Many people tend to overlook the potential that a basement holds. In most people’s homes, basements turn out to be neglected, dusty, overlooked rooms. At best, they are used as a storage room for all the unused objects. That being said, why not utilize your basement as the functional room that it can be? In fact, if you give it a bit of love, it can turn out to be your favorite area in the entire house!
The probability is high that you think that even if you’d go and try to work on your basement, it will cost more than you want it to. Well, sure, such remodels can indeed be pricey, but they don’t always have to be. That being said – if you’re on board to improve your basement without breaking the bank, you have come to the right place. Here, we will talk about different projects that are going to boost the look and the functionality of your basement.
Start with the ceiling
The easiest way to transform the basement is to start working on its most prominent feature. The easiest way to enforce this strategy and start working towards a finished basement is by working on the ceiling. In most cases, basements are equipped with a bare wooden ceiling, and without some work, they aren’t that pretty to look at. As there is not that much to look at, to begin with, you can easily transform the place with some simple projects. Let’s see how you can do so.
Paint job always does the trick
Paint jobs can indeed be pricey, but if you’re smart about it, you can easily avoid breaking the bank. That’s exactly why we suggest that you focus on the ceiling. Having a DIY paint job project on the ceiling isn’t going to cost much, but it is incredibly impactful. If you aren’t all that familiar with the techniques, analyzing some tutorials online will do the trick.
When it comes to color choices, it all depends on what is the final look that you’re aiming for. Are you making a living room-like area, a bedroom, or a gaming room perhaps? Whatever the case may be, color choices will probably vary. One thing that is the same is that you have to work with low outdoor light. Having that in mind, it would be best if you were to go with either lighter colors, or bold ones, to simulate the contrast of light and dark.
Think about a new light fixture
After you have painted the ceiling, it’s a good idea to think about some lighting options. Track lights are a common choice, but you can also go for more relaxing options such as hanging lights in multiple colors if that’s what you’re aiming for. To be able to talk about this in more detail, let’s continue to the next project – lighting fixtures in general.
Let’s talk about lighting in general
Lighting is just as impactful as the color of your walls and ceiling in any room. In a basement, they are even more important as there is not that much natural light, to begin with. This ensures that the lighting options that you choose heavily dictate how the room feels.
White light gives the place a more professional, cold aspect, while yellow and orange lights ensure a warm, cozy feeling. Of course, you can always opt for more color and even a combination of various tones. For instance – yellow lighting can be the baseline, and you can insert some red or turquoise light elements in a corner where you can set up a DIY bar station.
All this is what makes working on lighting so important – you can transform entirely and not spend all that much money at all.
How to conceal the outside walls?
Well, this depends – do you want to conceal it in the first place? Some people like a more industrial look to their basements. This works especially well if you have a brick or a concrete wall and are planning to transform your basement into a game room or a lounge area. Even if that is the case, we suggest that you go with a simple coat of paint just to make the walls look fresh.
If you want to transform the walls with a finish, a cheap and reliable way to do so is by using drywall. All it takes is some wallpapers, and your drywall will ensure a more polished look to the basement. You can even hand paint the drywall to give it a personal touch!
What about the floor?
Again, depending on how polished finish you’re looking for, you have a huge variety of options out there. Since we’re talking about the cheaper ones here, we’re going to focus on that. All that we have to say is – rugs. Rugs are so versatile and come in all shapes and forms, and you will easily be able to find something that fits your vision. Depending on the way that you want to go with this, you can choose to cover the entire floor, but you can also use smaller rugs. If you choose to go with smaller rugs, you have even more freedom to express your artistic vision since you can use a lot of them.
Furniture and decoration
After you are done with all the fundamentals, it’s time that you start thinking about the things that you can put into your basement. Furniture and decoration, obviously, play a huge role in how the basement feels, but you must make sure that they complement the base you set already.
So, if you want not to break the bank, what you should be thinking about is repurposing. Buying used furniture is a great way to give a special, retro feeling to your basement. Of course, you can also go modern – and you can always go DIY and polish the piece of furniture that you’ve bought. Also, don’t forget about plants! Contrary to the popular belief, there are a lot of plants that can flourish even in absence of light.
In the end, it all boils down between working on some impactful details and investing in a few bigger projects. You don’t have to strip everything down and start from scratch. You don’t need to buy a plethora of new furniture – repurposing is your friend. Basically, just a DIY paint job, a new rug, and a light fixture can boost the look of the entire basement exponentially. It doesn’t take much to create something out of nothing.
Now that you’re more familiar with the ways in which you can impact the look of your basement, hopefully – you have your creative juices flowing. Go down to your basement, inspect the area, think about what you would want to make out of it. All that’s left after that is to act on it, and now, you know how!
