From Man Cave to Entertaining Oasis

How this basement remodel went from a dark and dated man cave to bright and airy entertaining oasis

This Monson, Massachusetts homeowner was using her large, finished basement as a man cave.

BEFORE –

She was ready for a basement remodel!
She wanted her open concept basement to be multi-functional.
She wanted a bright, fresh basement that she could use for large holiday gatherings.
She wanted a durable, low maintenance, kid friendly basement that she could enjoy with her grandkids.
And, she wanted a functional basement where she could have guests stay comfortably.

We chose a fresh, bright color palette that was inspired by nature, lots of yellows, blues and greens.

The renovation started by running the existing wood look laminate flooring through the kitchen.
This gave the space a larger feel and it got rid of the dated tile.
Waterproof laminate flooring is a great, inexpensive, durable option for a basement floor.

The walls were beige, but they were a gold beige that looked a bit old fashioned and clashed with the flooring.
We painted the walls Revere Pewter, by Benjamin Moore as the backdrop for the new colorful palette.
Revere Pewter is the perfect gray beige. It is still warm, but has the modern feel of gray.

The large, open basement was split into functional areas – kitchen, living, dining and sleeping.

The kitchen got fresh white cabinets and inexpensive granite countertops, both easily maintained and durable.
You may think that this kitchen is missing a refrigerator, but it’s actually in the walk in pantry area off to the left.

Adding a mirror that looked like a window brightened up the back windowless wall.

We added stools to the peninsula for overflow seating or crafting.

A gorgeous console table was also the perfect spot to squeeze in some extra seating that could be pulled out when needed.
We used swivel stools without a back so that they all could be tucked away when not in use to save space.

The tv area needed to have plenty of comfortable seating for movie nights with the grandkids.
We used performance fabric on the sofa and ottoman for durability and stain resistance.
You can go with a light and airy fabric when you choose it in a performance fabric like we did here.

We needed a new entertainment center for below the tv.
We used an electric fireplace as the entertainment center because it’s perfect for extra warmth on cold New England nights, but doesn’t give off so much heat that it would damage the tv.

The homeowner had several antique pieces.
We ended up using several of the pieces in the basement.
This homeowner had a traditional vibe in the rest of her home but she was ready to modernize a bit.
We used furniture pieces that felt quite modern to her so adding in her traditional, antique pieces was the perfect way to balance things out.
We painted some to give them a fresh new look, but kept others as is to create an updated, transitional basement that wasn’t too modern for this traditional homeowner.

The large dining table was one of those more modern pieces. It updates the space and is the perfect spot for a large holiday meal or crafting with the grandkids.

You can see how the modern dining set blends beautifully with the antique dresser.
The antique dresser warms up the modern dining area.

TIP ALERT – When you add modern accessories on an antique piece of furniture it helps keep the traditional piece from being frumpy and too traditional for the updated space. And, using some traditional pieces in a modern room keeps the room from feeling too contemporary for some people’s taste.

In order to provide extra sleeping space, in addition to the adjacent bedroom, we even created a cozy sleeping nook complete with a custom drapery ‘door’, perfect for those overflow guests.
We added a trundle bed to the nook in order to sleep two people in a small space.
Custom draperies complete the nook, for privacy and match the draperies on the sliding glass doors.
The grandkids love it!

Creating comfortable, personalized, beautiful spaces for our clients is our number one priority.
But, it’s also important for us to give our clients a gentle nudge to steer them in the direction of something that will be absolutely gorgeous even though it may not be something that they would choose on their own.
When this homeowner said to me “I’m going to trust you.” it was the greatest compliment I could receive!
AND, it turned out to be a beautiful, bright basement perfect for the whole family!

All photography by On 3 Photography, Palmer, MA

To see more photos of this and other fun projects please visit our Portfolio Page

www.DetailsFullServiceInteriors.com/interior-design-portfolio