There's a reason basements often become cluttered dumping grounds, they're usually dark, uninviting and an excuse to hide your mess away. If you have an underused or unappealing basement, take some cues from designer Frances Herrera who transformed this one into a bright, welcoming playroom.
What was your goal for this space - what did your clients ask for?
My clients needed an inspiring place for their 5-year-old daughter to play, craft, and entertain her friends. It also needed to serve as an extra space for sleepovers. Storage was a key requirement as there were tons of toys running amok in the space.
Tell us about some of the projects you did here to make the space more functional and feel less like a basement.
To maximize the space, I designed the bench to serve as seating and accessible storage for toys. The bench is narrower than a sofa so it kept the space feeling open and airy. The sleeper does not take up space when open, also keeping the space fluid. The wall color is a soft grayish blue which makes it feel crisp and bright.
The short windows were lengthened by mounting the roman shades to the ceiling also giving the illusion that the ceilings are higher. The custom area rug, warmed up the otherwise cold tile and makes it comfy when kids spread out on the floor. The storage unit behind the sleeper, provide tons of storage and was a smart use of vertical space also giving the illusion the ceilings are taller.
What do your clients think of their new space?
My clients love the space, they love the airiness, playfulness and functionality. It's fun for kids and chic for adults to hang out in, too.
Do you have any general tips you could give about making a basement space more inviting?
The key to making a basement space inviting is using airy colors on the walls to give the illusion of natural light. Layering textures through fabrics and rugs will soften the space making it inviting. Windows in basements need not be ignored. This is a great opportunity to make a space feel finished and sophisticated. Lastly, basements usually turn into dumping grounds. By incorporating storage systems, you make the space functional and give it a purpose.
Thanks Frances!
See more of Frances's work: Interiors by Francesca
(Images: Frances Herrera)
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Where did they get the pink tent in the corner? Love it!
Is it just me, or is there something fishy going on with the lighting in the 'after' photo? It doesn't seem to me like they added any new windows, yet suddenly the room looks flooded with natural light.
Don't get me wrong, the room looks great and is a vast improvement. But the changes should stand on their own without using image adjustment tricks or professional lighting.
My basement doesn't have a ton of Windows, but depending on the time of day, the Windows get tons of light. Also, don't discount what newer bulbs can do for a natural looking light. It's a great makeover, though. I really need to do something about my catch-all of a basement lol
It looks like they changed the windows. In the after photo, there appears to be less blocking the light.
@ ruthie144 it looks like the land of nod tents, but you can make them using a tutorial on 2littlehooligans or livingwithpunks both are pretty good.
What a great renovation!
@DEARMISHA, i's pretty common for the lighting in After photos to be much better than the lighting in the Befores.
When people are trying to just take a quick reference shot of the before, they don't really care about staging it, but when it's time to show their masterpiece, they'll wait for a better time of day, get better bulbs, use a tripod, etc.
@dearmisha - it looks like in the before the windows weren't just cluttered, but had some sort of framing inside them. I'm sure there was some post processing on the afters, but removal of the clutter and framing probably let in a lot more light.
It looks like they took out a fluorescent fixture, and I assume, added new lighting somehow.
it is a photo trick... they photographed my apt on a gloomy NY day, and with a an expensive flash, the photos came out beautiful. you would think it was a beautiful summer day.
It is a little odd when the photos are so drastically different in lighting/development. I think the latter photo is probably tweaked a little. They removed a ceiling light and ended up with more light, did they also remove part of a wall? and the vent in the ceiling?
We are also interested in a basement renovation and I've been trying to figure out how we should change the standard fluorescent lights to improve the lighting. It looks like the overhead lighting in the before photo has been removed (as well as a ventilation fan?). Can the designer comment on lighting changes in this basement space?
I'm on the 'after photo appears dishonest' team. Unless there was a more major renovation to the physical space than was disclosed in the interview, it looks like they've photoshopped away the ceiling vent, overhead light, and window seals to make the windows appear larger. The kid space is cute, and I appreciate the improvements, but I think photoshopping beyond adjusting color and light should be discouraged on this site...
