Basement conversions are a clever way to extend your home without increasing the footprint of your house, but they do throw up a few design challenges when it comes to creating a bright and airy space. From solutions like ground-level windows to smart lighting design, be inspired by these fabulous basement ideas…
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Include a glazed wall
This stylish townhouse basement allows light to pour into the space thanks to carefully positioned Crittall-style glass room dividers that maximize the brightness throughout the subterranean story and create an on-trend broken plan layout. In the kitchen area, metallic pendant lights brighten up the darker kitchen area that has navy walls and matching marble-effect countertops for contrast.
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Light up a bar atmosphere
Give exposed brick basement walls a touch of saloon style with a fun neon lighting feature. The striking ‘words of wisdom’ design that glows hot pink alters the room’s atmosphere in an instant. Finish the vintage bar lounge look with industrial-style, caged pendant lights set over a pool table and add a retro drinks trolley.
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Make the staircase float
Add an architectural addition to your basement with a modern staircase that floats. Flanked by a black steel balustrade this sleek wooden staircase appears to float in mid-air. Enhance the industrial vibe with seamless stone-effect tiles in silver tones; it’s the ultimate minimalist urban basement space.
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Add a sliding barn door
Sliding barn doors are a popular twist on the country classic and make a stylish and safe door option for basement entrance ways that lack space. This underground renovation by Handmade Home is bursting with personality, from pretty wallpaper to bespoke bookshelves and beaded pendant lighting, but it’s the beautiful blue barn doors with glass panels that really transform the space.
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Master indoor-outdoor living
With its incredible view out across the sunken garden, this townhouse basement has been designed to bring the natural world inside. Sliding doors and expansive skylights blur the boundary between indoors and out, creating a flexible light-filled living room. This new family space is part of a residential excavation by Appleton Weiner Architects.
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Workout in a basement gym
Converting your basement into a home gym can be a healthy investment. Ensoul designed and built this innovative under-garden basement which has skylights set into the lawn using reinforced glass. The underground space is split up into a half gym-half playroom to keep children entertained while the owners exercise. We love how the basement is decorated with a garden theme to blend the above and below spaces.
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Make it multipurpose
This incredible basement makeover was part of the One Room Challenge project crafted by Vanessa Francis. Interior designer, Vanessa, has transformed a 550-square-foot typical basement with exposed raw materials into an incredible living and wellness space. It now includes a small dining area, living area with L-shaped sofa, TV and wall-mounted fireplace. And, behind the living area, a set of chic charcoal sliding doors lead to a home gym – we think this is genius.
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Open up a homeschool
As we spend more time at home it’s practical and popular for families to have a dedicated space where children can homeschool. Aspire Basements converted this light, bright space that’s perfect for inspiration and concentration from a once unused muddy and damp cellar. It even has a lounge area with a TV and library for the ultimate in downtime after school.
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Set up an authentic wine cellar
A basement with an original vaulted ceiling is calling out to be converted into a rustic wine cellar. Create a juxtaposition of old and new by choosing contemporary wine racks to make a statement. If you have room why not pop in a circular table and bar stools to include your own tasting station?
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Stick to a pale palette
Maximise the sense of space in your basement with a pale palette that will bounce what light you have around the room. Team white ceilings and walls with blonde-toned wood floors. Then, bring in homely texture with panels and wall cladding made from natural materials or painted in muted tones. It’s also a clever way to cover up uneven basement walls.
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Design a laid-back den
Create a relaxed hideaway in your basement with a tonal palette of taupes and browns. Staged For Upsell has designed this bachelor’s basement with warm nutmeg walls, a chocolate leather sofa and a walnut-toned kitchenette, working in industrial touches with two porthole mirrors and stag motif pillows.
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Go to the movies
The lack of windows makes a basement the perfect place to recreate the dark and dramatic movie theater experience at home. This cinema basement has been given a retro vibe that includes navy walls, bright red lozenge sofa and framed movie posters.
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Install a subterranean wine cellar
This basement comes with a secret: installed beneath the parquet flooring is a subterranean wine cellar. Thanks to the reinforced glass porthole, you can admire your bottles while you relax in style on the retro cocktail chairs. A beautiful bespoke bar and pop art-style wall mural give the space a vintage vibe.
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Embrace a tonal scheme
This beautiful blue and white basement scheme styled by @lala_takes_pics uses a timeless navy and white palette to create an effortlessly stylish underground living room. Inky blues drift from the shelving units to patterned textiles and even wall art. We love the warming touch of the exposed beams too, which balances out the crisp white walls and units.
