Decorating a Finished Basement on a Budget

As your family needs room to grow, but your budget has shrunk, you may find that remodeling your basement is something that you seriously want to consider. It can make the perfect place for kids to play or for adults to gather. You can make changes for next to nothing, and increase the usable space in your home. By painting your walls a light, neutral color, and adding bright lights, a few silk plants, a large iron wall decor, and a bold colored throw rug on the floor, you can add some life and color to your basement. Hang a curtain to cover any utility areas of the basement, and then arrange your furniture in a comfy, conversational grouping. You can makeover this entire area with the tiniest decorating budget.

You can even furnish the basement with your mismatched furniture that does not have a place in the rest of your house. With a little paint and some imagination, you can create a fun look for your new basement.

Add a slipcover or reupholster your castoff couch.

Add new lamp shades to old lamps

Use extra fabric, from outgrown clothing or old blankets, to make colorful throw pillows for the couch

Refinish old, wood furniture

Add a coat of paint to create a cohesive feeling between mismatched furniture.

Shop at resale shops for bargain wall decor, whether you prefer a musical wall decor, wall art hot air balloon or contemporary painting.

You may have a little expense revamping your old furniture, but it will be not much more than the price of paint and a little fabric. If you shop for sales, you can severely reduce these costs as well.

If you have any hobbies that create works of art, crafts or really anything at all, this new room is the perfect place to display them, and even better yet, you are adding decor for free. If you paint, you can hang your work on the walls. If you play with clay, then you can adorn the room with pots and sculptures. Group all of your pieces together and display them like an art exhibit, or scatter them throughout the room to use as accessories. From covering your walls with homemade quilts to displaying your model airplane collection, your new basement room can be a really personal part of your home.

Turn your basement into a great place for the whole family to enjoy. Add a good lighting fixture, a comfortable couch and a soft area rug, and you have the beginning of a really great family room. Plug in the TV, add a few magazines and your room is ready to use. Adding a functioning family room to your house, even if you have had to downsize is a great way to bring the family together.

Another great use for your finished basement is a sports room, because it is really good at buffering noise. Jumping and commotion will not bother anyone underneath you, and you can cheer for your favorite team and not disturb a soul. You can decorate in your team colors, and add pennants to the walls. You can set your room up like a tailgate party and use ice chests for cold beverages as well as extra seating. Cover them with stickers and decals, and use them as end tables, or scoot two of them together to use as a single coffee table. Hang any autographed pictures of your favorite sports stars, and you can display any of your own sports trophies as well. This will be a great room to enjoy with friends and family.

If your family likes to play games and do puzzles, you may want to think of turning your basement into a game room. You can decorate the walls in the theme of your favorite board game like Monopoly. Paint your favorite game pieces on the wall or paint characters from the game onto the wall.

If you keep the background of your basement light, neutral colors, then you can use bold colors like red or orange to add some contrast in your room. Some basements are cluttered with duct work and wiring, while others are more open. Try to mitigate the feeling of overhead utility gear by painting it to match the ceiling. You may also want to add some good quality silk plants to make the area feel a little more organic.

As you are putting your basement room together, remember to add enough lighting . Basements are notoriously dark, so add overhead lighting, wall lamps, table lamps and floor lamps to get a nice overall glow to your basement. If you use full spectrum bulbs in your overhead lighting, your basement will feel much more inviting that if you simply plug in fluorescent bulbs for your lighting.

If your basement include work space, such as a laundry area, there is no reason why you should not be doing your housework in an enjoyable atmosphere. Make your room feel crisp and clean or warm and cozy. Use paint to set the tone of your room, and then finish the walls with a theme stencil.

You can create a fun and functional room in your basement by trying these simple suggestions, and as you begin pulling together furniture for your new basement makeover, who knows, you may have some really creative ideas of your own for decorating you basement on a budget.