I Love Having a Basement

One of the main reasons we wanted to move was our great need of a basement.  Well, I realize maybe it was more of a want than a need...we could have really lived leaner in our 3/2 ranch and made it work.  But Chris and I both have memories of playing with our siblings in the basement; him vrooming cars around, me playing with our monchichis (I bet no one remembers those!)

I wanted a basement for our boys to play in.  But let's not lie...I wanted all that plastic chaos out of sight. They still have plenty of toys upstairs, but it is so nice to have the majority down there.  Makes for fewer stubbed toes made by colliding into trucks in the middle of the night! 

We kept the '70s panelling and just painted it White Dove.  We even added those Urban Outfitters retro pendants (made of teak!) and some shag carpet to boot.  Ben Moore's Racoon Hollow is on the fireplace bricks.  I LOVE that color.  (A Perfect Gray..if you are reading...you have to check this out.  I got the idea from House Beautiful.  It is grey and green and brown all at once.  Very pleased!  

I want to do something fun for the coffee table...eventually.

I am working on a rock wall collage for my husband.  He loves music so much he said he could never work in it because he felt that it might taint his love for it.  Now that is love!  He chose the film industry instead.  One of the pics above is by Charles Peterson of Seattle (of Mudhoney).  He was one of Nirvana's main photographers.  Oh, how Chris loves Nirvana.  R.I.P.

So I sectioned off this area for "adults"  (the original panelled bar is opposite the sofa.  No reveal on that yet.  Chris has plans.

The other side of main basement room is for the youngins'

It is really a fun space.  You have to work with what you can in a basement with limited daylight.

Another great plus about our basement is a guest room!  We love having another bed for my mother-in-law or for when Chris needs his sleep for an early shoot.

I used the sewing table as a nightstand (not original--I stole idea from Southern Living)

I do love my little piece of art there, though.  I painted a baroque-ish frame my mom gave me high gloss white.  I used scraps from our bedroom drapes as art.  I love this fabric so much, who says it isn't art?  Just got a Costco mattress for my childhood bed and, voila, guest room is done!

Here is one of my favorite pendants from Ballard's Backroom:

I wish they were still around and I would get another.  I love the cut-outs.

For the bath we saved the cabinet; just added a remnant of honed black granite, new pulls and some Valspar's Lincoln Cottage Black and it is fresh enough for us!

I loved the floor-to-ceiling beaded board in the kitchen that we did the same in here:

I really love it more than going 2/3 the way up.  I don't know why, really, it just feels cleaner to me.

Got some more life out of the old Anthro shower curtains here:

I used more color here than anywhere else in the house.  

And last, but not least, I love this pastel my sis did in college.  It makes the room!

Jenn, you are so talented.

I really was thanking God for our basement today.  Am I frivolous?

Happy Friday...Julie