Modern Traditional Basement Bonus Room Reveal

Hello Friends,

It’s finally time for the Basement Bonus Room reveal (ORC Week 6) and I gotta tell ya, this is one red-hot Before-and-After.

Are you ready?

Modern Traditional Basement Bonus Room Reveal

If you’ve been following along, you recall that our outdated basement got a time-to-decorate kick-in-the-pants back in June 2018 when an air conditioning pipe broke and soaked the carpeting on the floors. And, of course, water wicked up into the furniture and required some of the drywall to be cut away. Yes, it was a royal mess.

But what evs.

Every room was outdated and absolutely screaming for a redo.

So what’s a girl to do….whine about about a little water?

Huuum. No.

The way I see it, sometimes you pick your One Room Challenges and sometimes they pick you.

And with this, the basement renovation is launched.

Yes, it’s been a long road to end 2018 and begin 2019. But after all of these difficult months, things are beginning to work out for the entire basement…..slowly….but getting there.

So let’s get this reveal party started.

Warning. It’s kinda long. 🙂

STAIRCASE LANDING REVEAL

I guess we’re pretty lucky because at the bottom of the boring, builder’s grade, bowling alley staircase is a super-deep and extra-wide landing.

And I took full advantage of it. After the new drywall, paint and floors were done, the first thing I did was have this buffet (circa 1970 Drexel) hauled over to anchor the vignette. And thankfully, the area was spacious enough for me to refinish the piece right in its new forever home. Click here to see the paint and stain refinishing process.

A little time and a whole lot of elbow grease later, here we are.

And the view to the right.

FULL BATHROOM MAKEOVER

If you like modern barn doors, black hex tile and vanities made from furniture, you’ll surely want to have a peek at the full bathroom makeover  behind that sweet black door. This room was renovated for the Fall 2018 ORC so it’s still brand spanking new.

Well, I’m leaving the link up there…..you know….just in case.

THE EMPTY TV ROOM (HICCUP #1)

The opening at the left, just beyond the flower arrangement on the buffet opens to the TV area.

Maybe this view is better.

The projection TV screen is built-in and finished, but sadly, the room doesn’t have one stick of furniture. So after the delivery truck graces us with its presence, I’ll take photos and write posts revealing this area and about how to DIY a built-in projection TV screen.

Doing a DIY screen saved a ton of space and several hundred bucks. So yes, it is worth the time and effort.

But for now, this post will continue to focus on the landing and bonus areas. I know. I’m sorry.

Here is the view from the bonus area sofa. I’m thinking that crazy-looking, hand painted wallpaper kinda works (more on this DIY coming later in this post).

BASEMENT BONUS ROOM REVEAL

In case the before photos aren’t clear, the landing and bonus areas create an L-shaped space.

The shape allows for a full-sized sofa against the wall (the bottom part of the L) with room for an over-sized ottoman in front. Looking right is a full-on wall gallery of (mostly) my son’s photography. These photos are high school or college projects and I’ve been waiting all these years to get them up on a wall.

The original plan was to use all black and white prints, but removing the color from the buildings just didn’t seem to work. Without color, the photos just didn’t look like they did when he showed them as a student. Soooo…. since the over-sized black and white print was already messed up (Hiccup #2 – more on this coming), I just decided to print the gallery photos in color.

This allows orange and yellow to be pulled from the main photo (Cobb Civic Center, do you recognize it?) and used as color pops on the sofa and to coordinate with the wall unit in the next room.

 

THE ART DEBACLE (HICCUP #2)

The large black and white print over the sofa was originally ordered as a 36-inch by 48-inch to hang where the gallery wall is now. But when it arrived, it was a whopping 48-by-60. The gal realized her error and immediately offered to reorder…which is nice…but it would take another week to arrive and I just didn’t have that kind of time.

And so…it’s hanging here.

For now.

Next week, a different print that is better sized and probably has a bit of color will be ordered for the sofa. The photos are from my son’s collection so it will be interesting to see which photo has the digital strength to enlarge to this degree.

And the mistake print will go into the adjacent room. See the opening to the right, just beyond the lamp?

A DINING ROOM PEEK

Here is a better look.

Total aside: Yes, there are still holes in the ceiling. 🙁 Don’t ‘cha just love construction? But they are coming to finish. I just needed time to get some photos before having to clean everything again…. sigh.

Anyway, this is the opening to the dining room, which is one long room shared with the TV area.  The mistake-sized print should feel right at home on the big, empty wall to the right, don’t you think?

The dining room section of the wall on the right is fairly big …something like 15 feet long.

And yes, the rest of the furnishings are a’comin.

REFRESHMENTS ANYONE?

But for now, let’s circle back to the bonus area for one last part of this reveal.

Tucked away in the last section of the L-shape is a little snip of awkward square footage. We considered adding a run of kitchen cabinets, but finally chose to leave the area open for other uses….like a mudroom or huge closet or TV media space instead of in the other room.

Honestly, I think the space has a boatload of potential. My list of possibilities is about a yard long.

But here’s what we settled on for this refresh.

I refinished this old cabinet with a food-friendly, one-step sealant and then filled it with all the goodies.

The post for refinishing the cabinet isn’t live yet, but is coming soon.

Don’t ya just love this wild wallpaper? I’m thinking it’s one of my favorite additions. If you want to read about how-to create hand painted wallpaper, please click here. It’s super easy. I promise.

OK, since I’m 26 photos into this post and worrying about blowing up your device, let’s call it a wrap. But hopefully, you get the gist about the refreshment center with just three photos. There will be more as the rest of the basement is completely finished. You know I can’t wait to shoot straight across all the spaces and into the next room. 

But for now, if you’ve enjoyed this portion of the renovation, please let me know in the comment section below (near the bottom). I appreciate and respond to every. single. comment.

And if you’d like to keep these ideas for later or share them with friends, please PIN the image below.

 
In case you missed:

• • Week 1 – Basement Family Room and Bonus Space Plan

  • Week 2 – How to Refinish a Buffet Using a Paint and Stain Combo

  • Week 3 – Easy Patterned Wallpaper Using Paint

  • Week 4 – Short Cuts to DIY Upholstery

  • Week 5 – How to Make Low Ceilings Go High

  • Week 6- You are Here (Basement Bonus Room Reveal for Spring 2019 ORC)

  • How to Refinish Raw Wood Using One Eco-Friendly Product

More Posts Related to this Renovation (coming this Summer)

• How to Build and Refinish a Wall Unit Using Assorted Furniture Elements

• Part 2 – Short Cuts for DIY Upholstery

• How to Build and Finish a Projection TV Screen

• Recover an Ottoman the Easy Way

• Dining Room Set Makeover Using Stain and Refinishing Oil All In One

• End Table Makeover in a Fresh Raw Wood Look

• Farmhouse Coffee Table Goes Modern (Refinished)

• How to Remove Wax and Refinish a Console Table

• How to Build Frames for Oversized Photo Prints

Our Hosts

And as always, we extend a special thanks to our gracious hosts, Calling It Home , One Room Challenge and Better Homes and Gardens. And invite you to enjoy over 200 more room renovations,  click One Room Challenge. #oneroomchallenge #ORC #betterhomesandgardens #bhgorc