Among all of the congratulations (thank you!), one question is popping up repeatedly. How are we going to make room for another baby? After all, our hundred-year-old bungalow is just 1400 square feet, and I run my stationery business out of it.
My sweet, colorful, lovely little studio is going to move into the scary basement. I’ll miss you, studio!
I’ll be honest. I’m pretty sensitive to my surroundings, so working in our unfinished basement is going to be a bit depressing. Plus I scare easily and I think my assistant Erika might too, and I can see us both being weirded out by spending time down there. It IS a little spooky, but we don’t have any other options.
Eventually Brandon and I would like to put up drywall and make the lower level feel like the rest of our home, but we don’t have the budget right now. We’ll clean it up and arrange things as best we can, but I fear it will still be icky.
*Update*
I mentioned the basement walls in a couple of the comments below, but here is a photo. Unpaintable, bizarre crackled tiles. No ceiling either, and wires everywhere. Here’s a link to view the photo in a larger size.
My studio will become Eleanor’s new room though, and that will make me happy. It’s going to be adorable! And the room (12×12) feels so much bigger than her current space (7×14 with sloped ceilings), so that will be nice for her. The nursery will stay a nursery since it works really well as such. I do plan to make at least a few changes though, regardless of gender. I want the new baby to have a look of his/her own.
Now all of this puts greater urgency on #9 of my 30 Before Thirty list: Clean out the basement. All of this shuffling of space hinges on getting it ready, and I am SO not looking forward to that task.
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Basement, Eleanor's Room, Parenting, Pregnancy, Studio • 129 Comments • August 19, 2010
And the basement curtains only need to be like canvas dropcloths in the lightest color they have. No need buying expensive fabric for a temporary fix.
I was going to suggest fabric to cover the walls as well, but I see I wasn’t the only one with that idea. The paint drop cloths is a fun way to go, and you could do all sorts of paint treatments or murals on them. It’s just another challenge, and your little creative mind loves that!
You’ll make it wonderful- you always do – can’t wait to see it :).
Is tenting the basement an option? Ruching fabric over the walls that won’t make good surfaces for painting?
Lady, you’ve had 4 square walls to work with and you’ve worked magic. Time to ramp up the difficulty a little, eh? I’m looking forward to seeing how you overcome this challenge. No doubt it’ll be creative and brilliant!
I CAN SEE YOU PUTTING UP A TEMPORARY SYSTEM OF FABRIC PANELS TO COVER THOSE WALLS AND TO SOFTEN AND DE-SCARE THE SPACE….YOU ARE QUITE CREATIVE, ESPECIALLY ON A BUDGET. I CANT WAIT TO SEE WHAT YOU DO.
I’m sure the basement will look amazing once you do your magic on it. Postive thoughts!
It’s going to be great. Because you can do it! The room that was once my office is now a nursery, and we have a massive heap of furniture and papers waiting to be turned into our shared office. But hey, babies are wonderful and we can do it!
I have one word for you: Congratulations! Oh, and two more words: white paint! I recently transformed an unfinished closet into an office, leaving everything exposed, with the help of a can of no-VOC white paint (see here: http://thewritestart.typepad.com/the_write_start/2010/06/a-closet-of-ones-own.html and here: http://thewritestart.typepad.com/the_write_start/2010/06/a-closet-take-two.html ). It’s still pretty rough, but at least it’s not quite so scary anymore!
Good luck and best wishes!
I totally understand the grimness of moving into the “dungeon”. It isn’t terribly inspiring in most basements. If your tile is the same as ours, and it looks as though it is, it is probably Transite. This was a cement/asbestos combo that was very popular at the early end of last century. It is generally not recommended that you remove it. When you bought the house, you should have gotten a written inspection report. Consult that, check for the term “Transite”, as alot of times inspectors will use that term instead of straight out “asbestos” because of the cement factor. The best thing to do in these cases, as removal is super pricey, is to seal the product. Cover it with a vapor barrier and vapor tape, then when you can afford to put up drywall, you can just drywall over and you won’t be risking airbourne particulate. Good luck Nicole! I know you’re going to make the basement gorgeous!
Thanks, I’ll look into that.
Just wondering if you ever looked into this? I thought asbestos tiles when I saw the pic as well. Did they turn out to be asbestos and if so did you remove them (professionally done of course – called abatement or something I thought) or drywall over them?
How is the basement? I’m not sure I saw before and after pics if it’s been done… Excited to see what you’ve done :D
Just wondering if you ever looked into this? I thought asbestos tiles when I saw the pic as well. Did they turn out to be asbestos and if so did you remove them (professionally done of course – called abatement or something I thought) or drywall over them?
How is the basement? I’m not sure I saw before and after pics if it’s been done… Excited to see what you’ve done :D
**ETA: I found the before and after pics (looks great) and will read to see about the asbestos/not asbestos issue
And someone else mentioned Radon. Absolutely do a test if you’re going to be down there to work. We had a high reading (our beloved house is from 1906, so we expected a few of these things) and had a Radon mitigation system installed and we have our handy dandy alarm that will announce if it goes above the average level. Ours stays at 1.4 most of the time, which is within acceptable levels.
