Problem Basement Becomes Multifunctional

• Lighting: Flush-mounted ceiling fixtures make already low basement ceilings seem lower. By installing recessed low-voltage recessed lighting, your eye is directed to the area being highlighted and not upward, toward the ceiling.

  When designing lighting plans for basements, I place the lights along the perimeter--12 to 18 inches away from the walls. If you have a small space, you'll be amazed to see how this seems to push your walls outward and make the space seem much larger.

• Ugly fireplaces: The previous homeowner had fancied himself an amateur bricklayer and had constructed a fireplace. Positioned at a quirky corner angle, it was an eyesore. My clients wanted to replace the whole fireplace, but I thought their money was better spent elsewhere. The fireplace was painted, a simple mantel replaced the ill-fitting surround, and a new decorative fireplace screen obscured the view to the old, discolored gas insert.

• Dated finishes: Basements tend to be the last room in the house to be renovated, and with paneling and shag carpet from the '70s, plus linoleum from the '50s, it can be a design time capsule. To update, you don't necessarily need to rip everything out and start from scratch. Wood paneling can be primed and painted, leaving a subtle striping effect, while new flooring can go right over old linoleum or tiles, provided they're sound and secure.

• Too much contrast: The plaid wallpaper concealed old wood paneling, and I'm not sure which was the lesser of two evils. The paper was stripped, and the walls were painted a soft mushroom color. Old raspberry carpet was replaced with darker mushroom broadloom, except for a designated kid's area that received an easy-to-clean laminate wood floor. Reducing the contrast in this space added a calm, cocoon-like quality and made the room seem larger.

• Function: My clients wanted a TV/entertainment area, so the old cabinetry was removed and a new TV platform was built at a 90-degree angle to the corner fireplace. All the furniture in this area was laid out based on this angle.

My clients also wanted to entertain large groups of people in the space, and a long bench with comfy seat and back pillows provided oodles of extra seating. The deep space underneath was handy for storage.

Kids also had to be able to play in the basement without taking it over, so a quarter of the space was designated as their zone by a change in flooring. Their toys were hidden behind wall-to-wall plush chenille curtains hung on a ceiling-mounted drapery rod. These "soft walls" also pull across to provide privacy for overnight guests sleeping on the pull-out sofa bed.

Now my clients are not only enjoying a new family addition but also an additional floor in their house.

(Interior decorator Candice Olson is host of Home & Garden Television's Divine Design.)