Advice/ideas for the oddest basement ever?

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

Hello all,

New to Houzz and happy to have found such a great community.

I've been an amateur designer/DIYer for many years but my new home has me stumped. I'd love some design and/or decorating advice for, as the title states, the oddest basement ever.

It's a rectangle with rooms branching off the short sides. My concern is the main living area. The front wall features a door to the lower foyer, two large windows, a fireplace, and a sliding glass door (yes, all on one wall). The back wall is blank save for a gas line from the former kitchen setup we ripped out (it was rotting and gross).

The room will be painted, the light fixtures will be replaced, and that big ugly couch is going, but that's all I've got in terms of ideas.

We considered building a long window seat/bench under the windows with a floor-to-ceiling bookcase between that and the door (to the foyer), but I think we've axed that. I'd love to replace the sliding doors with French doors but don't know if that's in the budget, and I'd rather focus on tangible improvements.

I've included pictures for context, as well as the floor plan. Please forgive the mess. These photos were snapped the night we moved in and, to be honest, with nowhere to put anything, it doesn't look that much better now. I'll try to grab a panoramic when I'm finished my work day.

Would love any ideas for general improvements or decorating!

Thanks so much in advance.

Edit: I'm not able to upload the photos so I've added them to a shared Google Drive folder:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1y_KST0FXM-ay4IaWYtUEpn820VIQKKgy?usp=sharing

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Comments (8)

Sharon Fullen
5 years ago
Pictures are missing. Need to know what functions you want this great room to fulfill. Who will use this space? Will this be the primary “family room”?
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years ago
No panoramic pics please they distort everything. I honestly don't see what is so terrible about the space The bedroom layout is odd since the one BR on the right needs to make a long trip to bathroom. Do you need 3 BRs on this level I agree we need more info and post pics in a comment please and after all the stuff is removed so we can actually see the space . The BR on the left bottom cannot be abedroom without a window for egress . I would also like to see the exterior . IMO a deck above french doors or sliders is not ideal since the deck blocks the light and under it is useless unless waterproofing is done to the deck. So I need more info .
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PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years ago
No panoramic pics please they distort everything. I honestly don't see what is so terrible about the space The bedroom layout is odd since the one BR on the right needs to make a long trip to bathroom. Do you need 3 BRs on this level I agree we need more info and post pics in a comment please and after all the stuff is removed so we can actually see the space . The BR on the left bottom cannot be abedroom without a window for egress . I would also like to see the exterior . IMO a deck above french doors or sliders is not ideal since the deck blocks the light and under it is useless unless waterproofing is done to the deck. So I need more info .
M B
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Apologies, all. Just getting accustomed to how things work around here.

The space will be the primary family room as there isn't much of one upstairs. We'd like a cozy TV area, maybe a space for games (we have a nice pub table), and the rest of the space to... not look like an afterthought. Every furniture layout I can come up with leaves those windows and the fireplace looking very much in the way or forgotten about. I'm open to a flooring change, too, to be honest.

The rooms on this level are not used as bedrooms — we have everyone sleeping upstairs. One room is an office, the other is a workout room, and the one without a window is a computer room.

I agree the deck above is not ideal but that's not something that can change, unfortunately. There is another door at the top level, coming off the kitchen, so that upper deck acts as a balcony.

I'll attach the real estate photos which are a bit cleaner. I hope they provide a bit more context. Thank you again for your help.
M B
Original Author
5 years ago
M B
Original Author
5 years ago
M B
Original Author
5 years ago
M B
Original Author
5 years ago