Transforming a dingy basement into child heaven - any ideas?

[WideWebWitch]

I have invited loads of relatives (17 adults + 15 children) over for a couple of days in between Christmas and New Year. The children range from 4 - 16. We've got a large, dingy basement which we are going to try to transform into an exciting place for all the kids to be so that we, hopefully, get to talk to each other for a while. Yeah, right. Anyway, that's the idea. So far we've decided we're going to borrow a projector so we can show films (Shrek, Star Wars maybe) against one of the big walls and we're going to cover the cobwebby old boarded ceiling with sheets a la Turkish knocking shop. There are only 2 power points down there though (we will be running multiple extensions from them but DP assures me he knows what he's doing) so has anyone any ideas about heating? Lighting? i.e. with both, either cheap or easy to borrow and not dangerous. We're going to put most of ds's toys down there, 15 sleeping bags, loads of popcorn etc. Any other good ideas for making it more interesting than bothering us lot upstairs? Any ideas gratefully received.

Bloody hell! Not advice yet but good luck!

How about telling the parents to dress the kids in old clothes and letting them loose with tins of paint so they can "decorate" it themselves?

As for lighting - you can't beat strings of fairy lights for instant (slightly tacky!) atmosphere.
It sounds like great fun to me.

Wow, WWW, sounds like fun (I think!)

(We did sheets on ceiling for one of our kids' birthday parties, the room was a mess, we had sheets on walls too and called it a circus, it looked great.)

Safest portable heaters are electric convector heaters I think. They warm the room quite quickly but don't get too hot themselves. With 15 kids though you might want to shield them with furniture to stop them getting knocked over. You can get them for around 20quid each if you can't borrow.

My DD1 only has 2 sockets in her room at uni. We have run a 6-socket trailer off one (TV, radio,lamp and PS1 so far but we are taking the old PC over for her tomorrow), on a 1 or 2 metre cable, plus a 2-socket trailer on a 10 metre cable off the other - hairdryer/straighteners and another lamp. I have a sneaking feeling there is another extension somewhere too (eek!)

In our experience you can't get a lot of sockets on a long cable, if your 2 wall sockets are together you might need a really long one to spread things out a bit.

For up to 16s you will need a source of music too I think - and maybe a TV plus VCR as well as the screen? (And/or a playstation if you have one or can borrow one?)

Hope it all goes well! Good luck!

Glow in the dark stars? A wall left free for them to create a mural? Cheapo beanbags for loafing? Could the 16 year old(s) be the sort who might organise a panto to be shown to the grownups at the end of the party? Oh, and a stout lock on the outside of the door. You are a brave woman www and I hope you have a fab party.

How about blackboard paint on one wall and a good supply of chalk?

Some of the best parties I ever went to were held in the cellars of a friend's house. The rooms were dry and had been carpeted, had a few old chairs and a music centre and disco lights. We had a ball, never made a mess and didn't disturb anyone else. The parents always had their own party in the main house. Perhaps you could invest in a couple of RCD's for the power points, just in case of accidents and provide plastic glasses for drinks and disposable plates etc.

How about covering a wall in plain paper so they can do a mural or a graffiti wall?

"Turkish knocking shop"?? Well, that's certainly going to be exciting for them!

Lighting, you can get battery operated "push lights" which are (I think) low voltage and cool to the touch. Just press the round light to switch on and off. Won't take up any of your precious socket space!

You can hire heaters from hire shops - have a look at HSS who have electric radiators for £15 per week.

Love the idea of a wall to paint/chalk on and a lock on the outside of the door...

WWW

Do I dare ask how you seem to know what the decor in a Turkish Knocking shop looks like?

Something you aren't telling us?

oooh I just knew I'd get some good ideas! Fairy lights, battery operated lights, blackboard, glow in the dark stars, fantastic! Keep em coming! And no, I don't really know what a Turkish knocking shop looks like just guessing

We believe you WWW...

I did see one of those home decorating programmes once where they filled a (small!) lean to conservatory with sand to make a beach room! Something I've always wanted to find a reason and place to do, with no success... Made me laugh but it's not really suitable or practical for a basement!