Basement of the Week: A Place the Whole Family Can Enjoy
A Toronto-area couple and their kids gain zones for entertaining, doing homework, playing games and more
This family of four, who live in a Toronto suburb, were bursting out of their small family room area and wanted to finish their basement for a range of activities. “The first and most important thing to do was to create zones and work the layout around them,” says interior designer Christina Da Costa. The zones include a media room, bar, ladies lounge, children’s homework and video game room, and a finished space for a utility and storage area and a future craft room. “So many finished basements wind up feeling like a cave. My clients were not afraid of color, and they wanted theirs to feel light and airy,” Da Costa says.
The long hallway leads to a cold-storage room and the future craft room (currently a catchall) to the left, and to the main living space to the right. “This is a long, narrow space, but it was the perfect spot for a gallery wall,” Da Costa says. Since one of the homeowners enjoys photography as a hobby, the designer helped the family select a group of shots, then enlarged them in black and white, and framed them the same way with frames and mats from Ikea. “It makes a great impact when walking down the stairs, and the original personal artwork makes it meaningful,” she says.
Here’s a plan showing the zones of the basement. The living spaces we’ll explore are to the left of the staircase. The cold-storage room and space for the future craft room are to the right.
A gas fireplace was on the family’s wish list for their cozy media room, but the venting it needed was a budgetbuster. Instead, they splurged on a high-quality stone veneer wall and opted for an electric fireplace at about a quarter of the price of installing gas.
“My clients love color, especially blue, and they weren’t afraid of pattern,” Da Costa says. She went with a silvery gray for the walls, and brought in color with the furniture and accessories. “We found the botanical fabric for the sofa pillows first and used them as a jumping-off point,” she says. One homeowner was set on the sofa being leather but was open to color. Da Costa designed this one in blue leather, and everyone was happy. A patterned apple-green rug delineates the media room within a larger open space.
Ducts and other mechanicals are a common challenge when finishing a basement, and moving them increases the budget. Da Costa worked with the contractor, Magriff Construction, to place bulkheads in ways that looked intentional while rearranging the mechanicals as little as possible. “We also mirrored the bulkheads in some places to balance them out,” she says. You can see an example of this strategy on either side of the media room.
Paint color (similar): Wickham Gray, Benjamin Moore; stone: Silver Fox, ErthCoverings; sectional sofa, ottoman and swivel chair: Decor by Christine; side table and media console: West Elm; lamp: Wayfair
“My clients love color, especially blue, and they weren’t afraid of pattern,” Da Costa says. She went with a silvery gray for the walls, and brought in color with the furniture and accessories. “We found the botanical fabric for the sofa pillows first and used them as a jumping-off point,” she says. One homeowner was set on the sofa being leather but was open to color. Da Costa designed this one in blue leather, and everyone was happy. A patterned apple-green rug delineates the media room within a larger open space.
Ducts and other mechanicals are a common challenge when finishing a basement, and moving them increases the budget. Da Costa worked with the contractor, Magriff Construction, to place bulkheads in ways that looked intentional while rearranging the mechanicals as little as possible. “We also mirrored the bulkheads in some places to balance them out,” she says. You can see an example of this strategy on either side of the media room.
Paint color (similar): Wickham Gray, Benjamin Moore; stone: Silver Fox, ErthCoverings; sectional sofa, ottoman and swivel chair: Decor by Christine; side table and media console: West Elm; lamp: Wayfair
“I designed a swivel chair for them because it’s great for conversational seating when they are entertaining but can swivel toward the TV when someone wants to watch from here,” the designer says.
Down the hallway to the left is the bar area, open to the media area but defined by its accent wall in a ceramic tile that resembles driftwood. The material warms the sleek quartz bar and white cabinetry while adding texture. Again, Da Costa’s careful bulkhead placement turned it into an asset by making the bar area more of a cozy nook.
“Never skimp on pot lights in a basement,” the designer says. “It’s also important to have them on dimmers with different switches.” This way, one person can have bright light while working on a puzzle in the bar area, while others can choose dimmer mood lighting when they’re watching a movie in the media area or sipping a drink in the martini lounge.
“Never skimp on pot lights in a basement,” the designer says. “It’s also important to have them on dimmers with different switches.” This way, one person can have bright light while working on a puzzle in the bar area, while others can choose dimmer mood lighting when they’re watching a movie in the media area or sipping a drink in the martini lounge.
A classic Herman Miller table serves as board game central for the family as well as an appetizer and snack-serving spot when they are entertaining. The classic midcentury modern pieces add to the transitional mix of styles down here. A barn door fashioned of reclaimed wood brings in a rustic touch.
Across from the bar is a special place for the mom and her friends to enjoy — the fashionista martini lounge. “She loves fashion, so we brought in a some glamour over here without going overboard,” the designer says. She designed the two comfortable chairs, and added shine via upholstery nailheads, silver throw pillows and other metallic accessories. She also hung fashion illustrations and the iconic Prada Marfa print.
The Roman shade, extended to make the small window look bigger, ties in to the media room since it’s in the same “jumping-off point” fabric seen on the throw pillows in there.
Fashion illustrations: Etsy
The Roman shade, extended to make the small window look bigger, ties in to the media room since it’s in the same “jumping-off point” fabric seen on the throw pillows in there.
Fashion illustrations: Etsy
The barn door slides to reveal kids central, outfitted with a workspace for homework as well as a lounging space for watching TV and playing video games.
“Even when the family isn’t doing activities, they all like to be down here together,” Da Costa says. The kids can do homework or play video games in here while their parents watch TV or read in the media room.
Custom barn door: 1925Workbench
“Even when the family isn’t doing activities, they all like to be down here together,” Da Costa says. The kids can do homework or play video games in here while their parents watch TV or read in the media room.
Custom barn door: 1925Workbench
“The goal was to make it as cheerful as possible in here,” the designer says. In addition to the bright furniture and accessories she selected, she asked for some of the children’s artwork and hung it from wire with clips.
She chose the desk before the homework nook was built, and she and the contractor worked to give it the right fit. Again, they worked out the bulkhead placement to create a pleasing nook.
Desk, shelf and chairs: Ikea
Desk, shelf and chairs: Ikea
Each child has a comfy beanbag lounge chair (one was removed for the photo shoot). Now the basement is a favorite spot in the house, and everyone has their own special place within it.
TV console: Ikea; beanbag lounge chair: Kitchen Stuff Plus
Read more about basements
TV console: Ikea; beanbag lounge chair: Kitchen Stuff Plus
Read more about basements
Basement at a Glance
Who lives here: A married couple and their two children, a girl, 9, and a boy, 7
Location: Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Size: 1,129 square feet (105 square meters)
Designer: Christine Da Costa of Decor by Christine
“They wanted space to hang out in together as a family, but also their own spots so that they could all be down here at the same time, doing their own things,” the designer says. The new layout is also great for entertaining adults and kids at the same time.
To connect the basement to the rest of the house, the designer put in a new staircase that created a better flow with the rest of the home. “The wrought iron spindles keep it as open as possible and maintain a flow from the main staircase upstairs,” she says.
The flooring is a wide-plank engineered hardwood with taupe tones. The pocket door is a space-saver that leads to the utility room, which Da Costa outfitted with closets for storing items like winter coats.
Flooring: ProSource