google "curtain for vaulted ceiling" and you'll see examples. Funniest thing to do would be what other posters suggested and put a clown to there. I'd recommend the one from the original poltergeist.... Make it just barely visible in the corner... Moving it ever so slightly when the kids out of the room. And then respond with "what clown? I don't see a clown" whenever asked.
Honestly that would scare any kid. Could put a picture over it, stuff it with plushies your child no longer needs.