Readers Get Creative With Their Basements
People know how to have fun with this bonus space, creating an English pub room, a music-jamming spot and more
Winter is the season for hunkering down and staying home, at least for those of us who live in places where the weather turns chilly. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a warm and cozy cave to hibernate in during the season? If you have a basement, that could be just the place.
We asked readers to show us how they use their basements. Some have found ways to turn this square footage into a useful room, while others simply use the space for stashing extra stuff. Where does your basement fit in the mix?
We asked readers to show us how they use their basements. Some have found ways to turn this square footage into a useful room, while others simply use the space for stashing extra stuff. Where does your basement fit in the mix?
2. Family Zone
Who: Two engineers and self-proclaimed “gear-heads,” their two daughters and their dog
Where: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Basement size: 2,700 square feet (250.8 square meters)
Pros hired: Architect Jeff Ziegelbaur of TR Design Group; interior designer Heidi Parris of Parris Designs; builder Joe Huczek of Main Street Homes
When building a new home, Houzzer wanjess had plans for a modern Prairie-style home that would include a large unfinished walkout basement. (The home is set into a hill, allowing this level to have a walk-out space opening into a yard.) But instead of building the basement unfinished, wanjess enlisted the help of pros to turn it into useful space, including a rec room, playroom, media room, bar, exercise room, powder room and bedroom suite. By doing so, they were able to eliminate half of the second floor from the house plans.
This seating area with two sofas and a colorful cowhide rug is just off the bar area. To the right is the media room.
Who: Two engineers and self-proclaimed “gear-heads,” their two daughters and their dog
Where: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Basement size: 2,700 square feet (250.8 square meters)
Pros hired: Architect Jeff Ziegelbaur of TR Design Group; interior designer Heidi Parris of Parris Designs; builder Joe Huczek of Main Street Homes
When building a new home, Houzzer wanjess had plans for a modern Prairie-style home that would include a large unfinished walkout basement. (The home is set into a hill, allowing this level to have a walk-out space opening into a yard.) But instead of building the basement unfinished, wanjess enlisted the help of pros to turn it into useful space, including a rec room, playroom, media room, bar, exercise room, powder room and bedroom suite. By doing so, they were able to eliminate half of the second floor from the house plans.
This seating area with two sofas and a colorful cowhide rug is just off the bar area. To the right is the media room.
The homeowners wanted a media room that could be seen from both the recreation and bar areas during sporting events, but that could also be closed off for movie showings. To achieve this goal, they used a blackout roll-down shade to separate the bar and the media room (seen here in the pulled-down position). High-definition photographs are placed on both sides; on the theater side is a photo of a local historical theater.
On the other side of the screen is this bar. This side of the pull-down screen shows a local sports arena. In other words, this is the same screen, pulled down to separate the bar and media room. Pretty clever!
The bar has ribbon-striped mahogany cabinetry that matches cabinetry in the rest of the home. The bar includes a fridge, a dishwasher, an ice maker and a microwave, as well as plenty of storage.
The bar has ribbon-striped mahogany cabinetry that matches cabinetry in the rest of the home. The bar includes a fridge, a dishwasher, an ice maker and a microwave, as well as plenty of storage.
3. Sewing Room
Who: Teri W. Scott and David A. Scott
Where: Lenexa, Kansas
Basement size: 1,200 square feet (111.4 square meters)
Teri and David Scott use their basement as a space for enjoying their hobbies, and this corner of the basement is Teri’s sewing studio. Teri and her mother spent two days putting in the shelving and pegboard pictured in this photo. They also added the chandelier and some file cabinets for ample storage. The tabletops are recycled hollow-core doors, and the table legs are recycled spindles. Adding power strips and good lighting was key to making the space practical, Teri says, while the white paint helps brighten the area up.
Who: Teri W. Scott and David A. Scott
Where: Lenexa, Kansas
Basement size: 1,200 square feet (111.4 square meters)
Teri and David Scott use their basement as a space for enjoying their hobbies, and this corner of the basement is Teri’s sewing studio. Teri and her mother spent two days putting in the shelving and pegboard pictured in this photo. They also added the chandelier and some file cabinets for ample storage. The tabletops are recycled hollow-core doors, and the table legs are recycled spindles. Adding power strips and good lighting was key to making the space practical, Teri says, while the white paint helps brighten the area up.
There are four sewing machines in the space, and both Teri and her daughter use the sewing area. Teri picked up the Singer sewing machine at a flea market for $5. She found another free on Craigslist, and used pieces from both machines to restore it.
