As you leave the bright, open, airy, ocean blue and vanilla feel of the main level of our new home and head down the main stairs to our basement, this is what you see. (I apologize in advance for the images. I just couldn't capture pictures in the exact way the eye sees this space. Therefore, some are too bright - some are too dark - etc. Please bare with me.) Since moving into our new home 7 months ago, I've determined that the colors in the basement are the only thing that I do not care for within our home. The house is a brand new house but I feel like the wall colors and carpet color down here in the basement make it feel much older than it actually is. Unfortunately the colors were already done and painted when we purchased the home so there was no turning back at that point.
Please note...I have yet to do any decorating down here in the lower level areas. There are no accessories, scrawny trees, plants out of place -just sitting and waiting for me to either throw them out or find a new spot for them, etc. It's really just a hot mess down here for the moment. ;)
Meet the "baby poop brown" trim I've vented to you guys about down here. See the images below. They give you a great color confirmation of what I mean when I say that the trim is "baby poop brown." The room below is actually what they call the "Gentleman's Room." I realize that basements are meant to be darker and more manly most times. However, if I had it my way, I'd paint this trim down here a different color. Brent won't have it though. He really likes the basement area. He says it would be too much work to repaint the entire basement trim. He's right. I'll admit it. In the end, it's definitely fit for a guy. No doubt about it.
Now...let me say that the brown trim isn't so bad in the Gentleman's room with all of the Terra cotta colored furniture and the coordinating window treatments, walls, etc., or in the theater room, game room area, bar area, or even in the bedrooms/bathroom down here. I can 'deal' when it comes to those areas.
But...when the trim carries over into my AGD studio room...it gets really tricky for me to handle and just breathe thru it. See case in point below.
Again, I apologize for the color of the pictures. The carpet in the pictures here is way more brown than it truly is and same goes for the trim. The trim isn't this dark. But...I just can't get the camera to pick up the real color.
My goal with painting this studio space was to make it a bit more cheerful when I'm in there sewing or beading. I couldn't stand the darkness anymore. The pink wall paint did help the room tremendously in regards to brightening it up. However, I'm still not totally pleased with the outcome. If only this trim was white. If only...
I'm currently looking and on the hunt for an old vintage desk on Craig's list or in some thrift/antique shops that I can buy and paint a turquoise color. I will just take the 6ft. table out and replace it with the desk once I find it. Option #2 would be to make a funky table cloth to go over the 6ft table to match and go along with the greens, pinks, turquoise, etc. in here. My goal would be for the table cloth to be floor length and ultimately hide the underneath of the table itself. We'll see what transpires with that.
I do enjoy having the walk out basement access in here with all of the open windows. It really lights up the room during the day. It will be nice to open that door and those windows come spring and summer. I can actually walk out there and sit down and bead if I feel the need. Again though, if I had my way, I'd replace the bamboo window treatments with something more girlie. However, there is really no sense in wasting the money to replace them with that trim being the brown color that it is.
The green dresser/drawers you see in the image above are filled to the brim with beads and bead supplies. They have their own little area in there.
I do love how my big ol' massive wings painting turned out in here. It really is a statement maker. LOVE THAT! Thanks again Sherri.
As you all know, I have serious OCD issues when it comes to organization. This room was a yoga/exercise room back before we bought the house and when our builder had it staged as the model. Therefore, this closet was left open with a huge mirror on the wall in between the shelves. It is PERFECT for me because I can easily get in and out of there as I'm working on things in the room itself. The mirror also opens up the space and gives you the impression that it is much larger in size. Helps to lighten things again as well. I need all the "light" I can get down here. :) Either way, these shelves are a God send for me and all of my soldering, rhinestone, beading, stamping, hair bows, etc. supplies. I got the baskets to disguise all of the chaos.
Yes, I know. Go ahead and say it..."I'm a freak" regarding the organizing. Labeled things make my heart skip a beat. I love labeled and "owned" spaces. If you think this is bad, you should see the room where I store all of my fabrics. I probably need medication for this sort of thing. HA!
People often ask me if this room stays that clean all the time. The answer is...most times, yes! I cannot work in a cluttered and unorganized area. I'm the type that would want to run and jump off a cliff rather than work in a space where things are thrown all over and strung out everywhere. When sewing, it is easy to get messy. You usually end up with fabric remnants, threads, etc. everywhere. And I do mean EVERYWHERE! In the end though, I have to go pick it all up, save what needs to be salvaged, and then grab a sweeper to remove all of the fallen threads on the carpet. If I don't, I could seriously go into convulsions at any given moment.
So, there you have it. The studio is done. I wanted a bright and cheery space that was a Hodge podge of "me." Of AGD. I wanted a whimsical room that resembled something like cupcakes and palettes of fabrics all rolled into one spot. I'm secretly pretending that the baby poop brown trim is just the chocolate cake to the body of all the cupcakes. :) I'm slowly but surely making it mine and "owning" the area. Now...if I could just find a really ROCKIN' old vintage desk to paint turquoise for in there, I'd be doing great. Thanks for letting me share the paint job either way. I'll be sure to share Kenidi's room as well in a couple of days now that it is literally seconds from being done. Her room makes me proud! I get all giddy inside about her space.
