Arsenal Basement
Our clients wanted to turn their century old, unfinished basement into a living space the whole family could enjoy. There is a little room under the porch that had exposed, original masonry. We wanted to leave the masonry exposed so we cleaned it up a bit — it is a cozy space for an office and it is a reminder of the home's 100 year history.
Arsenal St., MO
April, 2019
DESIGNER:
Jennifer Chapman & Rochelle McAvin
PHOTOGRAPHER:
Karen Palmer Photography
Our clients wanted to turn their century old, unfinished basement into a living space the whole family could enjoy. We set out to create a family area where they could play games, watch tv, and hang out with family and friends as well as a separate bedroom and bathroom. They love clean, modern lines and cool, serene colors.We started by selecting a luxury vinyl tile that had a very linear pattern with cool gray tones. This helped to keep the basement feel light and bright and the LVT is a durable material for an old leaky basement. We wanted to take advantage of some of the architectural elements in the space. There is a little room under the porch that had exposed, original masonry. We wanted to leave the masonry exposed so we cleaned it up a bit- it is a cozy space for an office and it is a reminder of the home's 100 year history. We didn't want to lose the space under the stairs to dark, never used storage so we created a niche with open reclaimed wood shelving. We wrapped the posts with matching wood to add warmth and character to the space. We used the same wood for the floating shelf at the bar area, as well. In the bathroom we used a sleek gray, high gloss floating vanity & oversized white subway tile. It feels fresh and bright and keeps with the clean and modern aesthetic we set out to create.
Kehrswood Basement
Our clients' finished basement needed to be brought to life! A bar made out of glass block, lack of overhead lighting, dark finishes and an old drop ceiling made for a really uninviting space. Our clients now use this space all of the time and love having friends and family over to enjoy it with them!
Chesterfield, MO
August, 2018
DESIGNER:
Jennifer Chapman
PHOTOGRAPHER:
Karen Palmer Photography
Our clients' finished basement needed to be brought to life! A bar made out of glass block, lack of overhead lighting, dark finishes and an old drop ceiling made for a really uninviting space. Not only did the basement need to be updated, but they really wanted to make it a family entertaining space — somewhere they could hang out with the kids everyday and also somewhere they could easily entertain friends and family. This family is well-traveled and has collected many items from all over the world. They wanted to incorporate that global vibe and marry it with a nautical theme to remind them of their lakehouse in Michigan.
We started by drywalling the ceiling and adding a lot more light! We increased the number of recessed can ceiling lights and added vintage looking handmade sconces at the posts. We painted the walls and ceilings all of the same light gray color to make the ceilings seem taller and the room lighter. We removed the dark, outdated carpeting and replaced it with a neutral colored carpeting with a modern texture.
This basement has a soffit and post structure running down the center of the living space. It is a natural divider, but the space was not being utilized to its full potential. We added a bar height reclaimed wood countertop in between the large posts to create more seating for entertaining. The posts at each end created an "L" shape that did not seem to have any purpose. We added floating reclaimed shelves in this space to make it look purposeful and add an opportunity to display the items they have collected in their travels. The entertainment unit was all black and it made the space seem smaller and darker.
We painted the upper cabinets white and wrapped the TV shelf in wood to match the reclaimed wood at the bar seating and the wet bar. We reduced the footprint of the wet bar to add more space for kids to play and make the room feel bigger.
The clients really loved the idea of doing navy blue cabinets at the wet bar, which tied into the nautical theme of the space. We fell in love with the uniquely shaped white tile and used a medium gray grout to make the shape stand out even more. We used reclaimed wood countertops and a floating shelf above to display bottles or glassware. The brushed nickel pulls with exposed screws look like jewelry against the pretty navy cabinets! Our clients now use this space all of the time and love having friends and family over to enjoy it with them!