Whether you are remodeling the basement for a guest room or letting your teen take over the bottom floor, you’ll need to do more than carry a bed downstairs. If you’ve tried putting a bed in the basement and calling it a bedroom, you may have quickly learned that your nighttime sanctuary is not as cozy as you had hoped. Let these tips for decorating a basement bedroom guide you.
Insulate Your Basement
You should insulate your basement to protect yourself from the winter chills. Most basements have concrete walls and need foam board insulation to ensure that the cold stays out and the heat stays in. Insulation will also keep your air conditioning inside in the summer. Add wood paneling for an extra layer of insulation. Proper insulation can also protect your basement bedroom from noise.
Pro Tip: Situate your bed against your basement’s interior wall so you don’t get too hot or cold in the night. Exterior walls change temperature with the seasons.
How To Design Your Bedroom
While the most important part of decorating any room is staying true to your style, you will want to follow some basic tips for decorating a basement bedroom. Since basements don’t receive much natural light, you’ll want to include warm colors in your palette. If you want to design a cozy basement, include soft materials and over-sized furniture.
Play With the Existing Architecture
Some basements have functional architectural features that can add charm to your bedroom. An exposed column or unfinished ceiling with exposed beams may bring a cozier atmosphere to your basement. Intimate coffee shops and diners often embrace these building aspects for their whimsy and charm, and you can too. Find ways to incorporate a beam or column by
- stinging it with lights
- hanging pictures on it
- wrapping it with thistle rope for cats
- redesigning it with stone
Make Your Basement Bedroom Look Bigger
If your basement has limited space, you can trick the eye into thinking the room is bigger. Use lighting, mirrors, and paint combinations to give the impression that there is more space in your basement bedroom. Placing mirrors across from each other or across from a door will expand the room. You can also use lighting to make the room look bigger, but since it is a bedroom, you’ll mostly want to stick to table lamps and sconces. Shades such as pale yellow, ocher, and lavender are the best paint colors for rooms with no natural light. Experts recommend painting the ceiling a lighter color than your walls to give height to your room.
With these tips for decorating a basement bedroom, you can tackle any space like an interior designer. You’ll be thankful you invested in good insulation and that your room has a cozy design. It is only a matter of time before your basement becomes your new favorite part of the house.