Our Basement Before and After (painting and carpeting)

Kyle and I couldn't wait to get our basement done so that we could:

1. RELAX.
2. Get Organized.

This weekend was one step closer to getting those two things accomplished. That's the exciting part, but getting to that point was an especially frustrating one for Kyle. He whacked his head on a nail and has a gash and a bump to prove it. Then as he was cutting carpet with his razor he cut open his thumb pretty good. At first we debated on getting stiches, but after putting pressure on it and elevating it above his heart the bleeding stopped and we could get a good look at it. Thankfully, both of us determined he didn't have to end the day in the emergency room. (Thank you God!) Needless to say after all his injuries I think he enjoyed relaxing that much more.

We still have A LOT of work to do, but the paneling is painted, the office mudded (thanks to my sister), and the carpet laid. Our next projects are to finish the office (complete with book shelves), add a shower to the bathroom, move the vanity from the upstairs bathroom down (we're replacing everything but the toilet up there), replacing the walls (they've had water damage), tiling, and adding a closet to the downstairs bedroom. I will obviously be updating.

Here's the Picture Process (complete with captions):

The first thing we needed to do was paint the wood paneling. In order to stay in budget, we decided not to replace what was already there, just update it. Paint is the cheapest, easiest, most effective way to update! :)

I painted the bedroom first and decided to use the remainder of the green paint I had used in our bedroom. Plus with the decor I decided for this room, well, the color worked so well.

Once I finished painting the wood paneling it was time to lay carpet! The carpet is from Sutherlands and is very easy. It's like a giant rug, because there is no stapeling or glueing. That's exactly what we wanted in the basement. We've had so many water leaks and we  know basements are notorious for standing water, this carpet will be so much easier to clean, remove and cheaper to replace if such an incident should occur.

The bedroom completed.

Next was the family room. Kyle and I had picked a burnt orange color and when I tested it on the walls (BTW I LOVE IT, it's by far my favorite color in the whole house) my clutzy self spilled all down my frontals.

Oh Well... this is my norm.

My gallon of paint from the light brown/tanish color was running out and I was sitting there praying fish and bread, fish and bread (Jesus had fed thousands on 8 loaves and 12 fish - I think that's the correct numbers...) anyhooooo I was praying for a similar miracle. Thank you Jesus cause I barely had enough to complete the job. The painting is done!

Laying the carpet. As you can see from the far wall, the office space has a lot of work to be done yet, and I can't wait to show you the before and after pictures there! :)

Kyle cutting the carpet to lay just so, this was minutes before cutting himself.

Moved the furniture back where it belonged (after thoroughly cleaning it all).

That was it for the day! It took us a full Saturday to complete this work, so it was definitely time to relax and enjoy.

Even Marley was ready to relax!

I didn't realize until too late that I didn't really get great before pictures of the wood paneling and concrete floor. You can see enough of it, however, to see how much work we put into it. (These were pictures we took as we were looking at the house right before putting in an offer.)

Now for the before and after pictures!

Bedroom before...

Same walls, same corner... bedroom after.

Family room before wood paneling and all.

 Family room after (same corner)

 Notice the trim? :)
(My nephew is even enjoying it... okay... so he's enjoying the cartoons he can watch in a comfortable place, which is exactly what we were going for!)

I'll make sure that the next before and after post I publish has better before pictures. :) With the general idea I hope you can see the difference. We now have a comfortable guest room and a cool place to relax and watch movies. It only took us about 3 years to save and decide on what to do. We're even staying below budget! It's so nice to finally see what you had envisioned, and worked so hard to complete, coming together. It's only carpet and paint, with more work to do, but after these last few years of waiting, saving, and working... FINALLY!