Have your ever thought about how many hours you spend in your
laundry room if you added them up at the end of each week? If you're
like me there are very few days that go by without doing at least one
load of laundry. This being the case, it makes perfect sense to decorate
your laundry room in a style or theme that pleases you and helps the
chore of doing laundry a little more enjoyable.
What makes you
happy and pleases your eyes? Is it the beach, antiques, art work, the
color red? Whatever it is, just remember that you don't have to decorate
your laundry room in the same style or theme as the rest of your house.
The first step to decorating your laundry room is to pick a theme.
Whether it be a tropical them or a vintage them, carry it out through
your entire laundry room.
For example, I decorated my laundry room
in a vintage theme. On my neutral colored walls, I placed a collection
of vintage washboards on one wall and a faux antique piece of artwork on
another wall. I also added a few authentic old irons on a shelf mixed
in with vintage detergent boxes. To continue my vintage theme, I added
an antique looking wallpaper border close to the ceiling with old
looking irons and washboards on it. To give the room a cheerful look, I
added a collection of weathered baskets and greenery on the top of the
cabinetry above the washer and dryer. I placed coordinating throw rugs
on the tiled floor to cushion and comfort my feet while I'm doing
laundry. Finally, I added the perfect window treatment to let just the
right amount of light in and make my laundry room look complete.
If
you choose not to use a decorating theme in your laundry room, you can
easily liven up the room with colorful paint on the walls, updated or
painted cabinets, artwork, flowers, and upgraded flooring. Be sure the
flooring is forgiving of spills. Vinyl flooring, laminate flooring, and
ceramic tile are a good choice.
If you decide to paint the walls
in your laundry room you may want to paint only one wall leaving the
other walls neutral in color. Deeply hued paint colors will reflect on
the clothes making it difficult to see stains. If your laundry room has
fluorescent lighting, which has a blue cast, neutral colors with yellow
undertones can help combat the blue.
Perhaps the best way to love
your laundry room is to organize it so that you know where all of the
detergents and stain removers are. The following tips can help you
organize your laundry room.
• If your laundry room has counter
space, keep it uncluttered so that you can use it for folding clothes.
If you don't have a counter in your laundry room, purchase a small
melamine table which is stain resistant and water resistant to provide
you with a space to sort and fold your laundry.
• Store
detergents, stain removers, sponges, and other laundry room supplies in a
cabinet or on a shelf above the washing machine. You might also want to
install additional shelves or premade cabinets in your laundry room for
additional storage.
• Opt for an ironing board that can be
mounted on the wall or an over-the-door style. The over-the-door style
requires no installation and hangs over the door frame, drops down when
you need to use it, and snaps back in place when you are done.
• If space is an issue, consider installing a retractable clothesline for
air drying clothes. This type of clothesline is convenient, affordable
and easy to install.
• Purchase a laundry hamper on wheels so that you can move it out of the way when necessary.
• Consider hanging laundry bags that will help you to presort laundry on a
daily basis. This setup requires no floor space so it is ideal for a
small laundry room.
Decorating your laundry room in a style that
pleases you may in fact change your attitude about doing laundry. Since
laundry is a daily chore for most of us, we might as well try and make
the best of it with a great laundry room!
