The Basement Restoration

At first I thought starting in the basement would be a good idea, as I could move my current studio down and make my house I'm trying to sell more appealing. Well, bad idea and I recall a friend at work stating  "make sure to start upstairs and work your way down". So I started in the basement. Off to home depot I buy two gallons of primer thinking I'm in good shape.  We're talking gray cinder block walls that had never been painted. It was nearly two gallons a walls. I went through seven gallons in all. For the final paint which was called "gallery white" I had used it in my studio at home. I used  six gallons for the finish. I removed the utility sink, thinking at first I would try and save it, but it was damaged around the rim, and I wanted a smaller, and new sink . The front wall was the only one that was not cinder block, it had two window 60 x 30. I  had to resurface the wall using durobond because it was completely pitted. The windows were replaced, once I pried the old ones open (and it took forever) I could not close them. That seems to be a problem with all the units. I had been warned, but thought if I just use enough oil and wire brush I'll be able to save them, Not! The problem with this unit is I don't have a garage so the basement right now will have to be utility washer and dryer, exercise equipment and studio. I know it's not going to work,  I am a bit of a hoarder, a super organized hoarder, but a hoarder just the same. I'm not sure one can be an artist and not have hoarder tendencies. Pictures of the basement...
This is how the basement looked when I took ownership, nothing had ever been touch.

 

this photo shows the wall how pitted it was, after i resurfaced with the durobond it's just as good as new. I've thought about using my art cards and doing a collage with them.

priming the basement.

< You can see the corrugated steel ceiling. It had never been painted. The ceiling is 7'.5"


 





I also re painted the doors a charcoal gray. The previous color was just a tad darker. I tried to match as well as I could.  The one door goes out to the back hall where we leave our garbage. The other door is to my boiler room and one going up to the first floor. I like the charcoal gray, I wire brushed, primed and painted the I beams and pipes black, the center pipe I used an industrial safety red, but have thought about painting it black. It draws your attention too much. I don't want a pipe to be the focal point. Just a thought. The utility sink will be replaced with a white sink and gray legs.