Wowza you all! I don’t think I’ve been this tired in a very very long time. I feel like it’s college exam week and the coffee, slurpees and cheesy fries just aren’t working to keep me peppy and creative. But we are finally to the finish line! The basement is complete(ish). I mean is a space ever really complete? We’re gonna call this a win though because it’s the one place in our house that our whole family has helped design and that makes it pretty darn good.

Lets take a quick trip down memory lane and look back on where we started. I can’t resist a good “before” shot.

This gross and unfinished basement brought to you by years of boys trashing it with their nerf guns, soccer, basketball and footballs and a cat who claimed the whole place for herself. So who’s ready to see this baby in all her new glory? If you remember, we decided it was time for Paul to have his own space, complete with a wet bar and surround sound. We also added a guest bedroom and a full bathroom which is my favorite part. So herein commences the tour.

We painted our basement stairs a bright white and then added a colorful stair runner to brighten up the space. I lined the walls with fun pieces of art pulled from my favorite Kate Spade books. Who says you can’t use pages from books as fun and colorful art pieces? I love that the first thing you see as you go down the stairs is the amazing Society 6 Art print “This Must Be the Place”

When you take a right at the bottom of the stairs you come to the bathroom. This bathroom is officially the nicest bathroom in our house and it’s in the basement. Speaking of my boys, I LOVE the Eye Print From Society 6 and have to smile every time they go in to use the toilet because I know they’re staring directly at those eyes. I mean who doesn’t want an audience watching them every time they use the loo?

Now on to the heart of the basement, the hangout room. This room was a true partnership between Paul and me. Though I put the finishing touches on the basement, Paul picked out the design of the bar, the paint color and the finishes. After 7 years, Paul was finally able to hang his concert posters that have been in storage for so long. We have an awesome sectional, a pub table with swivel bar stools, a ginormous tv and surround sound. So happy with the outcome!

Now for the bar. There’s a little bit for everyone: Colorful cabinets for me, wine/beer fridge for Paul and a place to add waters and yogurts for the boys! FYI: The blue LED lights in the fridge also serve as a useful nightlight for the boys. The more you know~

This was definitely a major labor of love but I’m so happy to have the added space and my boys have already had a sleepover downstairs! Thank you to everyone for joining me on this adventure and don’t forget to check out all the other reveals! There are some awesome ones! You can check them all out on the ORC Blog

A Big Thank you to the One Room Challenge team for doing this and also Better Homes and Gardens for being the media sponsor! Make sure to check my stories on Instagram to see a full tour of the basement. And, last but not least, stay tuned next week to see the reveal of the guest bedroom! This mama only had so much time this week to finish up all the projects so I’ve got a few more tweaks for the bedroom but trust me, it’s worth the wait!

Sara