'Ask Lucia - Style and substance for modern living' - By Lucia Van Der Post

"Q. We have a good-sized basement in our house that is dry and heated. We've decided it would cost too much to dig out windows, as some of our neighbours have. DO you think it's possible to turn it into a cosy spare bedroom if it has no natural light? Or would people always feel as though they were sleeping in a dungeon?

A. Funny you should ask - I'm dealing with an almost identical problem in my own dear basement. It has windows but nonetheless it, too, is dark. I debated going down the light, bleached Scandinavian route - painting everything white; having a floor of wide pale planks from Dinesen (www.dinesen-gulve.dk) or painting existing floorboards; using masses of gorgeous lights (not just spotlights, but also something delicious such as an antique chandelier, or edgy, such as a dentist's light from Alfie's Market in Marylebone, London)"