House Envy: Playroom with Lofted Space

Finishing our basement was a labor of love... most of the time. It did feel at times like it was like a long, painful labor that would never end, but looking back, it was very exciting and rewarding. We have never designed/built a house but this basement was a concrete slab and we had to plan every detail. And for the most part, it pretty much turned out exactly how I envisioned it. It will take me many posts to show you all of it so bare with me...this is the toy room/kid's space down there!

1st Criteria: An open room. I have learned that kids don't like to be shut in a room, or a closet... and that also may be illegal:)! It seems like they always want to drag the toys out of the room so they feel like they are amidst the action.

2nd Criteria: Limited space, so use it wisely! I found that old red ladder at an antique store years ago and it sat until I had the idea to make a loft above the toy storage area. After all, that space is wasted since the kids can't reach up that far to get toys out so might as well make it a fun space to play. Probably not recommended for babies:)

3rd Criteria: Build in storage, in many shapes and sizes. Drawers, baskets, bins and shelves. Big trucks, barbie cars, puzzles and games aren't gonna fit in a bin so shelving was a must. Wide and deep drawers for things like train sets with long track pieces were also necessary.

The canvas cream & beige bins you see with the words are "Restoration Hardware, baby & child" and they come plain with the option to monogram. Since I knew I was not realistically going to control the ever changing content of the baskets I did not want to label them with anything too permanent.

So I thought up some adjectives to describe what we can only hope is running through our little angel's minds when they rip through the toys, launching them in the air like grenades:) What I really wanted them to be monogrammed with was "Put" "Away" "Your" "Shit" "When" "Finished" but then "mother of the year" title would have been out another year...

I know what you are thinking...do those look like the faces of destruction?!? I took this serene moment as an advantage to snap some pictures and finish a post in one sitting!!

Right now the loft is just wood which is perfect for setting up board games and army guy wars. Someday I see it with a plush cushioned surface where they can read or play on the computer. The artwork hanging is compliments of Stella who seems to channel the paint scheme of our house in her artwork!

Also the structure of the shelving is obviously built in and is painted wood. The color is "Urbane Bronze" a dark charcoal gray by Sherwin Williams. However the doors and the drawer fronts are a light gray, bamboo looking laminate material to keep cost in check!

This is what I am talking about with the vehicles of all shapes and sizes! Shelving space is a great way to hide all the massive toys that don't fit in bins and drawers. And the drawers below (there are three across) are perfect for storing sets with many pieces and parts.

The wall color looks really bright yellow in these last few photos! It is hard to get a good shot down there to show the color because it is a basement but the color is actually a very subtle citron (greenish, yellow) and is way more earthy toned then it appears! It is called AF-370 "Citrine" and its by Benjamin Moore.

I did absolutely nothing to this ladder! This is exactly how I found it at Midland Antique Mall and it happened to go perfect with the paint color that I had planned for in the toy room!

The desk space was a possible spot for a computer or just extra seating space for setting up a game or doing a craft. I love the idea of being able to display kids art in their space. I have started the collage fairly close together in the hopes that the wall will be covered with art from the ceiling down as they bring home things they are especially proud of.

My build in bookcase works because it doesn't take space from the room but instead recesses back into where the storage area is so no one can see it! Our trim throughout the whole basement is stained rough pine planks rather than trim to give the rustic look. The wallpaper shown here to back the bookcase is Anthropologie "Woods" wallpaper . The baskets and boxes shown are from World Market.

Finally, the carpet down in the playroom & guest bedroom in the basement is this fun print berber carpet! I love this pattern! It was one of my favorite picks for down there and it is a super stain resistant, smart strand fiber!