By Alice Priestley
You’ve had your house viewings and you’ve come to a decision: the cute little house nestled in the middle of the street: just the right size for you and your friends (and it has a dishwasher!). There’s just one drawback – the risk of a possessed demon-girl awakening every night, crawling from your basement into your bed and dragging you back down with her. Though it’s easy to neglect a dusty old cellar, the unused, albeit eerie, space actually has more potential than you think. Here are some tips of how to make the most of your basement, and what you could use it for:
Redecorate and ‘Spring Clean’
- As the basement’s not an immediate part of the property that house viewers will see, most landlords would allow you to have a go with the paintbrush; they may even paint it for you. Using hues such as cream and white will instantly brighten up the room, creating an inspiring space to get your work done. Find some bargain fold-up chairs and a table and before you know it, you have somewhere to be productive with minimal distractions!
The Home Gym
- If you or your housemates happen to have any fitness equipment you never used, this is a great opportunity to put it to use! Old weights, the stationary bike you got dad for Christmas (which he never even opened) or even a workout DVD will set your basement up nicely – this means you save the gym’s rip off prices AND now you don’t have an excuse to not be active! (This could be more of a con than a pro…)
The Snug Room
- What better reason to use an empty space other than to just slob it out? Get a couple of bean bags, all your duvets combined and a subscription of Netflix and you’re good to go. To make it even better, move your microwave, mini fridge and Domino’s leaflet down there and you’ll never leave!
General Storage
- Houses can get crowded with all of the pizza boxes and array of drying washing everywhere, so the basement is a great spot to put all of your general ‘stuff’. Using the space for your laundry needs saves you the clutter of airers and coat hangers taking over your room. Lastly, if you’ve all brought your bikes, using the cellar keeps the house much tidier and ready for the mess of pre-drinks to occupy it!
Speaking of Pre-Drinks…
- Some houses have lots of space, which is understandably taken by the bedrooms – not ideal for pre-drinking or house parties. Transforming the basement by repainting and adding some bits and bobs will make for a much more convenient place to spill drinks and have packs of cards launched across the room. Keeping a bin bag down there also means that all of the mess will still be kept under control!
Before dismissing your basement completely, consider the points above and beyond – the space and facilities you were really in need of could be (literally) right under your feet!
