So way back in late August/early September, I told you guys our next project was going to be updating the Man Cave. And then we finished the kitchen redesignΒ a little later than expected and then winter came and we didn’t do much of anything in the space. That’s real life, people, so apologies for those of you waiting with baited breath because nothing happened. Ahem. However (!!) we are finally getting around to getting this last space finished up so I wanted to give you an update on what’s been happening.

An update on the man cave - plastering the cellar

I wasn’t entirely sold on the initial design I’d created for the space (you can see it here). I’m not sure what it was although I have a feeling it just wasn’t ‘glam’ enough for my tastes. Now with an impending move on the horizon, I realised something. In our next house, I have no idea if we’ll have the exact same setup (and the likelihood is that we won’t) so buying furniture and accessories that don’t necessarily blend seamlessly with the rest of the house would have been a costly error. I need to make sure that whatever new items I bring into my home will work in a future house along with the type of furniture and accessories I already own so that I know for sure I’ll use them again.

On Monday, I’m going to share with you the updated design plans. They’ve changed quite a bit from my original plan and I’ll talk about the why’s and wherefore’s of the look I’m going to be going for down here but here’s a little sneaky peek of the new armchair I just purchased. Yes, I love it in the living room but it’s not staying here! Gorgeous, though, right? All will be revealed soon, I promise.

grey velvet chair

And genuinely, I really think you’re gong to love the new design. Mostly because I do. It’s going from Man Cave to Glam Snug! Whoop!

However, in terms of the actual space and what we’re working with, the whole room basically is getting a bit of an upgrade. Wayne has been working away the past couple of weeks on getting it all ready to be painted.

There were a lot of unfinished bits and pieces – things like wires and pipes that were exposed and they all just made the room feel unfinished. He’s been boxing things in and making everything look a lot more finished. It’s SO higgledy-piggledy down here (I love that expression) and there are so many areas that require finishing off but once it’s all painted in a dark colour, that should all disappear quite nicely.

The golden hues of a 30lb bag of kitty litter adds a punch of colour to an otherwise horrendous space. Ahem.

You might also recall thatΒ over a year ago now, Wayne decided to remove the wall along the stairs to open up the space. This is how it’s looked for over a year! (And he wonders why I never spent any time down here).

You can imagine my reaction when I originally saw this.

So at the moment, that whole area has been replastered and the holes filled in. He’s installed a piece of finishing wood down the length of the stairs and replaced the doors with louvres instead. It still needs some finishing off as you can see along with a bit of framing, knobs, magnets to hold the doors shut, etc. – but it’s a marked improvement.

Okay, it still needs work but it’s better, you must admit!

He also boxed in the electrical meters and has hung a pair of louvred door here too. It’s made such a huge difference to the space already with cleaning up those little niggly unfinished spots.

adding louvre doors to electrical box

Why he’s saving those Grolsch bottles I’ll never know.

adding louvre doors to electrical box

The wall mural was in good condition and so he decided to just use lining paper over it. He was still finishing off the lining paper when I took these pics so it’s looking a little unfinished/wet but once the TV is back on the wall and it’s all painted, I promise it’ll look much better! He didn’t want to remove the TV bracket here (the walls are very old so pulling out everything and putting it all back might have been risky) and so he just papered around it! I’ll paint over that bit of the map mural inside the bracket and then it’ll be covered by the TV so you won’t see it! ;) Excuse the wires as well, those will be hidden.

He’s been sanding down here now as the final finish before we can paint. The dust created, however, is incredible and my whole house (and I do mean my whole house – even the bedroom and office upstairs was affected – HOW HOW HOW is that possible?!) is now covered in a fine coating of dust that’s still settling. I’ll be spending most of my weekend cleaning! Ack!

This was just after plastering. It’s is the kind of dust and mess I’m currently dealing with. These stairs are going to be painted and will have a new stair runner so better things to come.

Next up will be the painting of the entire room, ceilings and all. I’ve received a few samples from Farrow & Ball and then we’ll make the final decision in terms of the colour down here. I’m so excited. It’ll look glorious painted in a dark luscious colour and really give the whole space a very cosy vibe.

Farrow & Ball’s Tanners Brown – the front-runner for the paint down here

I can’t WAIT to share what the space will eventually look like so stay tuned for that. Anyone else dealing with the mess and upheaval of a remodel?Β 


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