Basement Remodel | The Cellar
October 28, 2020
In the final installment of our basement remodel home tour (see also my craft room and the guest suite), I’m taking you around what we refer to as ‘The Cellar,’ as inspired by the 1920s vintage French wine rack and Champagne refrigerator we now have in our main living space. After the remodel, our basement functions as a guest suite, craft room, workout center, cozy movie theater, alternative dining location, wine tasting room and storage and utility area. Without further ado…
A pretty framed Audubon bird print in the stairwell
Flooring | Wall Color: SW ‘City Loft’ | Trim Color SW ‘Alabaster’ | Stair Runner
We replaced the carpet with a sisal runner and painted the plywood stairs with a shellac primer; I store my ironing board on a hook on the basement door.
Sisal runner to the stairwell landing
Basement hallway to craft room
Basement hallway to guest room (left) and bathroom (right)
Antique Thonet chairs and marble bistro table
The “brick” floor gives an outdoor vibe, and I wanted a marble bistro table to give us the feeling of dining outdoors in Paris. This lamp is actually a votive holder; I cut the wiring out of an old broken lamp and topped with a new harp and chandelier shade to enjoy the glow of candlelight for an authentic French bistro feel.
A framed Paris map hangs above the bistro table.
Sconces | Wine Fridge | Cabinet Pulls | Cabinet Handles | Mirrored Wall Tile
Our dry bar and wine fridge; the antique mirrored subway tile adds some depth and sparkle
I selected a quartzite remnant from a local marble yard for our countertop; I loved this piece I found with distinctive black veining. Also, I have never smoked a day in my life, but love my tiny collection of vintage French ashtrays. However, the Veuve Clicquot ice bucket is more than purely decorative.
While we make an exception for a few white and rosé wines, this is primarily a Champagne refrigerator kept at an optimal 47°F. I keep Champagne flutes in the top shelf of the fridge so we can always enjoy a chilled glass.
This is a 1920s vintage wine rack from France.
Fun fact! It can hold 204 wine bottles! (Accepting donations)
We keep our basement around 60°F which is good for storing red wine.
I made these tags to keep our wines organized by origin.
The Cellar
Cozy sitting area
This wrought iron lamp is a favorite family heirloom.
For the wall behind the sofa, I am on the hunt for an antique French pastoral scene tapestry to give this space some additional warmth and depth.
With a muted palette of browns and creams, seemingly disjointed pieces come together in a cohesive way.
This antique French Champagne crate holds blankets for movie viewing.
Iron candle sconces add warmth and interest to the TV wall; the console table holds a wrought iron candelabra with wine cork candles.
There must be a puppy bed in every place we hang out.
Our TV mount allows us to pivot to view from the bistro table or the workout area.
The sliding barn doors replaced bi-fold doors which separate the finished area from the unfinished utility and storage room.
At the back of the cellar is our workout equipment.
We bought two horse stall mats from our local farm supply store to protect our floor from the weight rack or a dropped weight.
Workout area
A Command hook holds my jump rope and resistance bands.
We installed LED dimmable ‘can’ overhead lights for workout mode.
For mood lighting, we rely on lamps and dimmable LED track lights which illuminate the walls.
Teddy approves!
Here are some chaotic pictures of our basement just after the flooding (where you can see the old carpet, drop ceiling tiles and wainscoting), as well as some in-progress pics. I am so glad to be headed into the cooler seasons with such a cozy place to watch a movie, exercise indoors, enjoy takeout and pour a glass of wine!
Bar and dining area before
Living area before
Basement mid-cleanup
Basement mid-cleanup
Sabrina isn’t quite sure why we eliminated the many, excellent “mouse holes”!
Drywall going up after the flood cut
Drywall complete
Instead of replacing the drop ceiling, we added a little height by keeping it open and spraying it all with a white shellac primer.
Flooring going in; porcelain “brick” tile laid in a herringbone pattern
Our new favorite takeout spot!