Hey, at least the basement has a window! (I’m being optimistic :) ) Have you considered putting both kids in the 12×12 room and using the nursery as an office? That’s what I would do.
Oh, project time!
And if you feel the need to sell the C&B rug, I’ll drive up from the city to buy it from you :) Just a thought!
Good luck. As always, you’ll turn that basement into something fabulous.
We have the same basement issues as you do! Lots of storage space, but also lots of concrete, wires, and the occasional creepy-crawly. Our kids use the basement as their playroom and with all of their toys and a big rug and couch, the space is functional and not too dreary. The upside is that the kids can ride their scooters downstairs in the winter and we screwed a wooden swing from Ikea right into a ceiling beam in the basement and they at least have a place to get out some energy. Although I do look longingly at some playrooms that are located in actual rooms–sigh! It will be nice to see what you can do to perk up your basement with some paint and fabric!
I can see curtains gathered all around your work space (you could use cute solid color sheets and run them on wire stretched taut around the top of the wall), maybe a wooden/bamboo screen or two (these can be found cheap on Craigslist or yard sales). I bet it will be looking good in no time! Eleanor will be enjoying her new space!
Ugh, I feel you on this one. I’m about to give up my rented studio space to move back home. The amount of sorting and shuffling I need to do to make this happen is overwhelming! I was just distracting myself for a bit by looking at my favorite blogs. I know you will make your new space lovely -as you always do! In the meantime happy sorting, it is nice to know I am not alone.
Ps. Could you cover over the walls by screwing panels of wood over them? Plywood sheets covered with cork for a huge inspiration board, or painted with chalkboard paint as a huge chalk wall? Or even covered with fabric?
The previous poster mentioned cork for the walls – that’s a great idea.
At our last house (1915 bungalow, about 1300 sq ft) I had to move my office/sewing/papercraft room to the basement when the baby arrived. It was worse than yours – lower ceilings, and more…dank. The floor was gritty/degrading concrete – I put a large jute rug in my work area, then against one wall a row of freestanding cabinets with a work surface on top, and LOTS of extra lighting (including stings of white xmas lights attached to the floor joists above) – it wasn’t bad at all AND it was a bonus to have a “getaway” for myself where I could hang out and be away from the chaos of the rest of the family above!
If anyone can transform the basement into a awesome new workspace, it’s you! I’m looking forward to all the new things you’ll be doing. And, congrats on the new baby BTW!
I’m sure you’ll be sad to leave your pretty studio behind, but I just know you will find a way to make the basement studio even better. Looking forward to following the progress.
I know what you mean about a creepy basement. But at least the walls are lighter and not scary dark stones like in my house. You should see how quickly I empty out my dryer so I can run up the stairs.
Can’t wait to see pictures once the rooms are rearranged.
I don’t usually do this but here is a picture of our scary basement. http://housetoyourhome.com/2009/10/26/oh-yea/. We did it on a very small budget. I was wondering, maybe you could stucco your basement walls? However you fix the problem I’m quite certain the basement won’t be scary for long! Can’t wait to see how it turns out.
Can’t wait to see the new room! I notice you have the same rocker/glider in your nursery that I have…do you have any tips for getting the seat cushion to stay put? I love that chair, but that drives me nuts!
long time reader, in-frequent commenter :) it made my heart smile when you said that you plan on doing little updates to the nursery for the new baby. while it’s a gorgeous nursery i love that you want to give him/her a look of their own. so awesome. oh! and if i haven’t already said it – congrat’s on the new baby!
Sure you’ll make something amazing in that basement!
My 4 year-old’s playroom got bumped to the basement when baby #2 was on it way. Her response, “Wait a minute, the baby gets this room and I get the basement??? ewwww…gross!!” I did my best to make it as nice as possible. I had an electrician come and light up the place to make it less dark and dingy. Good luck, I am sure you will make it look fabulous.
I LOVE your studio. I don’t know where you can find imagination like that.
If your 2nd baby is a girl you should totally have them share a room. I shared one with my sister until the day I moved out and it forged a really tight bond between us. That way you won’t have to work in the basement too.
Hi Nicole,
Well, look at the bright side. It sure is a challange and I’m guessing a lot of people will stay tuned just to see what you can make of a scary-looking basement. After all, so many of us can relate to a dark basement and would love to make something lovely (or even half decent) out of it. Can’t wait to be inspired by your work. :)
Ciao from rainy Milan. :)
I can see why you find the basement a little creepy, but I’m sure you’ll make it just, well, lovely! And I’m excited to see Eleanor’s big girl room! Is she gonna have a big girl bed?
You are so talented, I can’t wait to see what you do with the basement.
My husband and I both work from home so we use our living room as a combined office/work/entertainment space. We spend a lot more time working than watching tv so giving priority to work space rather than the most decorative of entertainment spaces works awesome for us. Just a thought, maybe your living room could work like that for you.
I’ve never seen anything like those tile things on your basement walls. They look kind of cushy, are they soft or hard? Could you staple into them? It looks like you could at least screw something into them. Maybe you could put some kind of wallpaper or fabric over the walls in an unconventional way. I imagine even stapling up fabric would look better than those tiles. Otherwise I’d cover the walls with curtains.
