Things to Do - Land of Nod Basement Makeover

(all "after" photos courtesy of Land of Nod and the wonderful Melanie Acevedo)

As many of you may (or may not) know, I also post at Land of Nod's blog, Honest to Nod (tons of amazing stuff over there, check it out if you have a chance). They have always been a wonderful company to work with (lots of giveaways around Christmas time) and I feel so lucky to be part of their internet team.

And then everything became even better.

A few months ago, LON contacted me asking if I had any interest in improving a room in our house. Um, well, YES!!! But where to start? (we haven't lived in our current home for two years yet and several of the rooms need some love.) I came up with a list of suggestions including our basement, which looked so blah that I had no idea where to even begin. To which, LON replied, "well, would you like our help designing it?".

And then everything became better than better.

They quickly put me in touch with a LON designer - Sarah - who asked to see my pinterest files, in order to work within my style. So we collaborated (with Sarah doing most of the work) and within a few weeks, she had taken my boring, dull basement and divided it into "zones" - a study space with desks, an art corner, and a dress up wall. All while working around our desire for our tv (and couch) for family movies and wii. And did I mention her idea for a corkboard wall? Brilliant.

Sarah's design plan was beyond helpful. And while she suggested several LON products, she also included accessories from other sources (click here to see the board). I thought this was a special service for me, but was surprised to learn - and want to make sure everyone knows - that LON offers this for most customers (depending on designer availability), so if you have a design dilemma or question, just ask.

And then better became amazing.

After Sarah finished her design plan, my husband and I talked about what we liked and what we didn't (our main changes related to color). And then things started moving pretty fast. Another wonderful LON designer helped us finalize everything (click here to see the final design plan). We assembled new furniture and unloaded poofs (LOVE their poofs), and within a few weeks, a team of designers and a professional photographer arrived to help us put everything together and to photograph the family for the catalog (our brief brush with fame).

The basement turned out even better than I could have hoped. The girls each have a leaning sloane desk, where they work on homework and keep their most treasured possessions. T basically lives in the dress up corner. And the art area has become a favorite playdate spot. But best of all, the basement still remains a space where we can gather as a family - watching movies, reading books, and "arting." I never thought such a relatively small space could meet so many needs, so thank you LON, thank you!! We couldn't have hoped for more.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO WIN YOUR OWN LAND OF NOD MAKEOVER, CLICK HERE TO ENTER THEIR CONTEST (WHICH CLOSES ON JUNE 17, 2013).





Amazing transformation. It also serves as our "tv room", but I've learned that catalogs really really don't like to show photos of TVs.



The dress up corner is one of my favorite parts, the kids come up with the most interesting combinations.

At first, I insisted the room was way too small for a coffee table, but I was wrong. We ended up LOVING the adjustable table with paper roll (the kids color on it constantly). Plus, I like that we have the option of converting it to a desk for T in the future.



Art table = awesomeness. Especially with the paper roll right next to it.



Our basement also has a corner "nook" (I don't have before pictures), where we set up a puppet show, using LON's new "What's That Stand For Stand", which may be one of their best products ever. FINALLY, as a parent you don't have to choose between the market stand and the puppet show and the post office, now there's an all-in-one version. I love it (and so do the kids).