Here is her thread collection up close. She re-covered the pair of leather stools seen here in fun faux fur.
In an unfinished area of the basement (not pictured), Teri has power tools, like a compound sliding miter saw, that she uses for other projects. She does scrapbooking in the basement as well, and has also taught sewing and hosted Cub Scout and Girl Scout meetings down there. “This space has so many good memories in it and is now designed to support the activities that will make new memories,” she says.
In an unfinished area of the basement (not pictured), Teri has power tools, like a compound sliding miter saw, that she uses for other projects. She does scrapbooking in the basement as well, and has also taught sewing and hosted Cub Scout and Girl Scout meetings down there. “This space has so many good memories in it and is now designed to support the activities that will make new memories,” she says.
Photo by Tammy Massingill
4. A ’50s-Style Diner and Drive-In
Who: Debra and Tedd March and their children, Rebekah, 25, Teddy, 22, and Michael, 19
Where: Monroe, Michigan
Basement size: 720 square feet (66.8 square meters)
Designer: Nicole Salter of Harris McClain Kitchen & Bath
After years of dreaming and planning, Debra and Tedd March created their own personal entertainment zone in their Michigan basement, complete with the 1950s-style diner pictured here.
Neon sign: Bent Custom Neon
4. A ’50s-Style Diner and Drive-In
Who: Debra and Tedd March and their children, Rebekah, 25, Teddy, 22, and Michael, 19
Where: Monroe, Michigan
Basement size: 720 square feet (66.8 square meters)
Designer: Nicole Salter of Harris McClain Kitchen & Bath
After years of dreaming and planning, Debra and Tedd March created their own personal entertainment zone in their Michigan basement, complete with the 1950s-style diner pictured here.
Neon sign: Bent Custom Neon
Photo by Tammy Massingill
The theater has twinkling lights overhead to imitate the night sky. At the right side of the photo is a candy stand, with plenty of sugary treats to choose from.
Read the full story about this 1950s-style basement
The theater has twinkling lights overhead to imitate the night sky. At the right side of the photo is a candy stand, with plenty of sugary treats to choose from.
Read the full story about this 1950s-style basement
5. Downstairs Dining
Who: Emily and Gary Isleib
Where: New London, Missouri
Basement size: 616 square feet (57.2 square meters)
BEFORE: When Emily and Gary Isleib bought their 1830 home, the basement was partially finished, with a space for laundry under the stairs (a washer and dryer are behind the curtains in the photo here), a painted concrete floor and a tiny powder room. Since the main floor did not have a separate dining area, the couple decided to use a portion of their basement for that purpose.
Who: Emily and Gary Isleib
Where: New London, Missouri
Basement size: 616 square feet (57.2 square meters)
BEFORE: When Emily and Gary Isleib bought their 1830 home, the basement was partially finished, with a space for laundry under the stairs (a washer and dryer are behind the curtains in the photo here), a painted concrete floor and a tiny powder room. Since the main floor did not have a separate dining area, the couple decided to use a portion of their basement for that purpose.
AFTER: This photo shows the closed-door laundry room the Isleibs added under the stairs, where the curtains used to hang. The stairs are just visible on the left.
The Isleibs did the work on the basement themselves. First, they treated the walls and floor to prevent flooding, using a fumeless epoxy. That process took nights and weekends over several weeks. Next they added walls to make the laundry room below the stairs. They also replaced plywood doors with nicer paneled ones, installed wood wainscoting and made and installed dentil molding. And they added vinyl wood-look flooring.
The Isleibs did the work on the basement themselves. First, they treated the walls and floor to prevent flooding, using a fumeless epoxy. That process took nights and weekends over several weeks. Next they added walls to make the laundry room below the stairs. They also replaced plywood doors with nicer paneled ones, installed wood wainscoting and made and installed dentil molding. And they added vinyl wood-look flooring.
Here is the new laundry room, enclosed under the stairs. Emily built the white cabinet from wood scraps left over from their kitchen renovation.
The Isleibs also created a formal dining space in their basement. They often host Gary’s international coworkers for dinner here. Emily built the red cupboard in the corner of the room. What looks like a wooden ceiling beam is actually a section of square ductwork that Emily covered in putty to create a rough texture, then painted to match the real wood ceiling beam.
6. Creepy Feels
Who: Housequester
Where: A farmhouse in central Illinois
Basement size: About 1,500 square feet (139.3 square meters)
Reader housequester lives in what she estimates to be an 1870s farmhouse, with exterior walls made of stone. The home has been in her husband’s family since the 1930s. She and her husband use the basement to store painting supplies, as well as a bunch of canning supplies that belonged to housequester’s mother-in-law, which no one uses now. She says this basement is not too comforting — or frequently used.
