Interior designer Karen Sealy has spent a great deal of time on ships, which served her well when it came time to finish the cellar of her small Toronto bungalow. She approached the distance like it was a boat’s cabin, integrating entertaining and relaxing spaces with much-needed storage, while remaining mindful of every square inch. (She has a few wine chillers tucked underneath the Ping-Pong table) A game room is a location where she can let loose, and an elegant laundry room keeps doing the clean from feeling like a chore.
Sealy Design Inc..
Sealy’s basement was unfinished when she bought the house. The garage was under the home, so she incorporated that distance to the rest of the cellar to fasten more living area.
The garage is currently a brightly coloured game room. Playing off the brilliant blue Ping-Pong table, Sealy added a glowing green racing stripe that travels up the wall and across the ceiling. “A match room ought to be fun and full of energy,” she says.
Sealy Design Inc..
“I adore multipurpose solutions,” Sealy says. For example, she replaced the legs of the Ping-Pong table using Ikea Expedit shelves and 2 wine refrigerators. The table is hinged, so she can flip the top and stash her luggage in the central area underneath.
A custom Lite-Brite plays up the blue and green accent colors.
Sealy Design Inc..
The room has a vibrant colour palette and comfy style. Sealy grounded it using gray and fortified with blue and green accent colors. Metal shelf mounts play the shiny end on the bar stools.
In addition to Ping-Pong and board games, Sealy and her friends also enjoy rocking some karaoke in here.
Sealy Design Inc..
A simple MDF shelf was treated to a metallic end; it provides a perch for Ping-Pong spectators and their beverages.
Sealy Design Inc..
On the opposite side of the room, a long ottoman (just out of view on the left side of the table) plus a few chairs provide additional seating for gatherings.
Sealy Design Inc..
Rather than fighting the area’s low (7-foot, 4-inch) ceilings and the awkwardly long, narrow form of the couch, Sealy went with them. She had an oversize sectional custom built into the space.
“Every person who visits this chamber says,’You are never going to get me from here!'” Sealy exclaims. “This is a room that just hugs you; you just want to jump on the huge couch, snuggle to the pillows and watch films.”
The artwork pieces are backlit 1960s slides which a former boyfriend’s dad taken in Times Square, placed sheets of Duratrans and mounted on light boxes. Sealy had lighting installed behind them to light up very particular portions of each picture.
Sealy Design Inc..
After the custom bolsters are eliminated, the couch competitions a king-size bed in dimension, allowing the space serve as a guest space. (There is a teak wet room down here as well.) The seats lift up to provide additional storage space underneath.
“The cloth is like a faux brushed suede,” Sealy says. “I did not want to worry about spilling red wine or extra-buttery popcorn onto it”
Adding into the movie-viewing experience is surround sound. Sealy has her whole home wired with speakers for a variety of media.
Sealy Design Inc..
Sealy is a sailor, and approached the small room like she would a sailboat’s cabin. The couch’s arm has built-in storage for magazines and books, and a drawer for remotes.
Sealy Design Inc..
In keeping with the sailboat motif, the drawer pulls are simple nautical brass.
Sealy Design Inc..
A broad system of mahogany built-ins resembles a teak unit onto a sailing boat.
Sealy Design Inc..
Sealy needed the built-in cabinets round her desk to be 30 inches deep, to use them for keeping out-of-season clothing like bulky winter coats. To find the scale of the desk right, she nestled it between the cabinets and put cubbies with sliding doors across the back. 1 facet of the cabinets stores clothing; another hand stores board games and linens for the sectional couch.
Sealy Design Inc..
A builder’s-grade register simply wouldn’t have completed in the middle of all this gorgeous wood. This unique wooden grille has nautical flair.
Sealy Design Inc..
Because her laundry room is open into the staircase — and thus the major entrance to the cellar — it needed to be pleasing to look at. “If you’re going to have an open laundry space, make certain you’re likely to have the ability to keep it neat,” Sealy advises. Using a place to store what’s a significant help. An elegant Carrara marble countertop over the machines inspires her to take care of folding on the place.
Sealy Design Inc..
The laundry room mixes very tasteful, polished elements, such as the Carrara marble counter tops and an elaborate Moroccan glass backsplash, with rustic bits, such as wooden shelves and woven baskets. The tile was a splurge at roughly $120 per square foot, but Sealy squeezed it to the budget since she needed only a few square feet. “It creates a large design effect in such a small space,” she says.
“Pairing these tasteful elements using a decorative, reclaimed barn board shelf, rag rug and also the baskets makes the space more approachable,” she adds. “I love the tension created by this juxtaposition of polished and rough-hewn pieces”
Sealy Design Inc..
Wicker drawers tucked underneath the staircase accommodate laundry linens and supplies. The hooks are for dangling delicates to wash; the wall supporting the hooks is plastic laminate, to reduce mould or other surface damage.
Sealy Design Inc..
The subtle stripe in the curtain frames the view, so the eye is pointed toward the garden and not toward the footpath at eye level beneath.
Sealy is quite the hostess, and it has put a good deal of thought in making her cellar room fun and loungeworthy, and a location that serves all her storage requirements. If you’d like her style, make certain to check her out patio.