From Dark Basement to Dapper Scrapbook Room

This basement makeover started with a smart new layout that tripled the Crow family's work space. Homeowner Nick Crow built two desks on one wall and added a peninsula made of modular cubes topped with medium-density fiberboard. The cubes add loads of storage for Michelle Crow's scrapbooking supplies and the kids' toys and games. An acrylic pegboard and a carpet-tile bulletin board maximize vertical space.

Nick and Michelle Crow's basement was once a collect-all area for toys, boxes of paperwork, and computer equipment. Determined to turn the tide, the couple crafted a room where Michelle scrapbooks, Nick works, and their children, Bella and Eli, play. "It has allowed each of us to do something we enjoy yet be together as a family," Michelle says.

A desk organizer makes a perfect home for a portable cardmaking kit filled with stamping supplies and embellishments.

Shelving mounted on the wall or on pegboard helps maximize counter space.

Use pegboard accessories to add storage options, such as a bar to hold ribbon and decorative tape.

Clip stickers and rub-ons on a clipboard that can be easily detached and taken with you.

Colorful hardware caddies keep small embellishments such as buttons, brads, and eyelets contained.

Modular cubes with slots make it easy to organize 12x12-inch paper while keeping it accessible.

Display photos or finished scrapbook pages by attaching a clip to a game board.

Glue or nail carpet tiles to the wall for a colorful bulletin board to hold your inspiration, color swatches, or half-finished pages.

Mount a spice rack on the wall or prop it on a ledge to store colorful embellishments.

Store photos and digital scrapbooking supplies on CDs and stash them in a basket near your computer.