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Go for rustic décor
Adding wood paneling to an existing basement is a stylish makeover option if your walls aren’t in great shape. It also creates a cozy cabin aesthetic which can really suit basements with low ceilings. Home renovator Jessica Madison has painted the wood a soft gray and paired with quirky upcycled décor. A natural wood bar completes this welcoming rustic scheme.
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Create a cut-out basement
Creating more space in a modern home can be a challenge, especially when light is restricted. Nicholson Renovations has solved this problem by removing part of the floor between the entrance level and basement. This architectural layout revision has real wow-factor, with the ground floor living area turned into a stylish mezzanine balcony, while the kitchen-diner in the basement below is flooded with natural light.
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Work wonders with white
A pale, crisp color palette makes this multifunctional basement conversion by London City Basements feel as though it’s above ground. By using dazzling white across the woodwork, ceiling, staircase and tiled flooring, the available light is maximized, leaving this subterranean space feeling airy and bright.
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Go luxe with super-high ceilings
This luxurious basement incorporates generous ceiling heights of over 11 feet which creates an impressive sense of scale and space even though it’s subterranean. Wolff Architects has installed a host of extravagant facilities in this underground level, including a swimming pool, gym, home cinema and even a hair salon.
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Create a bedroom suite
This basement extension via The Property Service boasts a contemporary master bedroom complete with an ensuite bathroom and an impressive walk-in closet. Light pours into the contemporary space thanks to patio doors that lead out into a sunken courtyard, creating a private oasis below ground level.
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Relocate the laundry room
Installing a laundry room in the basement is a practical use of space. Not only will it keep bulky machines out of sight, but there should be plenty of room for drying clothes and ironing too. Beautiful bespoke units like these by Wheatland Custom Cabinetry & Woodwork will create a clean and stylish environment for conquering daily chores.
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Design a split-level ceiling
This basement in a 1920s home combines vintage and industrial styles, pairing wood-effect walls and concrete flooring with cozy soft furnishings and reclaimed wall art. To the rear of the room, a double-height ceiling opens up the space, drawing light down into the subterranean room from the ground floor above.
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Make it child-friendly
Daylight fills this contemporary basement in London thanks to clever backlighting and narrow strip skylights. Designed by MATT Architecture, playful additions include colorful study cupboards and storage shelves which have been personalized for each child. Cleverly, these units can simply be closed up when not in use.
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Opt for a zoned layout
Planning the layout of an open-plan basement can be a tricky task. This modern design by Concept Interiors is broken down into distinct zones to separate the kitchen, dining space and living area. Natural light floods in from the patio doors and a back-lit recess in the ceiling lifts the height of the room and increases the feeling of space.
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Create a TV snug
A basement conversion is the perfect space to house a cozy TV den. This cleverly designed room uses an architectural recess in the ceiling to conceal air ducts, whilst creating a natural spotlight that perfectly frames the mounted artwork.
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Go big on spotlights
With the only natural light coming down through the staircase, this basement design uses plenty of spotlights to provide some gentle task lighting, counteracting the dark hardwood flooring. Bright white walls and cabinetry help to create more light in this underground scheme.
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Add clerestory windows
With a cozy fireplace and plenty of soft natural furnishings, this basement interior by Christine Elliott Interior Design has been inspired by the Danish concept of hygge. A smart design feature, high clerestory windows allow light from ground level to pour down into this stylish space, creating a tranquil calming room to relax and unwind in.
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Get smart with lighting
Somewhat of a design challenge, this studio basement by Sanders Pace Architecture has no direct light source. However, thanks to carefully positioned task lighting, it’s been turned into a livable space. Spotlights in the ceiling make up for the absence of windows, while floor and table lamps concentrate light into dark corners.
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Make a minimalist space
Designed by the Restructure Studio, this basement in Austin, Texas, came as an afterthought following a full-house renovation. After digging down eight feet, the architects built a concrete retaining wall and a set of stairs to the floor above. The raw, exposed style would work perfectly for a cinema room.
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Create the ultimate games room
Located in New York, this spacious basement by J Silver Design makes the perfect family games room. Despite the lack of natural light, spotlights and task lighting make it bright and homely, plus they can be dimmed for movie nights and cozy evenings in.
