As you know, Wayne “finished” his man cave 2 1/2Β years ago. I used those quote marks on purpose because it wasn’t actually totally completed and there were still a number of little jobs to be done but it basically got a stamp of ‘good enough for now’ on it and we moved on to other projects around the house.
Fast forward to April of this year when I went away to Dublin for a weekend with 2 amazing bloggie mates (Alex and Maria and yes, you should check out their blogs because they are both very smart and very cool and very funny and I’m not sure I’ve ever laughed so much in one weekend). Whilst I was away, I left Wayne on his own. Now this of course was my mistake because leaving a man on his own with power tools is always going to be a risk. And when I returned, he’d basically removed one of the walls in his man cave (!) and shifted the TV to a different wall.
So we went from this…
To this…
And from this…
To this…
Now, after I got over my initial shock, I didn’t really mind him doing this – he’d been talking about wanting that wall gone to open up the space and as he uses the cellar and I don’t, he can basically do what he likes down there. However, I knew this would have a knock on effect in that now instead of 100 little jobs that need to be taken care of, he’s multiplied it by about 1000. Sigh. And we still have other jobs to do around the house of course, so it’s all just getting done as and when he gets around to doing it.
This makes my eyeballs hurt.
At the moment, he’s just installed some soundproofing insulation on a few of the walls so that all needs painting and finishing, he’s building a box around the electrical box which needs little doors on it and we need to sort out the stairs and get a runner. But there’s also new holes where the old TV has been removed, wires that need sorting out, new doors and frame that need to be installed under the stairs as you can see above and pipes that need to be hidden. It’s not pretty at the moment.
We’d actually installed that large map wall mural about a year ago which I don’t think I’ve ever shown on the blog and it does make the space look more ‘finished’ despite the amount of work still needed! And of course those wires need sorting!
He’d also previously hung an old door we used to have at the top of the stairs to the cellar in the opening to the small storage area we have there. It’s not a perfect fit clearly but it does the job of keeping the cats out of there!
One of the things he did realise as he was shifting things around is that he really needed a small table down here. A coffee table would make the space a bit cramped but a side table would be perfect for setting down a drink or the remote control. I’ve been keeping my eye out for something nice and functional for him so when The French Bedroom Company contacted me asking if I’d like to review something, I knew I’d found something that would be perfect down there – this small copper side table.
The predominate colours down here are pretty neutral save for theΒ bright red rolling console and a few of those cushions which really need updating by now! (Apologies for the lighting in these shots – it’s obviously the cellar so it doesn’t get a lot of natural light!) I knew adding some metallics would just help to keep things looking too plain and reflect a bit of much-needed light around the space.
I don’t get much of a say around here when it comes to the dΓ©cor but I knew he wouldn’t object to something so classically good looking and thankfully, he likes it as much as I do! As much as I am a die-hard fan of gold and brass, I do think copper is a very pretty metal and I thought the warm orangey tones would be a great match. So whilst there’s still a million and one things to sort out down here, at least we’ve got a lovely little table down here!
While we’ve got a ton of things to sort out and progress will likely be slow, we’re hoping to continue to tackle little jobs here and there and of course, I’ll keep you updated on finishing this space – again!
In the meantime, do check out The French Bedroom Company for really beautiful furniture and accessories. My white cowhide rug in the living room is actually from there as well and it’s always a lovely website to do a little dreaming and shopping!
What do you think of the changes down here so far? Are you digging copper in your interiors? Has your other half ever surprised you with starting huge DIY projects whilst you were away or is that just Wayne? Talk to me!
Disclaimer: The copper side table was gifted to me in exchange for my review but as always, all images, opinions and poor attempts at humour are entirely my own. I only work with companies I really like and think you will too!Β Thanks for continuing to support the businesses that support Swoon Worthy!
Hmmm. I feel this so hard! I too have a ‘handy’ man at home, which is great in lots of ways, but also frustrating as hell when I want the jobs finishing (Hahaha – finishing! That’s hilarious). He doesn’t have a man cave as we don’t have a cellar (again good and bad…), but I do know what it is like to come home to some ‘improvements’ whilst you turn your back for a weekend away. All my friends are jealous of me having a ‘man that can’, but I sometimes feel at a disadvantage as I’m last in the queue, and he’s too tired to work on our house after doing his real job all day. But I dare not suggest getting someone else in…not unless I want to be single again!!!
The little table is gorgeous though, and I think your cat means ‘…my food bowl only has a thin layer of food at the bottom, I’m in danger of starving woman.’ Had a cat for 17 years – speaking from experience!
Hahaha! Oh this rings so true for me as well. God forbid I suggest getting someone in to finish up the million things that need to be sorted ;) I’m sort of at his mercy which is the hardest part – if he doesn’t fancy working on something, then I just have to wait :-/ And of course I’m happy he can do all these things but it’s so painfully slow!! To be fair, I don’t even go down there so he’s the one that has to live with it in a half-finished state ;)
As for the cat – haha! So true – if they can start to see the bottom of the bowl (even though there’s plenty around the edges), it’s like I’m starving them to death ;) xx
That World map wall mural is fab, where is it from?
It’s this one but I’ve seen them on Ebay and Art.co.uk as well so it’s worth shopping around :)! xx http://www.johnlewis.com/1wall-vintage-map-wall-mural/p1757255?sku=234108452&kpid=234108452&s_kenid=4a53eb9a-ed2f-7b28-a340-0000370fbe60&s_kwcid=404×369292&tmad=c&tmcampid=73&kpid=234108452
Thanks so much!
