The words associated with most basements are unpleasant to say the least: damp, cold, outdated, unwelcoming. Don’t settle for a basement that gives you the heebie jeebies—transform your space using some of these basement remodeling ideas to get you started!
Study Room
If you need a room to focus away from the noise and energy, consider remodeling your basement into a study/office space. Before remodeling any home space, check your building code to see if you are complying with regulations. If you’re not personally comfortable or experienced in large-scale home makeovers, consider hiring a building contractor to help you through this project. A study room’s performance is contingent upon proper electrical channels and network access—you may have to build your study plan around such considerations.
Guest Room
Basements offer ample room, and can be the perfect setting for a new guest bedroom. A basement makeover is also much more cost effective if you’re looking to add another bedroom, but don’t want to build any extra rooms. The foundation of this project will be proper basement insulation and lighting to remove that damp, underground ambience some basements evoke. The sky’s the limit here—because the basement is apart from the rest of the home, you can decorate it to match the rest of the home or make it a distinct living area.
Game Room
Create a versatile rec room with a theme. Choose an old-school arcade and fill your basement with PacMan and pinball machines. If you prefer more active games, collect ping-pong tables, billiards or foosball tables. You don’t want to overload our space with every game there is—choose your favorites. Build cabinetry to house your board games and accrue more expensive games over time to eliminate some up-front expenses. Don’t forget that there are ways to design an arcade room on a budget. Instead of filling your space with lavish entertainment merchandise, stick to a single gaming console. Add lots of seating space in fun colors to give the room a gaming aura—and don’t forget to fill it with people!
Movie and Lounge Room
Need a chill space to kick back with pals on the weekend? Convert your basement into the ultimate lounge! Add a bar if you’re entertaining lots of folks, or if you’re just particularly fond of delicious cold brews. The real focal point of a movie room is the T.V., so center it somewhere where the screen is visible from all corners of the room. Keep the acoustics of the room in mind as well, as the layout of your room can deeply impact sound clarity. Acoustic tiles on your ceiling made up of alternating fiberglass insulation are an inexpensive way to improve the acoustics of your basement. Additionally, many people mount a projector instead of a television set because the impact of the glow is a lot less harsh, and though it’s an inexpensive option, a projector can still produce amazingly clear images.
