Today, I am so excited to share my best tricks for designing and organizing a laundry room! I’m a true believer that your laundry room does not have to be an afterthought, it can be a truly special room. That said, function definitely comes before fashion in this space.
This post is sponsored by GE Appliances—makers of the nicest washer and dryer I have ever owned. This washer has SmartDispense technology, which basically means you can pour an entire bottle of detergent in at one time and the washer will automatically dispense how much is needed for each load. Nice! And it will tell you when you’re running low.
Both the washer and dryer have connected technology so you can control them with your phone. Just use the Laundry app to keep the dryer tumbling if you aren’t home to get the clothes out.
Tip 1: Use the same color scheme from the next room to create visual continuity.
Yes, I want my laundry room to be super cute—but it doesn’t need a whole new color story. I remember in my first home I basically picked a different (bold!) paint color for every room. It was … a lot.
Keep things cohesive by pairing your laundry room color scheme with whatever other room you can see from the laundry room. Bonus points if you can continue the same flooring as well.
Tip 2: Focus on storage.
This is kind of obvious, but if you have a chance to add any storage, DO IT. In this room, we built this giant shelf on one side (with room to grow … we don’t even need all this space yet, which is a very good problem to have) and above the washer we added a double shelf, so everything you need to do laundry can be kept within reach!
Tip 3: Avoid plastic containers.
This is a new one for me! Recently, I have been making an effort to reduce the amount of plastic I buy because plastic isn’t friendly for the environment, tends to wear more easily and then get tossed sooner. I also read some scary stuff about plastic toys in this book and decided to just avoid it when possible. I am basically never a purist with this stuff, but I think that taking small steps is important and a good practice all throughout life.
Anyway, as I began to look for plastic alternatives for storage, I realized it’s EASY to find them. It’s even quite a bit cuter, in my opinion. For storage in this room, I grabbed some hyacinth baskets, some wire locker baskets and some ceramic berry baskets.
Tip 4: Use large glass jars to hold supplies. I love having glass jars filled with things like dryer balls, clothespins, and reusable cloths. Rows of jars make my eyes so happy!
Tip 5: Be consistent with brands you buy or rebottle.
OK, I’ll give you two scenarios—one is Martha-Stewart-level and the other one is, well, easy.
If you want your laundry room to look like a magazine, the best thing to do is to make your own cleaning supplies or rebottle. When you look at a laundry room in a magazine, they will usually have done this—it makes everything prettier because branding and labels can detract your eye from the design. I love these amber spray bottles from Amazon or these pretty glass bottles from Grove.
The way easier option is to buy all your cleaning products from just one brand. Even if it’s not the world’s cutest packaging, it just looks way nicer to have the consistency in the packaging all from one source instead of a million random brands (to be fair, maybe that is why closed shelving was invented … lol … but I don’t have any of that in this room).
Tip 6: Everything must match!
(don’t laugh)
One of the biggest keys to organizing a space that can easily look cluttered is to keep the colors matching. So when it’s time to buy a new broom, vacuum, laundry basket or whatever else … keep it neutral or matching.
I know this may seem a little strange to some, but organization is more than just cleaning and sorting—it’s making things look nice visually, and it’s very difficult to do that when the color scheme is all over the map. Buying things that match is kind of like cheating because it makes it 100x easier to create a visually pleasing space!
This is where it all ties back together because a bright white washer and dryer were the perfect fit for this space.
I hope this post was encouraging! This laundry room renovation was not high budget. It was even more affordable than the one in my own home and my husband loves this one more (of course—LOL). Don’t feel like you need an enormous budget to create a super nice laundry room! Just follow my simple tips for designing and organizing and you’ll be amazed how easily it all comes together.
Thanks so much for reading! xx – Elsie
17 Comments
I wish I had the luxury of having a laundry room! My tiny apartment is simply too small for one, at 300 sq ft!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
It is so interesting how different areas have such different living options. You live in Hong Kong, right? I’ve never traveled there (would love to one day!) but in my mind I wonder if it’s much like New York City here in the US. Which I don’t think too many NYC apartments have individual laundry rooms either.
We’ve recently moved to London and, after doing our laundry in the kitchen for many months, we finally have a separate laundry room. Well, sort of. We have created a laundry area in a cloakroom. We even have a dryer (!!!), which I will never take for granted again. These tips are very helpful as you basically have to gaze at the laundry area while sitting on the loo.
First time homeowner, gearing up to remodel. What white paint did y’all use for the shelves/trim/ceiling? I am struggling to choose the right shade / finish! There is so much conflicting info online! I love the look of this laundry room and ours is a similar shape / layout.
Hi Rebekah,
We always use a stain blocking primer for shelves and then semi gloss un-tinted white paint. Good luck with your remodel!
Simple, do-able, green (-and in a gentle, non-hectoring kind of way, hurrah), and yes definitely encouraging. Thank you! 🙂 Never thought I’d be inspired by a laundry room, but whaddya know, I am! I’m still fan-girling over your beautiful office too Elsie. Organisational goals! (I’m aiming to make my own large square pin-board/ mood board soon. I’m just trying to work out how big to make it. Couldn’t find yours on Hobby Lobby’s website grrrrr). I love that you did this room on a budget too, that’s so helpful and inspiring- it’s great to see what can be done! Oh and please could you share where you got your top from? It’s so cute! Thank you xx
I’d love to know where you found your extra large wicker basket with handles being held in the last picture?
Where are those towels from? Love this room!
hi! that pastel broom is so pretty, where did u get it?
are there any brands you recommend ?
thank you 🙂
That washer and dryer sound amazing! I’d love to have an app.
Love what you did with the space, especially loving that dark green paint!
I would love to control my washer and dryer with my phone, that is sooo cool!
https://www.makeandmess.com/
I love the green colour of the walls. I don’t have a laundry room, but this is the dream!
Debs @ https://tiger-mint.com
It’s also a good idea to raise the washing machine and dryer so you don’t need to bend so much.
Hi guys,
Love the whole remodel, and that green is glorious. I also especially like the water hyacinth bins and hamper with the green and the white. Great job, as always! Please, can you share the source of the water hyacinth hamper with us? I’ve been scouring the interwebs the past couple of days trying to find it and am coming up short.
Thanks so much!
Hi Molly! I think I got it at Home Goods..? It’s been a long time, so I am not 100% sure. xx!
Looking back, it sounds so obvious but making sure everything matched is one of the things that finally made me feel like I had an “adult” living space. A) it makes choices easier (anyone else notice how you can get just about anything in any color nowadays? 13-year-old me would go nuts and her house would be a rainbow nightmare, lol) and B) it just makes for a more orderly and soothing space. This is the most “zen” laundry room I’ve seen for that reason. 🙂