Boy, am I ever glad Beloved is DIY-shy! That would be me taking a trip to Freak Out City! Mind you, if you know your bloke is a dab hand with a power tool, I’m guessing it’s not SO bad, but still…! Having said all that, we all know it will look AH-MAZING when once you’ve got your hands on it ;-) x
Oh believe me there was plenty of freaking out when I got home, Sue! Hahaha! And alas, I don’t really get much say down in the man cave about the decor – I can only ‘politely suggest’ and hope he agrees ;) xxx
The table is perfect and I LOVE the map mural! x
Aww thank you for finding nice bits to comment on rather than everything that is wrong with this space! Ha!! xxx
Love the table, it all looks really cool xx
Aww cheers Pauline! Lots of work to get on with down here but hey at least there’s a cute table ;) xx
haha! That is funny :) It’s like he was waiting for you to be gone so he could do it or he was just really bored with you being gone ;) xo
Oh he was definitely waiting for me to go! He’d talked about it before and I said ‘not yet!’ and he went ahead with it anyway, cheeky bugger! lol xxx
I’m such a fan of these “real life” posts. We live in a bilevel, so our downstairs is only partially underground. There’s gorgeous light that comes in, but the curtains are always drawn, cuz it’s a disaster! We’ve been here for 9 years and the brick pad where a wood burner would be still sits empty. We took down some speakers and there are huge holes in the wall where the anchors were. Our dog’s crate takes up a ton of room. And if that’s not enough… I was going for a cabin-y/lodge feel with bears & moose and then I was like, wait what? and now there’s that + the first photos of lightning, an intaglio of a horse that my friend did, antique photos… It’s something! Ha!
Hahaha! Oh my god, it’s all those little things that drive me up a wall – so yes, I totally feel your pain! At the moment, our dog crate is in our dining room and what you could only just see is the cat little box in the corner of the cellar as you come down the stairs along with all their feeding paraphernalia. Oh well, we have to live in these houses, right? Life is certainly not a magazine ;) xx
Oh, #DrunkInteriors!! That was such a great weekend!!!! And so funny that Wayne ripped that down while you were gone.. and remember Lee tore my fence down that weekend too – boys should not be left to their own devices!
Love the copper table – it looks perfect there, and the styling is gorgeous too!
xx
Oh yes, I remember Lee doing that! Pfft! MEN!! Hahaha! Aww thanks darling, at least there’s something cute down there to distract from all the crap ;) xxx
Hahahaha, I was about to say, I remember exactly when Wayne sent you a sneak peek of all his hard work! :P I fear what Robert will do to the place during #DrunkInteriorsRound2. Note to self: hide all manner of tools before leaving.
Having said that, the removal of the wall really opens up the space! I’m so jealous of your having a basement. I showed Robert, and he’s even more so! Hahahaha! xx
My husband does the same if we just casually mention doing some changes in the house he reads this as I’m going to do it and at the most inconvenient time and with no planning. In our last house I came home from work to find the fireplace ripped out of the living room the house was a bomb site as he’s not a tidy worker. The kitchen is his domain so I often come home and find he has taken out a useful storage cupboard and fitted a steam oven or coffee machine so we have to store kitchen items in the garage. So I feel your pain, don’t get me wrong it’s great having a handy man husband just wish he could wait until we plan things properly and do it at the right time as I can’t stand half finished things
Oh my god Stacey – I feel you!! It’s the lack of planning that does my head in too and no, Wayne is not a tidy worker either which just makes it so much more difficult to deal with. I know it IS great when they are handy and I’m grateful that Wayne can do so much but at the same time, sometimes I just think, ‘oh it must be nice to just have someone come in and take care of this stuff!’ ;) I actually told him the other day, if he finishes the work in the cellar, he can get himself a Storm Trooper costume for down there which he really wants (yes, he’s 42 years old and still wants a Storm Trooper – they are like overgrown children). I’m resorting to bribery now! Hahaha xxx
I am absolutely blown away that Wayne took the initiative to tackle this alone. He saw where it could be improved and did it. Amazing. I have men in my life that I basically have to put tools in their hands and point. (After a considerable amount of diagramming and begging) He did a great job. The copper table works and is masculine enough. So that was April. How did the stairs turn out?
Yes, I’m grateful to have someone who takes the initiative! However, I’d love him to finish what he started here – that was April and these photos were taken this month – he’s still working on it! Ha! So maybe not such a great job yet?? LOL! xxx
When I just left my husband for 3 weeks he did nada, it’s never a risk in my house to leave him alone with power towels, which is a good thing. Although I also left hime alone with cleaning supplies which he also didn’t touch but I wished he would.
I have to tackle our man cave again too, so much to do and we also need a new sofa or sofa bed. Love this!
Hahaha! Your comment made me laugh! Yeah I wish cleaning tools got used more often around here too ;) Lots to do down here clearly – maybe I need to leave him alone for another few days ;) xxx
I do think it will be fab when it’s finished, removing that wall really does open up the space…but I feel your pain. What happens here is I come home to find the husband working on something ridiculous that I vaguely mentioned maybe doing something about a year ago, like taking the fire surround off to see how much space is in the opening instead of say putting the handles back on all the kitchen cupboards after painting!(true story)
I do agree, it does really open the space! The work left is just lots of little jobs now – your comment did make me laugh about the cupboard handles! He’s great at the big jobs but sort of needs ‘encouragement’ on getting those little details sorted, bless him ;) xx
I like it but could be much better!