Basement Studio

Starting on the Basement Studio (Finally!)

I used to have a great little studio. Remember?

My Studio

My Studio

Oh, former studio! You were so good to me and my shop. Then I had a baby. And then another one. And I needed that upstairs bedroom back. So we remodeled and finished the basement to make room, and now (finally!) it’s time to get the new studio up and running. I last showed you the space when it was newly finished and looking rather empty.

Here’s what it looks like these days, with the furniture moved in.

I’m excited to be working with IKEA for this stage of the basement remodel. I already had one of their butcher-block kitchen islands and I’m adding a few more pieces from their Värde line because they work perfectly in craft rooms. And yay, I finally have a space to bring back the striped Stockholm Rand rug! I tried it a couple of years ago in the dining room, but it just wasn’t right for that space.

Striped Rug in the Dining Room?

It’s going to look much better in the studio. I’m bringing another over to the playroom side too for continuity.

I have a lot of organizing and decorating to do. The play room can wait a little, but I’m eager to open Pink Loves Brown up again, and obviously I need everything in place before that can happen.

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  • Juli
    July 12, 2011 at 12:44 pm

    Oh my goodness, I love this! Wow! Just what I’ve had in mind for my own “dream” studio. The floor to ceiling shelves, the fun curtains, the colors, the organization… I’m bookmarking this for when we got our own house! Thanks so much for the inspiration! :-)

    Your new studio looks like it’s coming along perfectly!

  • Julie
    July 12, 2011 at 12:44 pm

    Bah, I love your old studio closet doors! I finally tracked them down in a custom order catalog at Home Depot…and it turns out the entire line has been discontinued. Now they only offer 2 cheapo looking white closet door options. This search for a set of nice (but not $900 custom made nice) white closet doors is going to be the death of me.

    New studio looks fab too, ignore my closet door rant.

    • Making it Lovely
      July 12, 2011 at 3:27 pm

      Oh, that’s too bad! They were about $200, if I recall correctly, off the shelf.

  • Carole
    July 12, 2011 at 12:54 pm

    Looking good! Love those rugs. I wish I had time to turn my blog into something more … would love to get the sponsorship hookups! Good for you!!

    We just finished our basement. It is not finished-finished yet, still needs decorating and styling up … but we are SO happy to have this space back. Here it is: http://adventuresinhomeowning.blogspot.com/2011/07/basement-remodel.html

    • Making it Lovely
      July 12, 2011 at 3:28 pm

      I love the tile you used in the bathroom. And you have the same play rug that I have for August!

      • Carole
        July 21, 2011 at 9:47 pm

        Thanks! I like the tile too!

  • Cristina
    July 12, 2011 at 12:57 pm

    Hooray! I can’t wait to see everything finished!

  • brooke
    July 12, 2011 at 1:03 pm

    I might have to get one of those rugs for my bedroom.

  • Leslie
    July 12, 2011 at 1:07 pm

    Your new space looks wonderful!! :)

    L

  • Courtney
    July 12, 2011 at 1:13 pm

    Love the sherbert green and pink color scheme with the graphic pop of the best Ikea rug of all time!

  • Robin @ Our Semi Organic Life
    July 12, 2011 at 1:19 pm

    wow it looks awesome! How great that you get to work with IKEA for this!

  • Kelly (Kelly is Inspired)
    July 12, 2011 at 1:19 pm

    love your basement! Great Colors!!

  • Glade
    July 12, 2011 at 1:25 pm

    Hi! I love your studio and your organizational skills. I’m sure your new studio will be just as lovely. I am curious about what you keep your cards in. I make greeting cards and would love to know what display products you are using…or are those just cardboard boxes?

    • Making it Lovely
      July 12, 2011 at 3:51 pm

      Cardboard boxes, and also acrylic boxes meant for CDs.

  • Kate
    July 12, 2011 at 1:33 pm

    Awww baby Murray!

    Very cool basement space…I’m totally jealous as mine is just a big unfinished area.

  • Jocelyn
    July 12, 2011 at 1:39 pm

    It looks great so far! I absolutely adore the green floor in the basement.

    Quick question: Did you have to dissemble your expedit shelves to move them? I’ve got some I have to move soon and I’m terrified that I’ll tear them up in the process.

    • Making it Lovely
      July 12, 2011 at 3:52 pm

      Yes, we had to take them apart. We’ve done it four or five times though and they’ve held up fine!

      • Kathryn Humphreys
        July 12, 2011 at 4:25 pm

        We have an older expedit that’s held up fine for 10 years and many moves, but the newer ones that we bought for our basement playroom seem to have poorer quality pegs. Several broke during a relocation. Easy enough to drill out and replace, but annoying given how well our original lasted.

  • Ban Clothing
    July 12, 2011 at 2:22 pm

    Lovely start to the room. Your organization melts my heart. I am not organized at all and just stash everything where I can. I need to organize my sewing room and you have provided just the inspiration.

  • Vicki
    July 12, 2011 at 2:35 pm

    It looks beautiful so far, I love the pink and the green together! I can’t wait to see it finished.

    However, it’s a shame that it feels like almost every post you do these days is sponsored in one way or another.

