Laundry Room Refresh

Are you the kind of person who enjoys folding a fresh load of laundry still warm from the dryer, or the kind who only does laundry when you’re completely out of clean clothes?

I wouldn’t say I enjoy doing laundry, but I don’t hate it either. And one thing that makes it more tolerable is having a pretty, functional, and organized space to do laundry. If that does not describe your current laundry space, then maybe a simple laundry room refresh is what you need!

Simple and Inexpensive Ideas for a Laundry Room Refresh

1. Make it Pretty

Having a pretty laundry space to work in won’t make the chore any easier, but it can make a big difference in your mood while tackling that pile of dirty clothes.

Wall Art

Some pretty art on the wall, a vintage laundry sign, or even some of your kids’ framed artwork can make the space more appealing while you’re doing laundry. My laundry sign is from Hobby Lobby, but this one is similar.

A Stylish Rug

Adding a rug to your laundry area can add some flair, as well as make it more comfortable on your feet as you’re folding clothes. And who says it has to be a utilitarian-type rug? Choose something stylish or colorful to make your laundry room feel like a room in your house, and not just a work area.

I have a narrow laundry room because it’s a pass-through between the hallway and the master closet.

Here it is heading toward the closet…

And from the opposite direction, you can see the master bedroom across the hallway.

This laundry layout is a really great feature of this house, because it allows us to access the master bath and closet without disturbing someone still be sleeping in the master bedroom. Since my husband and I often work very different schedules, one of us can go into the bathroom in the morning to get ready, and then exit through the laundry room without ever having to re-enter the bedroom. Plus, it’s so handy to have the washer and dryer right next to the master closet.

Because I have a narrow laundry room, I chose this 8-foot runner rug to fit the space better, in a pretty vintage pattern.

Decor that Serves Double-Duty

Another way I’ve added some “pretty” to my laundry is area is by using some of my favorite vintage items. The bonus is that not only do they add some nice decor to this space, but they are also functional.

My mom gave me this vintage sewing box years ago. By placing it in one corner of the laundry counter, it serves as an attractive and sentimental decor piece, but is also practical, because it neatly holds all the items I need for a small mending task, or to reattach a button.

These vintage blue Ball mason jars add a pretty sparkle of color to my laundry room refresh, and are useful for holding items like clothespins, buttons, and my favorite OxiClean White Revive Pods.

The rest of my laundry products are kept tucked away in the cabinets, where I can have easy access, while still keeping the laundry room tidy.

Church Street Designs

Another way to make your laundry products more attractive is to place them in decorative bottles or containers. These beautiful glass laundry bottles with a bamboo tray were gifted to me by Church Street Designs. Aren’t they beautiful?

I love how they give this corner next to the laundry room sink a pretty little sparkle, and also keep my hand washing detergent and stain remover easily accessible at the same time.

Church Street Designs was so easy to work with. Not only do they have bottles and containers to refresh your laundry room, but they also carry a wide variety of bottles, containers, and labels for your kitchen, bathroom, pantry, and even your coffee bar! But, if they don’t have exactly what you want, they will customize it for you!

I wanted one of my laundry bottles to specifically say “hand washing detergent”, and they happily accommodated me.

The bottles in the laundry room came with apothecary-style labels. I also received these labels to go on soap bottles I already had in my master bath.

**If you love these bottles and labels as much as I do, and want to order your own, Church Street Designs has given me THIS LINK for my friends and followers to receive 10% off orders of $5 or more, and it’s good through the end of this year!

2. Brighten it Up

Paint

Nobody wants to spend time in a dark and dreary space, especially while stuck doing the laundry. Brightening up your laundry space can be done easily with paint and simple lighting fixes.

The paint in my laundry room is Collonade Gray by Sherwin Williams. Collonade is a neutral gray with a bit of warmth to it. The laundry room is probably not the place for a dark and dramatic wall color, which can make a small space feel cave-like.

Lighting

I did two things to brighten this room up for the laundry room refresh. First, my hubs swapped out the light bulbs in the ceiling lights for slightly brighter, daylight bulbs.

Then, I bought two of these under-cabinet LED light bars to brighten up the sink and the counter area. They are touch lights and operate on 3 AAA batteries and work nicely to add some extra task lighting to these areas.

3. Control the Clutter

On the shelf above the washer and dryer, I use baskets similar to THESE to corral the typical things that can cause a laundry room to look messy and cluttered.

One basket holds socks waiting for their match to turn up, one has the instruction manuals for the washer/dryer, another has items that need to be mended, and the last one has odds and ends.

The cabinets house all the cleaning supplies and tools that aren’t pretty, and that I don’t want sitting out.

4. Keep it Functional

You want your laundry room to be an attractive space that you won’t mind spending time in, but don’t forget that this space needs to be functional as well.

Labels

I love using labels to keep things organized. My pantry and bathroom cabinets have bins labeled with these cute little chalkboard labels, which would also work great to keep things organized in your laundry room storage cabinets.

One of my cabinets is open underneath so that the laundry hampers can slide in and out easily. I have them labeled with these clip-on chalkboard labels, to make sorting laundry simple.

Leave Room for Folding and Hanging

As I was working on my laundry room refresh, I wanted to find a way to make more room on the counter to leave plenty of space for folding laundry.

That’s when I remembered that I had a couple of floating shelves stashed in the basement that I had used in the guest bath at my previous home.

A couple of screws and anchors later, and I had this floating shelf up on the wall to hold my mason jars, and give me more room on the countertop!

The hanging rod above the washer and dryer allows for plenty of room to hang dry clothes, or to hang them up as they come out of the dryer.

Having the right type of hangers makes the job of getting clothes put away much easier, instead of leaving it crumpled up in a laundry basket.

A couple of years ago I replaced all my hangers with these velvet, space-saving swivel hangers, and it has made doing laundry so much easier. The clothes don’t slip off the hangers, they don’t get “shoulder bumps”, and the hangers swivel, if it matters to you for all your clothing to be facing the “right” direction in the closet.

I also recently purchased these open-sided hangers to use for pants. They are so much easier than trying to slip the legs of the pants into the opening of a traditional hanger.

Make Creative Use of Available Space

Rather than a full-sized ironing board, I use this small one that tucks away behind the laundry room door. When I need to use it, it sits nicely on top of the washer/dryer, giving me plenty of room for ironing.

These simple steps helped give my laundry room a mini-makeover and refresh. I still wish there wasn’t quite as much laundry to do, but having this pretty space to work in certainly helps.

And now, it’s time to check out some other great mini-makeovers from several other talented bloggers. I hope you’ll check out the makeover posts linked below for this month’s DIY Blog Hop!

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