Cynthia Lynn
Photo of a large transitional look-out basement in Chicago with grey walls, dark hardwood floors, no fireplace and brown floor.

The use of bulkhead details throughout the space allows for further division between the office, music, tv and games areas. The wall niches, lighting, paint and wallpaper, were all choices made to draw the eye around the space while still visually linking the separated areas together.

Photo of a transitional basement in Kansas City with blue walls, dark hardwood floors, no fireplace and brown floor.

Design ideas for a mid-sized transitional basement in Miami with white walls, dark hardwood floors, no fireplace and brown floor.

Photo of a large contemporary walk-out basement in Phoenix with grey walls, dark hardwood floors and brown floor.

Contemporary basement remodel: iron stair railing, hardwood floors, custom cabinetry
Photo of a contemporary basement in DC Metro with yellow walls, dark hardwood floors and brown floor.

Simple doesn’t have to be boring, especially when your backyard is a lush ravine. This was the name of the game when it came to this traditional cottage-style house, with a contemporary flare. Emphasizing the great bones of the house with a simple pallet and contrasting trim helps to accentuate the high ceilings and classic mouldings, While adding saturated colours, and bold graphic wall murals brings lots of character to the house. This growing family now has the perfectly layered home, with plenty of their personality shining through.

Here's one of our most recent projects that was completed in 2011. This client had just finished a major remodel of their house in 2008 and were about to enjoy Christmas in their new home. At the time, Seattle was buried under several inches of snow (a rarity for us) and the entire region was paralyzed for a few days waiting for the thaw. Our client decided to take advantage of this opportunity and was in his driveway sledding when a neighbor rushed down the drive yelling that his house was on fire. Unfortunately, the house was already engulfed in flames. Equally unfortunate was the snowstorm and the delay it caused the fire department getting to the site. By the time they arrived, the house and contents were a total loss of more than $2.2 million. Our role in the reconstruction of this home was two-fold. The first year of our involvement was spent working with a team of forensic contractors gutting the house, cleansing it of all particulate matter, and then helping our client negotiate his insurance settlement. Once we got over these hurdles, the design work and reconstruction started. Maintaining the existing shell, we reworked the interior room arrangement to create classic great room house with a contemporary twist. Both levels of the home were opened up to take advantage of the waterfront views and flood the interiors with natural light. On the lower level, rearrangement of the walls resulted in a tripling of the size of the family room while creating an additional sitting/game room. The upper level was arranged with living spaces bookended by the Master Bedroom at one end the kitchen at the other. The open Great Room and wrap around deck create a relaxed and sophisticated living and entertainment space that is accentuated by a high level of trim and tile detail on the interior and by custom metal railings and light fixtures on the exterior.

finished basement with dark brown stained oak floors and beige area rug. Dark brown leather sofa. White walls and ceilings with recessed lighting and built in shelves.

Finecraft Contractors, Inc. Soleimani Photography Complete basement remodel for recreation and guests.
Photo of a mid-sized traditional walk-out basement in DC Metro with beige walls, dark hardwood floors, a standard fireplace and brown floor.

Basement remodel and maple floating floor with Wainscotting
Small arts and crafts basement in Other with white walls and dark hardwood floors.

Inspiration for a large transitional walk-out basement in Other with blue walls, dark hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround and brown floor.

Finished basement stairwell
Large contemporary walk-out basement in Atlanta with grey walls, dark hardwood floors and brown floor.

Simple doesn’t have to be boring, especially when your backyard is a lush ravine. This was the name of the game when it came to this traditional cottage-style house, with a contemporary flare. Emphasizing the great bones of the house with a simple pallet and contrasting trim helps to accentuate the high ceilings and classic mouldings, While adding saturated colours, and bold graphic wall murals brings lots of character to the house. This growing family now has the perfectly layered home, with plenty of their personality shining through.