When we were looking for houses this spring, I was dead set on having an area that could be used as a playroom. It was pretty much my top priority outside of upgrading to more than one bathroom, getting an actual closet and having a space for The Cool Cucumber to sleep besides the hallway he was currently residing in. But hey, I have swanky, high-brow standards.
When we found our house, it had a huge, partially finished basement. I knew that we could finish it and make it into the perfect place for the kids to go crazy and for us to have our family room. We put up two new walls to divide the laundry area from the living area, installed a drop ceiling and laid new flooring. Here is just a bit of info on the playroom. I will add pics of the family room soon, or not most likely, because I am lazy.
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| The before. Gah. Concrete floors, exposed electric, white walls... |
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| The after. New ceiling, floor, wall color, organization, and, of course, Fatty. |
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| Ottomans and pillows from World Market. Table from Target. Art and frames from IKEA. Lamp from Marshall's. Fish (Boy) and snail (Alyssa) from Pet Smart. |
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| Left detail |
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| Those damned benches. Art by The Quiet Contemplator. Frames from IKEA. |
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| Right detail. |
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| Picasso prints from Allposters.com. Frames from IKEA. |
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| Bench storage. |
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| More detail. |
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| The toy closet before. There used to be enormous wooden doors on it. We removed them before I could get a before pic because they were impossible to open and m'f'n dangerous, yo... |
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| The toy closet after. |
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| Curtains and shelving from IKEA. |
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| Light from Marshall's. |
Now don't go thinking this project was crazy expensive or that I have converted to Mormonism and started a perfect mommy blog (not that there is anything wrong with that). Everything you see here was cheap and easy, just like me. Have questions? Feel free to ask. I am happy to help!
Love it! It turned out great. What a transformation paint and flooring can make, right? :)
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy! It looked like a mental institution down there before!
DeleteWe just bought a house in July and it has lots of those (broken) folding closet doors... Now I know what I can do! Those curtains are AMAZING!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnd cheap! I think rod, curtain and all was under $20. And it really opens up a room. My friend did it in her nursery and put the changing table in there. GREAT idea!
DeleteI commented on the bench post, thinking it was this post, but the thoughts are still the same... I am in love with this room.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nessa!
DeleteThe room turned out great! I'm jealous, as I'm currently working on our playroom but can't get past the s$#@ piled up everywhere. The toy closet is brilliant.
ReplyDeleteI love this crap, so if you get stuck, feel free to send me pics for inspiration.
Deletecan you come do my house? I will provide $3 chuck and cheerios. I can throw the cheerios on the floor for you if you prefer to eat that way, like the CC does. If you do a really good job, i will splurge on goldfishes.
ReplyDeleteNow who could refuse that offer? I'm there!
DeleteOkay, I LOOOVE the benches. Apparently I am the last remaining woman in America to have never seen these before, Pinterest or otherwise. I did read your post about their expensive and time-consuming creation... and tried to heed your warning... but they are caalllling meeeee.......! I'm sure at the very least it gives you a lot of satisfaction to be able to look at them and say "Heck yes, I totally MADE that," doesn't it? :-p
ReplyDeleteI completely heart the curtains, too.
I love the finished product, just not the moolah it took to make them!
DeleteYour green ottomans are cuties! Good thing they have storage under each bench, that would save you more space.-Ally
ReplyDelete