The basement has a concrete floor and two rooms. The front room, pictured here, houses an electrical panel, a hot-water heater and the water access to the outside, in the form of a hose fed through the wall. The back room is accessed through the doorway in the center of this photo; it contains weight-training equipment and an old model train that housequester guesses no one has used for 20 years. The basement “is damp, full of cobwebs, and mice are not uncommon,” she says. “On one memorable occasion, a very large raccoon came in through a hole on the foundation and came up the stairs into our pantry, where I found him the next day curled up under the shelves.” The most practical function of the basement is as a bunker in extreme weather. “I shudder on the rare occasions I have to go down there,” housequester says.
Who: Housequester
Where: A farmhouse in central Illinois
Basement size: About 1,500 square feet (139.3 square meters)
Reader housequester lives in what she estimates to be an 1870s farmhouse, with exterior walls made of stone. The home has been in her husband’s family since the 1930s. She and her husband use the basement to store painting supplies, as well as a bunch of canning supplies that belonged to housequester’s mother-in-law, which no one uses now. She says this basement is not too comforting — or frequently used.
The basement has a concrete floor and two rooms. The front room, pictured here, houses an electrical panel, a hot-water heater and the water access to the outside, in the form of a hose fed through the wall. The back room is accessed through the doorway in the center of this photo; it contains weight-training equipment and an old model train that housequester guesses no one has used for 20 years. The basement “is damp, full of cobwebs, and mice are not uncommon,” she says. “On one memorable occasion, a very large raccoon came in through a hole on the foundation and came up the stairs into our pantry, where I found him the next day curled up under the shelves.” The most practical function of the basement is as a bunker in extreme weather. “I shudder on the rare occasions I have to go down there,” housequester says.
7. Space to Play
Who: Jim and Margie Greenfield
Where: Champaign, Illinois
Basement size: About 1,300 square feet (120.7 square meters)
Who: Jim and Margie Greenfield
Where: Champaign, Illinois
Basement size: About 1,300 square feet (120.7 square meters)
Jim and Margie Greenfield had an unfinished basement for many years, but when two grandchildren arrived five months apart, they decided to create “a fun space that could be enjoyed by both families when visiting from out of town,” Margie says. They kept the ceiling exposed, although they enhanced the beams by enclosing them in cedar to match the existing tresses.
For adults, the space includes a projection TV and exercise equipment, while for the little ones there are toys and built-in toy storage.
Editor’s note: If you have an aversion to legless reptiles, we suggest you end your tour of readers’ basements right about here.
Editor’s note: If you have an aversion to legless reptiles, we suggest you end your tour of readers’ basements right about here.
The project took about 10 weeks to complete. “It works well for our family,” Margie says.
8. Animal Kingdom
Houzzer bsgibbs, who lives in Arizona, was in her mother’s walk-out basement in Indiana in the spring when she found a 6-foot-long snake hibernating inside a box on a table. “I guess she uses [her basement] for snake storage!” bsgibbs says.
Your turn: Please share a photo of your basement — finished or unfinished — in the Comments. We’d love to hear about it!
More
Key Measurements: Recreation Rooms Rule
Explore the fun side of Houzz
Houzzer bsgibbs, who lives in Arizona, was in her mother’s walk-out basement in Indiana in the spring when she found a 6-foot-long snake hibernating inside a box on a table. “I guess she uses [her basement] for snake storage!” bsgibbs says.
Your turn: Please share a photo of your basement — finished or unfinished — in the Comments. We’d love to hear about it!
More
Key Measurements: Recreation Rooms Rule
Explore the fun side of Houzz
Who: Mark Henry
Where: Potomac, Maryland
Basement size: About 650 square feet (60.3 square meters)
Houzzer Mark Henry turned his basement into an English pub via a DIY project in the early 1980s. He designed and built the pub himself, after work and on weekends, over about two years.
Henry has always been a fan of half-timbered building, and incorporated into his design features that he saw in several London pubs. “The triple window was included to lessen the feeling that my basement is below grade,” Henry says. “Its design was copied from a magazine photo of a much larger window in a New England restaurant.” In reality, the windows cover a cinder block wall. Henry’s wife made all the stained glass windows, and they are backlit.
The couple use the room for occasional large social gatherings, and when their children were younger, they used it as a playroom.