1 of 2
a poorly furnished basement recreation room
2 of 2
a renovated recreation room
Rec Room Revival: Like many homeowners, Greg and Patty Powers ignored their lower level. Until now.
The Problem: A basement in a state of chaos.
The Goal: To make it a warm, inviting place for children and friends to congregate, watch TV and play games, and to make the basement suitable for conducting business.
Patty Powers' approach to her basement was to pretend it wasn't there. "I haven't been down there in years," she says. "I didn't want to deal with it."
What lurked below was the kids' computer, a TV room with scattered video games, an air hockey table and her husband's office. The walls were partially paneled, the floor was chipped-and-cracked tile, the ceiling consisted of dirty and water-damaged tiles. The effect? Politely put, not desirable.
Marilyn Vollet, a designer from Edwin Pepper Interiors, rode to the rescue. After meeting with Powers, she left instructions: 1. Paint all the walls and paneling with Ivoire, by Sherwin Williams. 2. Remove existing chipped tile and put down carpet squares. 3. Replace any dirty and water-stained ceiling tiles. 4. De-clutter, de-clutter, de-clutter. 5. Hang blinds on the windows.
The entire Powers clan chipped in. Patty painted. Greg and eldest daughter Margaret, 17, tackled the ceiling. Margaret and youngest daughter K.K., 13, removed the tile floor and laid the carpet squares. Joe, 15, patched nail holes, helped de-clutter and hauled things out. The sixth Powers, Greg Jr., came in from the University of Missouri-Columbia and helped take out the old tile
Then the big day arrived. The Edwin Pepper trucks pulled up, Vollet and a crew descended, and the Powers' basement underwent a most radical renovation.
The goal: To create a cozy, inviting place for the kids to hang out, with plenty of seating and a place for son Greg to stay when home from college.
The problems: Dated furniture, a lot of clutter, no comfortable seating.
The solution: First, Vollet picked a color palette of rust, teal, turquoise and orange. "I wanted to go with something that was fun, warm and kind of hip, because it is primarily a kids' space," she says.
The furniture was mostly by Milling Road. "I brought in two armless chairs and pushed them together like a sofa," Vollet says. "It gave us ample seating for two and it was easy to get down the stairs. It also can be moved around."
An unfinished closet shell used to store clothes was cleaned out and reclaimed. Vollet had a drapery made and installed on a traverse rod. Inside, she added shelving for DVDs, VHS tapes, games (including video games) and puzzles. "So all the clutter goes away," she says. Vollet also added a small-scale recliner and another upholstered chair ("also lightweight enough that it can be shifted around," she explains). A leather-upholstered bench became the coffee table. "It can become a coffee table by putting a tray on it with drinks," she says. "Or people can put their feet up on it, or it can be used as another piece of seating."
By the air hockey table, Vollet added a console table with two poufs (small ottomans), yet more seating.
On the accessory front, she added baskets, warm lighting and plenty of throw pillows made out of Arc-Com, a commercial-grade fabric that is durable and cleanable.
The Activity Zone
The goal: To make the space presentable enough for Greg to bring clients in to discuss their insurance business.
The problems: No place to sit, the kids' computer was on a computer stand that was starting to fall apart, not nice enough for company.
The solution: Vollet tweaked the color palette by keeping the red and turquoise but adding plenty of black. The furniture was more tailored and formal than in the activity zone. But the most dramatic thing she did was to hang a curtain, separating Greg's office from the rest of the room. "It gives him privacy and lets him keep his office messy if he wants, but it doesn't affect anyone else," Vollet says. Then she used that curtain as a backdrop for a furniture grouping.
Aside from the sofa and chairs (with matching red end tables and non-matching lamps), Vollet brought in a table and chairs. The table appears to be card-table size but has leaves folded beneath so it can be expanded for larger business meetings or left as is, as a place for the kids to do their homework.
Immediately next to the steps is the kids' computer corner. It was uninviting. The Powers tossed the computer stand, and Vollet came in with "an open desk and open chair to keep it from looking so dark and blocked in." Then she hung a large mirror that reflected the other side of the room, as well as the windows. "That helps bring some lightness to that corner and opens it up a little bit," she says.
On top of a black Milling Road dresser, Vollet stacked some of the Powers' books as well as a group of old family photos. "I love it when people can take the things that mean the most to them and use them in a way that they are really aesthetically wonderful to look at, and it's a good emotional family moment to have all this on the walls," Vollet says. "I think sometimes people underrate what they can do with it all."
Bottom Line: What Would It Cost? All items (unless otherwise specified) through Edwin Pepper Interiors
ACTIVITY ZONE
Milling Road: Entertainment center $3,432
Leather bench $1,062
Sideboard $2,458
Scalloped mirror $782
Stacking cubes, 2 @ $165 each $330
Angled trunk $511
Henredon armless chairs, 2 @ $941 each $1,882
Wood chair with teal fabric $855
Hancock and Moore leather recliner $2,238
Accessories
Area rug from Rug World $2,250
Pool table print from W. King Ambler $350
Pouf ottomans, 2 @ $395 each $790
Basket lamp $424
Heidi Sherman photos, 4 @ $599 each $2,396
Iron candlestick $416
Pair of English bulldog statues $291
Faux water lily arrangement $178
Handcrafted pottery dish $42
Basket with lid $187
Round basket $83
Ceramic plant vase $375
Faux palm tree $204
Paintings, 2 @ $2,435 each $4,870
Black-and-white vase $456
Black-and-white wide vase $100
Throw pillows, 5 @ $150 each $750
Traverse drapery for closet $300
TOTAL $28,012
WORK-STUDY ZONE
Milling Road: Sofa $3,465
Chair ($1,371) and ottoman ($757) $2,128
Desk $1,716
Desk chair $585
Black chest $1,159
Century Furniture: Game table $2,290
Chairs, 4 @ $992 each $3,968
Hickory White console table $1,611
Hickory White book table $945
Hickory Chair red side tables, 2 @ $405 each $810
Miscellaneous
Original landscape painting $1,200
Faux narcissus $78
Antique box $695
Folk art horse $94
Ralph Lauren helmet lamp $488
Turquoise lamp $363
Tall black vase $124
Louis XVI turquoise urn $1,736
Rectangular faux plants, 3 @ $27 each $81
Large mirror from W. King Ambler $999
Architectural prints @ $699 each from W. King Ambler $2,796
Horn lamp $1,050
Abstract art $506
Rug from Rug World $2,450
Throw pillow $165
Traverse drapery room divider $1,122
TOTAL $35,575
Grand Total: $63,587
Editor's note: We were stunned, too. Designer Marilyn Vollet wanted it to be clear that "similar results can be achieved at all different budget levels." Clearly, this shows what can be done if you pull out all the stops, including spending more than $12,000 on artwork alone.