We "Finished" the Basement!

The finished basement!

Over the past few months I began to notice that the kids toys, particularly large plastic toys like little people buildings, were taking over my living room, so I began to brainstorm my options.

1. I could get rid of the toys... but then I pictured my kids sitting on the couch in the middle of winter with sad faces and nothing to do.
2. I could commission my husband to finish the basement... but then I pictured my husband (not handy) spending his weekends staring at tools and not knowing what to do.
3. I could hire a professional to finish the basement... but then I pictured myself on the phone all day talking to contractors and then at home all day while they worked and my kids didn't nap.
4. I could "finish" the basement myself in my typical thrifty manor with at $250 budget in one weekend... but... well, nothing, it was the perfect solution.

So, here is what I did:

First I measured the wall space that I would be covering (we split the basement in half, the other half is for laundry and storage), then I bought flannel fabric from Joannes when it was 50% off for $78.53. I then cut the fabric, hemmed it and made a loop for a pole to go through.

Next, I went to Walmart with my measurements and bought skinny curtain poles and mug hooks ($42.18) to hang the fabric with. We (okay, Kevin did this one, isn't he handy?) screwed the hooks into the beams of the unfinished ceiling and hung the poles with the fabric on them.

Finally we found some new carpet and a pad on craigslist for $100.00, then cut it to fit the area we needed and volia! we had about 200 new square feet for the kids to play that didn't require my living room to pose as a plastic wear house for a grand total of $220.17... about $30 under budget!