I am a professional photographer and I don't see any trickery here. The first picture is just a quick shot with a bad camera and the second one was taken with more care, that's all. I think there is more important stuff to worry about. The place has improved a lot and that's the main point of the post I think! Camera always lies, the first one is not more realistic than the second one. They are just different pictures taken with different cameras.
I also thinking that saying the image is dishonest is very offensive!
Apologies, but the issue here isn't the lighting, where did the ceiling vent go?
And maybe dishonest is a bit harsh without knowing for certain, I guess I'd just really like to know if they removed the overhead lighting and ceiling vent. I am genuinely interested in how they dealt with that, I am in the process of looking into remodeling a basement myself.
We have a southern exposure. If I took a photo of my window on a gloomy rainy day vs one where there is full sunlight, you'd get 2 different living rooms. Hell you'd get 2 different ones depending on the time of day.
After photos always look better. If you had a great Before shot, the After wouldn't have the same effect. Of course this includes lighting!
Maybe they removed the ceiling vent.
The windows look different – the earlier windows were those two-part sliding windows, with sme weird framing blocking more light – and the latter are single pane, albeit same size as the old ones.
I'm with the "where did the light fixture and vent go"-team.
Maybe they moved it? Maybe they are photoshopped out?
The light in the corner is probably on this time. :)
Well, I think its safe to assume that the windows were replaced. The old windows had wide frames, mullions, and had knick knacks stuck in front of them. New windows that have maximum glass area WOULD make a difference.
I also think that this photo was taken at the ultimate ideal perfect time of day, on a perfect sunny day, for best effect.
um...the post clearly says A Professional Project.
Obviously they've redone the ceiling, taking out the overhead light and vent.
While the designer says "The short windows were lengthened by mounting the roman shades to the ceiling also giving the illusion that the ceilings are higher." to my eye it also looks like they were replaced altogether with windows that provide more light.
Since there's been some discussion about how much difference here is in the photography, I thought I'd add that the only Before photo the designer had was smaller than the 540 width we run our photos and I did enlarge it a bit which further degraded the quality. So, yeah, sure there is definitely a difference in the quality of the photos but I think we can all agree that the physical changes made to the room are a big improvement.
We are still not clear on what the physical changes are. I think that's the problem being bounced around the comments. Were the windows changed out and the ceiling redone? There's no mention of those major changes--just the window coverings. That's what's creating the speculation that the photos may have been altered. The way to resolve this is to simply detail the physical changes that were made and state definitively whether the photos were altered with regards to these features.
I would really like to know where the Moroccan pouf came from...? Trying to find a similar one at a good price. Found some on overstock, but not sure of the quality/color...
oh wow i didn't even see the other pouf, the fuchsia/hot pink one towards the back. I like that one more than the pastel!
Enough about the photos... I want that tent!
Fun!
I don't get why this would require a professional, either. And really - it's for a 5-year-old to 'play, craft and entertain her friends'? 'Entertaining your friends' IS playing, when you're five.
Also, why take the 'before' picture in a messy room with a laundry basket dumped on the sofa? It's a blatant attempt to make the 'before' look as bad as possible in order to enhance the effect of the 'after'.
This whole article is pretty amateur.
Forget the pictures; I couldn't make sense of the text with all those random commas littered all over it.
Is that a new room to the side? I want to see what that is! I also think it is strange that you can't see the air vent anymore in the after shot. The windows don't look like it made that much of a difference to me in the after shot. Just my opinion.
Am I the only one who still thinks it's pretty blah? Why not paint the walls?
I find it cheesy when they remove comments. You can't expect all to agree. I'll state it again, why did they need a professional for this? I agree with BRH..it is pretty blah but you'll probably remove both our comments....again.
Like the makeover. Before photo appears to have been taken at less acute angle than the after, the redone room shows a picture hanging up on the right wall and more of the right sofa area. It is possible the vent wouldn't show at this angle (if not removed in renovation). The After photo simply shows more of the room and to its best lighted advantage. Good job, IMHO.
removing the ugly ceiling lighting was a good move, but the vent -- ? was it for heat /ac? it would have had to be moved to another location.
i think its great! if the walls were pale pink, it would be even better ^^