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Our Man Cave Renovation – time to redecorate!

As many of you already know, we recently had a plumbing fail in our basement, and my hubby’s newly finished man cave suffered a big loss. All the flooring had to be ripped out, the drywall had to be cut out, and a lot of the electronics and decor got wet and damaged.

Thus, we’re now in the process of getting ready for a major renovation. With that in mind, its fun to take your mind off the sucky part of this experience, by imagining how we might redecorate the space.

Coincidentally, I was just invited to participate in Man Crates Gifts for Men’s “Man Cave Makeover” campaign. Man Crates is an online source for sending your guy a gift he’ll laugh at, brag about, and probably grunt over while breaking it open with its included crow bar. Yup, they come with a crow bar! Highly covetable, these wooden crates come filled with things guys want – beer, beef jerky, grilling gadgets, barware, sweat-inducing spicy snacks, survival gear (in case of an zombie apololypse of course), golf goodies, and products for the poker player or old-school video gamer.

Man Crates asked me how I would decorate a Man Cave, and I have to say I would do exactly what the hubster and I did the first go-around – with an industrial aesthetic. You can check out this previous post that shows a lot of the items we used in our basement, like Edison light fixtures, stainless steel, etc.

For the purposes of this post, I’m thinking pie-in-the-sky, money is no object…and making a list of what I would do, if I could, without a budget or a hubby to stop the madness!

First, I love exposed brick…so I’d give one wall that treatment.

Next, there’d be a lot of exposed ductwork, beams and track lighting with grey walls. Black beams though (which is exactly what’s in our man-cave now)

I’d choose a comfy grey upholstered couch, and pair it with some reclaimed wood pieces, like a coffee table, console or media center.
There is no lack of cool industrial light fixtures available on the market today. I love cage lights, vintage barn lights, and even big mercury glass globes. Oh how to choose!?!
And of course, any self-respecting man-cave needs a game table – especially a pool table. Check out this baby (from Great Gatherings)…oak hardwood, mortise and tenon construction, decorative metal bolts…I think I can hear my husband moaning with pleasure already!
A bar is another given for a man-cave, and these bar stools make my heart go pitter-patter.
As for artwork, I’d do vintage maps…especially city maps, like this…
So there ya have it, my vision for an ideal man-cave – a place where he can enjoy solitude with his Xbox, or a Sunday in front of the big screen with his buddies!
Thank you Man Crates for the invitation to participate in your campaign.
Now back to dealing with the insurance company!

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The basement renovation is nearly complete!

The last two months have been consumed with all things “basement!” Between dealing with contractors and an overseas husband worried about his man-cave, this basement might have given me a couple of gray hairs! (which no one will ever see thanks to my hair stylist)

Hubby left for Africa about a week into construction, and since then, it’s been a very bumpy road getting to completion. As you all know if you’ve ever tackled a big project, there’s always things that just don’t go correctly. Without getting into all those pain in the ass details, I thought I’d skip right to the fun stuff – photos!!

Here’s a visual tour of what’s been going on downstairs…

These are a few items I’ve picked up to hang here and there. Plus this cool vintage locker-style cabinet that I gave to hubby as an early Father’s Day gift. Since we’re going for an industrial vibe, it’s all about the metal, wire and old down there! I’m having so much fun searching for decor!

The power room is one of my favorite parts of the basement because of the copper sink and the light fixtures.

 They are the large Edison wall sconces from Restoration Hardware. I picked up the mirror at a thrift store for a couple of bucks and painted it with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Graphite, and several coats of dark wax. There’s a touch of brass colored wax around the edges too.

Wow, I didn’t realize how dirty this sink is! Darn contractors washing their hands in our new sink! Grrr…

How cool is this piece of burled wood – now being used as a trash can!

This little front room will be used for playing video games primarily. The walls and carpet are a light grey. And the doors, beam, support pole, as well as the panel door were plainted black.

I will be painting the railing in ASCP’s Graphite. I just started taping it off today.

All of the appliances are installed behind the bar. The stone counter-top color is called Lyra. Custom cabinets were made and finished in black.

I love this deep bar sink!

This is probably hubby’s favorite part of the bar – the keg-o-rator!  

I like the wire pendants hanging over the bar, and on the side wall.

The bar is wrapped in corrugated metal. Applying this is easy to do – just buy sheets from Lowe’s or Home Depot (they’re very thin). Tack it to your wood frame, and then finish it off with metal strips that are screwed into the wood frame. Just be careful, this stuff is really sharp when its cut!

This wall will be getting a ledge under the 3 pendants, where guests can sit on bar stools and wait for their turn at the pool table! Or try their luck at the slot machine!

The back entrance was tiled, and the doors were painted black.

Here’s the view as you walk in the back door. The beams and poles were left exposed and painted black. The floor will be completed next week, with a wood flooring that looks like weathered barn wood.

Here’s a clock I picked up at HomeGoods that we have to hang. It’s a rusty metal – love it!

 Some Restoration Hardware pillows moved from the living room down to the basement.

And here’s evidence that the basement is already functioning as it was intended! hee hee We may not have furniture yet, but we have beer!

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