The Basement Remodel Begins

One of the things we liked most about our house when we first saw it was the unfinished first floor/daylight basement. Both Josh & I love projects & we saw it as an opportunity to be creative and really make the space our own.

Half of the first floor will be left alone, as it is used for the water tank, oil burner, laundry, etc. The other half, which includes a bathroom, bedroom, den, and 3 season porch, will be remodeled into a guest area with a small office/TV hangout room in the den. The scope of the project is somewhat large, and involves the following:

Office/Den

• Install new wood beam ceiling 
• Install slate tile flooring
• Frame, drywall, mud, and paint over cement walls
• Install french doors between the den and bedroom to open up the space
• Build a desk and shelving for the office area
• Build a cabinet around the electrical panel to hide it

Hall/Stairs

• Add a small wall to separate the "basement" side from the "guest" side
• Stain and paint the stairs and hallway leading to the first floor
• Slate tile in hallway
• Install new wood beam ceiling

Bathroom

• Gut bathroom
• Install new drywall
• Install tile shower and floors
• Install new counter and sink in bathroom
• Install shower door
• Install shelving
• Install wood beam ceiling

Bedroom

• Install wood beam ceiling
• Tile floors
• Build a bed
• Add door out to 3 season porch

3 Season Porch

• Install tile floors
• Frame out and install windows
• Frame out and install 2 doors

On Saturday we started working on the small office/den, taking down the walls of an unused closet to open up the space, and beginning the process of framing over the cement wall. The basement is our winter project while the weather is bad and we are forced to stay indoors. I took a few "before" photos to share here. I'll continue to post images as we complete projects, and hopefully I'll be sharing some good "afters" in the spring!