pbm
Posts: 2983
Joined: 3/5/2008
From: New Hope, Pennsylvania
Status: offline
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Hi All,
Finally made time to take and upload pics so I could post on this thread. I’ve tried to provide enough views to give you a sense of the detail as well as the overall look. Any suggestions for improvements would be much appreciated.
My “cellar” is a passive room I had added behind the wall of a built-in bar in our basement. There was an unfinished portion there with two walls below ground level so it struck me as a good location.
Just weeks after moving in four years ago I found unfinished pine racks for about 1500 bottles of wine for sale in the paper by someone who was taking them out of his basement. At that point I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with them (I had about 100 bottles) but for $500 it was too good a deal to pass up. Over the course of the next year I started playing around with the racks in different unfinished locations in the basement, monitored the temperate (fairly constant 63 degrees F), and tried to envision what I wanted the room to look like.
In the end I wanted something that was comfortable (not intimidating) and would hold about a thousand bottles but could be expanded. I also wanted room for a small table, small sink, and a counter top to display wines and hold other related items. In other words, I wanted it to be functional not just a display case.
I was fortunate to have found a handyman who is an incredible, dedicated craftsman, and who takes great pride in his work. We’ve used him for a variety of things from building closets to ripping out a gas fireplace and installing a wood burning one with stone front so I knew he’d be perfect. He came up with a lot of nice touches including using wood from the side of an old Vermont barn to frame the entryway, build a door, craft a sink cabinet, and use as molding. He stained the racking and counter top in a distressed fashion and installed the tile floor in a way that used the grout to make the tile look more worn. I found the wrought iron gate at a local antique/junk store for $300 and at my request he added about ten inches to the bottom to discourage any crawling under it by my future (at the time) teenage son and his friends. He also installed speakers connected to the amplifier on the main level. To help keep air circulating and the temp down we added venting along the bottom and top of each wall and covered it in brown paint (behind the racks) and the same color of the stucco in the open.
It took me a long time to find the right fixtures because I didn’t want anything to fancy nor could they be too modern. Ultimately I was pretty happy with what I found.
Still need to find the right hammered copper sink for the area that is currently just covered by loose boards and the proper hanging for the wall immediately to the left of the entryway. I look forward to having to make a decision in the future about whether to add more storage above the counters or add a doorway in the back left to another unfinished portion of the basement where there's enough space to really go wild. Oh, and for those who I know will ask, no I didn’t shoot the mule deer that guards the collection. That came courtesy of my wife’s grandfather.
Entryway during construction looking out from inside the cellar.
To the left as you walk in during construction.
Countertop with beveled edge. Still want to install lighting under the edge.
Completed entryway from the outside.
View my son has (closed and locked door.)
My view (past the gate.)
Looking back from the left side to where the sink will be.
Sink cabinet detail.
Just an example of the little things added by the handyman that made all the difference.
_____________________________
PBM
The Liver Is Evil It Must Be Punished
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RE: What form does your cellar take? - 
RE: What form does your cellar take? - 
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