A falling ceiling, opaque walls, and an apathetic linoleum floor. The basement of Dot Stovall and Craig Lee’s centennial house was not attractive at all. So, if they wanted to transform that dark, dirty and dated place into a bright and cozy space, they would have to be really creative. Fortunately, they possessed all the necessary creativity.
Dot is a photographer and works for the Oriental Trading Company and Craig takes magic to the stages as a stage designer for the Omaha Theater Community and the Blue Barn Theater.
The basement didn’t stand a chance againt these two.
In the biggest part of the process, decision about design were easily made. The celiling lining was removed to expose wooden beams and pipes, making the room seem bigger. The old and worn wood of the walls were removed to create a clean ambient with a smooth wall.
The biggest problem was at their feet. The floor was swollen and sunk in several places.
“Our linoleum floor were really wavy,” said Craig. “We priced a bunch of materials like hardwood and vinyl laminate – anything to make it look flat – but we would have had to lay subflooring, which would have cost more money, and we would have lost much of the height we gained taking out the ceiling.”
So Dot had an idea. Craig is a master in painting sets. Why not apply that skill to the basement floor?
“I do a lot of planks for scenic work,” Craig explains. “What were a few more?”
He started working by sanding the floor to make it as smooth as possible before applying an oil coating, and after another coating to make it look more like wood.
From this stage forward, Craig let his talent take over.
He used latex paint to create various tones of dark brown. After moistening the entire floor with water he passed a soaked brush with the chosen color across the surface, creating a Chevron pattern, trunks and wooden knots to actual pass the impression of natural wood. He purposely left one or another fault to give the work even more realism.
When he was done, Craig applied a layer of polyurethane on the floor to protect it.
It was a meticulous and time-consuming process that lasted approximately a week and a half to paint and a few more days to finish completely. Craig did all the work manually.
“I’d come down into the basement, and he’d be standing there using two brushes in two hands,” Dot recalls.
Now she uses the room as her office and loves how the floor looks. “It’s bleached and aged-looking and a little different from the rest of the house. It makes the basement so comfortable.”
The floor requires very little cares – just regular wipe-downs are more than enough.
“It’s a really good solution for a problem like ours,” says Dot.
And what does Craig think about his piece of work? “Everyone comes down here and remarks on the floor, but honestly, what I’m really proud of is the drywall!”
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