Basements rarely get top priority when you move into a house. This was the case for us.  It was already finished when we bought it a year ago. Finished, but not particularly inviting. Dark gray walls, gray berber carpet, and mismatched furniture. We had other rooms to focus on.

But that all changed on a random August night – hurricane Irene was not kind to us.

But after adding a second sump pump with a battery backup, we fearlessly set out to refinish the finished basement. One catch – most of the furniture and many toys were lost in the great flood of 2011. So we started with a refreshingly clean slate.

We had the walls redone and carpet replaced, then we (meaning us, ourselves) painted the whole darn thing DIY style (whew). We opted for a lighter, neutral palate. While there is good height and many pot lights down there, it’s still a basement with only a few windows.

Below are some before and after pictures. But first, a few things to look for:

• We added a yoga space.
• We moved the TV to the former art nook, and move the art area to a more open space.
• There is remarkably little furniture. But we did reuse the old mirrors we took out of upstairs bathrooms to create a fun dance area. Zumba, anyone?
• Can you pick out the few pieces of furniture that made it?

[click to continue…]

Share/Save

{ 1 comment }