  • Jennifer
    July 12, 2011 at 2:40 pm

    How funny….I just was reading through some of your older posts the other day and came across the run of your old studio. I actually saved it to my fave’s file because I’m in the middle of redecorating my office and loved some of the storage ideas you had going on. I’m sure the new one will look just as fab!

  • Katie
    July 12, 2011 at 2:57 pm

    Love the black/white rug against the olive green floor! Also, super jealous you get to work with Ikea! I dream of living in an Ikea someday! :)

  • hayley
    July 12, 2011 at 6:05 pm

    I love your style! You have truly built a beautiful home.

  • Ashley @ DesignBuildLove.co
    July 12, 2011 at 6:12 pm

    gorgeous space before and can’t wait to see the new space all done!!!!

  • Natalie
    July 12, 2011 at 6:14 pm

    I gasped out loud when I saw the new studio! That rug is PERFECT for it; well done! Can’t wait to see what else you do in here! :)

  • Shay
    July 12, 2011 at 6:42 pm

    That rug–I bet it looks amazing in person, but on the screen, it’s making my eyes go haywire.

  • Lizzie
    July 12, 2011 at 8:42 pm

    Lovely as always!! So please share, where did you get Eleanor’s fabulous kitchen play set? I have my eye on the modern Ikea kitchen set but going back and forth with my hubby building her one like this adorable vintage set.
    http://pinterest.com/pin/63024076/

    I know here in California we have the nice weather but I would adore having a huge basement like yours. So much space at your disposal!!

  • Erin @ NonShrinking Violets
    July 12, 2011 at 8:50 pm

    I love that rug. Can’t wait to see the end result!

  • Lilis
    July 12, 2011 at 10:19 pm

    It looks lovely, i wish i can have a studio like yours :)then I would work happily everyday.
    Btw, I’m curious, how you still manage to decor and work while handling 2 children ? sorry it’s out of topic, but i just wondering, as I have 1 toddler (almost 3Y) & it’s already a handfull. I’m planning to have the second child next year and biting my nails wondering if I can handle both of them well. if it’s too private and you don’t want to answer, it’s ok too.

  • Nat @ Dear Little House
    July 13, 2011 at 12:41 am

    Looking good! I can’t wait until I can get my stupid set up!

  • Leone
    July 13, 2011 at 3:02 am

    Looking good. Love those rugs with every fiber of my being. Why is there no IKEA in Alaska? *sigh*

  • jo
    July 13, 2011 at 8:41 am

    Nicole,
    Love all the designs you do. Quick question, where did you find your white table?

  • Elise
    July 13, 2011 at 11:08 am

    Looking at the picture of your old office, I’m wondering where you got your wire shelves that you’re using to split the squares in the EXPEDIT?

  • M
    July 13, 2011 at 1:59 pm

    Looking Good! Love the floor color!

    The Ikea shelving would look amazing as a room divider between the two spaces!!!! Just a thought : )

  • itziar
    July 14, 2011 at 8:16 am

    Love it!
    Great job, looking forward to see the final result

  • Naomi
    July 14, 2011 at 12:11 pm

    Looks great so far! I am especially interested in what you do with that huge bookshelf. I have one myself, but I’m still struggling to make it look great.

  • Maggie D
    July 14, 2011 at 10:42 pm

    It looks great! I always look forward to your design pictures! What brand is the cute play kitchen?

  • Brigitte
    July 16, 2011 at 12:50 pm

    Nicole – It looks fabulous! I can’t wait to see the finished space.

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    July 28, 2011 at 11:09 am

    […] I’ve made more progress on the basement studio! […]

  • Jenny
    August 4, 2011 at 3:46 pm

    I too think it looks fabulous!!! What brand is that darling kitchen?

  • Melissa C
    October 4, 2011 at 2:29 pm

    I just LOVE your shop & blog and am so happy I found it! I’m looking for some nice storage options for my Expedit shelves and love how you’ve used them. Can you tell me where you got the: pink boxes (they look like CD boxes), the white drawers that are 2 side-by-side (I LOVE that they fit perfectly in the cubbie) and the black wire baskets/hanging shelf thingies. I totally love what you’ve done and would love to implement some of these ideas but can’t seem to find things that fit well. Thanks for any help and I’m so glad I’ve found another blog to read & shop to visit!!

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  • The Basement Studio and Playroom Plan | Making it Lovely
    May 22, 2012 at 2:52 pm

    […] that grellow color. I chose it thinking that the floor on that side would be offset by the black and white rug, taking up most of the space. now that it’s gone though, I’m not sure I like the way that side is looking. I’ve […]

  • Kylie
    May 31, 2012 at 10:46 pm

    Hi Nicole!
    You have some amazing ideas for studio organising/decorating and have to say I love your use of the IKEA bits and pieces. I have quite a few Expedit shelves myself and I like the way you use those black wire baskets hanging from the the top of the “cube” space. Where did you get those? I had lots of trouble finding storage options that were the right size for the things I wanted to store as well as fitting the shelf. Using the baskets in combination with the shallower boxes is a great idea!
    Thanks xx

  • Sandee
    April 14, 2013 at 9:26 pm

    Love the wire baskets… Where did you find them?!?!