A Drab Tulsa Basement Got a Double Role as a Half-Bedroom, Half-Office

Location: Reservoir Hill, just outside of downtown Tulsa.

the before: The couple was already using the basement as a bedroom, but the space was in desperate need of some TLC. “The walls were already plastered, so my goal was to make them pop. The main focus was layering furniture in a way that made sense for a half-bedroom, half-office layout,” Justice explains. “I wanted to marry the two in a way where Katie could see herself having a glass of wine at five o’clock in the same place she’d just finished a Zoom call.”

The inspiration: “Since Katie would be working from here most days, I envisioned a space that felt inspiring and whimsical but also provided a sense of order and symmetry,” Justice reflects.

the budget: $15,000

Square footage: 625 square feet

Main ingredients:

Paint: The goal was to accentuate the texture of the hand-scalloped plaster and let the color of the trim shine. Justice chose Benjamin Moore’s Satin Snow for the walls. Other textures and colors that also came through include the wooden beams, the exposed brick, and the original terracotta tiles.

AFTER: Rather than building a gallery wall and covering up the existing hand-scalloped plaster walls, Justice decided to incorporate sculptures that would double as quirky backdrops during Zoom meetings. The shell-shaped wall accent, sourced off Facebook Marketplace, reminds the Carpenters’ bygone beach vacations while serving as a backdrop for the 1970s leather chair by Otto Zapf for Knoll. A 1960s Space Age Floor Lamp from Fog + Mørup occupies the corner near the desk.

Kacey Gilpin

Shell-shaped wall accents: “I actually sourced the five-foot plaster shell off Facebook Marketplace. It was a blurry image, but I knew based on the size that would make a statement,” Justice shares. “I actually bought it before even showing Katie and Justin because I knew they would love it just as much. And let’s be honest, if it weren’t in her office, it’d probably be in mine.”

gray abstract painting: A labor of love by local Tulsa artist Anna Kallstrom.

Brown leather office chairs: A rare curiosity by Otto Zapf for Knoll, circa 1970.

Lounge chairs: A pair of custom 1970s finds reupholstered with patterned velvet and down-filled cushions.