Your nursery is really OH-so perfect, I am really glad you plan to leave it as such. And Eleanor will now have her big-sister bedroom how exciting for her!!!
As for you and the basement, I have no doubt you will find a way to make it look pretty, I have seen you perform magic before =D
xo
Could you perhaps get Eleanor’s new room or the nursery to multitask like John & Sherry have done at YHL? That way you could avoid the whole scary basement idea altogether until you pull together the funds to renovate…
I have every confidence in y’all that the two of you will make it work. You’ve done such amazing things in your house already. You’ll figure something out.
I can’t wait to see the transformation! It will be beautiful I’m sure, and I look forward to shamelessly using your decorating ideas as we plan for a new house ourselves. Where did you get your big wall scissors in your studio? And your bookcases… did those come from IKEA? I’m making plans for my sewing space in our new home! Best of luck to your growing family.
Oh Nicole, I feel for you. I wouldn’t know where to start with those walls.
I’m sure you will come up with some fantastic ideas. Can’t wait to see how it turns out! I love a good dungeon makeover ;)
PS: Thanks for your sweet comment above!
Congrats on the next youngun being hatched. I had a look at your basement photos and wonder if you actually could paint a lot of those surfaces – they would look fresh, even though they are not smooth. You might also consider putting up painter’s dropcloths or some other inexpensive material as a less scary alternative to the walls or ceiling. I did some of those things in my laundry room, which we had no budget for (http://gracie-senseandsimplicity.blogspot.com/2010/01/my-frugal-cottage-laundry-room.html)
Congratulations on baby number two! I am anxious to see what you do with your basement, as we had to move an office to ours when baby Fred arrived in January. But we have stone crumbly walls (sometimes leaky) and are not quite sure what to do that won’t cost a fortune. It is basically a dungeon with a washer and dryer.
Why don’t you either:
1. install a mini-studio in the nursery and put both babies together in the large room
or
2. consolidate your living-room and dining-room in one room and move your studio to the remaining space?
You could also use the library. What about Brandon’s office? He doesn’t work from home…
And also: I wonder why didn’t you use your reward points to remodel the basement, since your bedroom was perfect already.
Just my two cents.
Some thoughts on the basement ( I once had to make an unfinished basement livable as a playroom). First, have you thought about hanging fabric over the walls. I just read that designers guild is doing a line for Ikea). Second painting the floor can do wonders.
Third, don’t know the ceiling height but a real fixture or two( as opposed to flourescents or naked bulbs) will do a lot
Congrats and good luck.
Lynn
I hate basements at the best of times so I would be devastated to move into mine!
Having said that I would do as others have suggested and first cover the tiles with the vapour barrier etc then instead of drywall I would use beadboard panelling! It comes in sheets, can be painted a beautiful white (some come pre-primed) and goes up easily. I would also paint my cement floor in a rug pattern (like you’ve done before!) and have a sisal outdoor rug for underfoot.
Anyhoo I know you will make it lovely, LOL!
Cheers!
I’m sure you’ve probably seen this B&A, but the sheet/ceiling idea is great for brightening up the space, and making it less dungeon-y (I have a flooding dungeon). Also, is drywall particularly expensive in Chicago? It’s very cheap in VA.
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/bedroom/before-after-melissas-budget-basement-bedroom-isly-119922
It seems almost criminal that you will have to work down there! You need light, bright, happy….lovely!
Do you have air flow down there? I’m sure over time you could make it look fabulous.
In my last house (over 100 years old), my office had to be in the basement, which was similar to the one you have. After much thought and struggle, my husband got out a paint sprayer and sprayed the entire thing white. The vents, the ceiling tiles, the rafters, the wires, the walls, and the floor. Just having it painted white was enough for me to feel more relaxed in there. Good luck!!
First, congratulations!
Second, don’t worry, the basement will work out fine. It’s not a subterranean basement because it has that great window. First I’d suggest painting your steps a cheerful color. I painted mine blue green, because that’s my favorite color. You could also hang some inexpensive sheets or bamboo screens in some areas. And your big bookcase will hide a lot. I put woven plastic rugs from Pier 1 in my basement. They are great on a cement floor. Good luck! Lots to do.
Have you noticed that you always seem to tackle large redo projects while you’re massively pregnant! Good luck with the basement repurpose and congrats on the new progeny in under construction now!
I’m absolutely in love with the rug you have in Eleanor’s nursery. I’ve been looking for something exactly like it! Could you tell me where you found it?
why does the baby need it’s own room. it’s good for kids to share a room. my best friend had a baby girl when her son was 3 and the kids have always shared a room even though there were other rooms open in the home. teaches them to share space and they have each other at night. plus you wouldn’t have to go to the scary basement….
Wow…I am sure someone has already covered this ( or you have already thought of it) but, I was just wondering if it would be possible to tack up beautiful wrapping paper on some of the tiles? To carve out a little niche for you & your assistant? I know if anyone can make this space cheerful & happier, you can. I am happy to see it looks like you have some somewhat biggish windows down there? Good luck!
xo
Melis