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Bring the kitchen downstairs
If you’re tight on space, a large basement extension can be the ideal spot for a large kitchen. This design by Prestige Residential Construction uses pendant lights to brighten up the scheme and balance out the dark reclaimed wood units. Our favorite feature though is the blackboard wall – perfect for writing shopping lists!
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Create cohesion with colorful accents
At 1,700 square feet, this basement gave a family of four the open-plan living space they needed. Created by Mosaik Design & Remodeling, the interior has been organized into zones for the perfect multi-use space. Pops of color tie the different areas together – we love how the red accents carry through from the artwork and cushions to the bold back wall.
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Go big on built-in storage
With many of us working from home these days, a dedicated office space can be an essential part of your home. This clever design by EL Studio uses natural light from the floor above combined with strip lighting to create an illuminated work area. Every inch of space is utilized here, with drawers built into the staircase and a utility space complete with a washing machine and ironing board tucked away at the back.
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Design a colorful den
Moving the kid’s playroom into a basement extension can liberate the rest of your home. This cool den by Creative Union features colorful seating, built-in shelves and toy storage for a space they can really call their own. The ceiling has been raised in this small basement through a combination of two structural techniques, benching and underpinning, which helps the space retrain a bright, spacious feel.
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Create a dedicated craft room
Hidden away underground, a basement is the perfect spot for a workshop or craft room where things might get messy and noisy. Created by Rossmonster Design, this room’s industrial style is particularly forgiving of exposed wires and pipes, which become part of the space’s overall aesthetic.
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Keep wiring out of sight
Low ceilings can be a design challenge for a basement, especially those that involve ductwork and pipes. In this subterranean room, the architects reconfigured the ducts and added perforated metal panels to the ceiling, which are easy to remove when access to wiring is required. The strip lights around the edge illuminate the cozy space while square task spotlights focus on the seating area.
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Maximise light with glass fixtures
This property doesn’t have any external garden area, so drilling down to extend the space was the only option for Estbury Basements. Great lighting, a pale color scheme and modern reflective materials like the glass staircase all serve to brighten this basement and create a glamorous scheme.
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Add a secret wine cellar
Designed by the The Bellepoint Company, the window at the bottom of the stairs houses the homeowner’s expansive wine cellar. Elsewhere, characterful touches abound in this luxurious basement, with quirky barn doors and a matching wood-clad pillar creating a cozy and cohesive scheme.
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Excavate an outside space
The area outside this basement offers a great patio space for the summer months, whilst also bathing this underground room in some much-needed natural daylight. Stylish shelving doubles up as a picture rail and sideboard, illuminated by dramatic blue downlighting.
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Channel industrial vibes
Other basements try to hide ducts and pipes but in this cool industrial-inspired space they complement the overall aesthetic of the room. Low-hanging Edison bulbs hang over the floating table, while reclaimed stools offer a make-shift breakfast bar with bags of character.
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Illuminate with mini skylights
Designed and built by Firfield Developments, this is one of the brightest basement schemes we’ve seen. The streams of light are almost entirely due to the small skylights inset into the ceiling which faces out onto the ground floor garden. A bright blue sofa completes the clean white décor with a welcome pop of color.
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Create a split-level space
A smart and stylish use of space, this amazing basement by Norton Ellis Architects is split across two levels to maximize the usage of the room. A seating nook is located downstairs, while storage is found on the upper level with clever task lighting creating the illusion of soft daylight.
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Accentuate period features
If your home has a history, why not celebrate it? The beams in this 1980s basement project by LEAD Studios bring tons of charm to this underground room and are beautifully offset by the white brick walls and concrete floor. Carefully positioned spotlights add depth and interest to the period architecture.
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Design a luxury hideout
This spacious basement by Madison Taylor Design goes all-out when it comes to luxury finishes. Plush carpets, designer furniture and a bespoke project cabinet make this the ultimate den for a movie buff!
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Fit moisture-resistant flooring
This large contemporary basement, renovated by Wentworth Inc., is now a light and airy space fit for family living. Basements notoriously suffer from damp, so this design uses floor tiles that resist moisture and stains – a practical choice for a busy living space.
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Utilize dead space
This sleek and stylish basement by Sarah Richardson Design maximizes the amount of available light with its crisp clean tones, while natural textures bring the outside world in. Glass balustrades make the room feel larger and frame the basement’s exquisite stone wall. Our favorite feature though is the cute island bar that’s been tucked underneath the staircase, making fabulous use of the dead space.
