SFGate

agossage This is the bar in progress. And the other side of the room.

agossage I hate the curtains. And the fish tank is now somewhere else.

olldbobbi I think one problem you're having is that the sectional looks shoved up against the wall. Try pulling it out about a foot, and maybe a new coffee table? Also a larger side table and lamp. You could try replacing your window treatments with roman shades, or bottom-up shades. Your walls are set up for two different paint colors, or two different shades of the same paint color, lighter on top, darker on the bottom. That will definitely add some interest to the room.
[houzz=Santos Coffee Table]
[houzz=BDDW Leaf Side Table]
[houzz=Pablo Tube Top Table Lamps]
[houzz=Soft Roman Shades]
[houzz=Top Down Bottom Up Natural Shades]

blindsdirectcanada Shutters would work great in this space. With shutters they can build you a beautiful frame to go with it . It will give you a more modern finished look.

Staged for Perfection I would hang curtains that go all the way to the ceiling and hang on the sides of the windows. It would make the ceiling look higher. I think that blinds etc would just accentuate the small size of the windows. Pull your furniture away from the wall. I. ike the idea of a big chunky end table with a larger lamp in the corner.

lefty47 HI -- Your room looks fairly small and the sofa is so big . With a small room and little light , you don't need two colors on the wall and shutters will just block out more light . You have window blinds now that are fine or they could be replaced with some soft canvas romans hung over the size of the widows from the ceiling height . If you keep all the walls and the ledge and the window coverings the same color that will help with the room size. Move the sofa down to the right just enough to leave space for a small side table . You do not have room for a coffee table . Just have small moveable little accent tables (stacked set )and cube ottomans that can be used where needed. You could add shelving or bookcases added or built on the upper wall part of the wall the same depth as the ledge incorperating the windows as long as everything is the same color . They could even have mirror backing and that would exspand the room , but only have two or three shelves per section and maybe no shelves in some . And then keep the display items limited so it doesn't get cluttered looking . Also that little bedroom looking lamp could be replaced with something bigger/taller and more fitting the style of the room. The whole point is to try and make the room look like it's not a half basement and keep it simple and tailored. If you are really brave you could paint the room black with lots of mirror and white furniture then it would look like a bar/ TV lounge . A designer did it in his house - half basement and it looks great . houseandhome.com/design/photo-gallery-arren-williams-houses

LizaJane One thing I noticed immediately is that the windows are small and the treatment that is up there brings the ceiling down. I would suggest adding panels to either side of the windows and hang then as close to the ceiling as possible. As others suggested, pull your furniture away from the wall. Add coffee table, lamp, art. I would act as if the shelf is not there and ignore. Otherwise, you might end up filling it with nick nacks and it will start to look cluttered. I have included a photo of the window idea and a second photo of a basement that has a sectional but the designer has added texture, layers, and moved the sectional away from the wall. Good luck!

PaintColorHelp.com Dallas I agree that you could use just one (possibly 2) small tables. I'd go for round, so no one bangs their shins on it. I wouldn't do anything to the windows that blocks more light, as shutters would. You could always add curtain panels on rings if you wanted more color/texture, but make sure they can stack fully open. Mainly, the room just needs some color and pattern. I like to start with a piece of art or an accent pillow, then build on that. Lamps are an overlooked way to add some color zip. Since it appears the space is off to itself, you needn't necessarily make it flow with the rest of the home's color scheme. I used black, white and red for my example... but what colors appeal to you? As stated earlier, a darker wall color could give it a lounge-y feel. Or, you could stay with a neutral wall and just add an accent color behind the bar.

PaintColorHelp.com Dallas Liza is sooo right on the windows. I was thinking the same thing. (apparently we had the same colors on the brain, too.)

agossage Ok now I'm thinking very dark blue or charcoal grey couch possibly with a chair. Sheer curtains from ceiling to top of ledge. And the picture cut into three sections with black border then placed on mirrors almost as tall as the curtains just slightly shorter. How's that sound as a start? The picture of the couch is the style I'm thinking.

olldbobbi Love it! Great sofa and I like the pictures too. I didn't realize you were looking to replace your sectional.

agossage I never liked the sectional in that room I always thought it was too big. I think when we finish the Lower Basement it will go there. The picture with the couch in my Great Room. It now has tables and such and I used one of the pictures I took on my honeymoon to make the picture and then cropped it and added a black border. :)

agossage Once I can paint I think I'll change some colors up but we have to wait until we have lived in the house for 11 months because of the warranty with the house. We had the house built and have only been in it for six months.

olldbobbi That's really interesting. Why would the warranty prevent you from painting? I'm not seeing a connection.

agossage They come back and fix any paint cracks or nail pops, anything the could have messed up with the house settling. If they fix something on a re painted wall they will only fix the spot and the wall will need to be re painted again

olldbobbi Oh, I get it, that makes good sense. In California the houses settle constantly so they'd be here all day!

agossage Lol it's hard. I want to paint so bad but my husband has banned me until the twelfth month.

olldbobbi Well of course you would never want to void your warranty, right? Did you have a choice in the current paint color or was it all painted builder's off-white/beige/white/boring?

agossage Yeah. This was the middle choice. It was bright white, this or darker tan. This was the best choice of the three. I'm having so much fun decorating but always second guess myself. I try to do it all on a small budget.

olldbobbi That sounds like the majority of us here - second guessing and small budgets. Well, have fun with it, and I hope you get to paint the colors you want!