A Spin on Small Spaces

Some people find the sorting of clothes therapeutic. Possibly because the sorting process brings about a feeling that life's messes can also be sorted no matter how soiled it feels. The fact that you can clean those adamant stains and iron out the creases carefully till they look almost brand new gives you a strange sense of hope & satisfaction.

While some have a laundry room, others may have a laundry space – maybe just a corner in the home. Whether you have a laundry room or a corner, you can easily make it a cute space with some modifications or additions. Though there are links given here, thrift stores or other places also have decor items that will work perfectly well. At the end of the day it could just be things you have around the house put together to form a theme, and you don’t really have to buy anything new.

Since this home came with a laundry room, I thought this is another space I can get a little creative with. My husband decided to buy the biggest washer and dryer he could find so that we could do a big load of laundry at a time. So once I saw the size and how those appliances fit into the space I decided to go with smaller objects to balance out the room. I also thought of colors that would go with it, and since I did my Inspiration Nook with earthy & warm tones, I thought of going with neutral but cooler tones in this area. So the color palette was grey, white and matte silver. I would have loved to paint or tile this space but since its a brand new home I decided not to for now, but it is definitely something I may venture into in the future.

The model house came with cabinets on top that ran the length of the wall but with this size of washer & dryer, we thought it would make the room look crowded, so instead, we went with white shelves that had a molding design similar to the ones we have around the house. We put two shelves on either side and left the space above the washer & dryer open. Initially, I thought of putting a painting there but since the wall which ran parallel to this one already held a nice big rectangular painting, I did not want a visual repeat as you pass by the rooms. I looked for something artsy that was cheap because, lets be honest, while we want it to look nice we may not spend more than 2 minutes appreciating wall art in a laundry. ;)

Since the painting I was looking for initially was of a clothesline with birds sitting on it, I started thinking that maybe something to do with birds or butterflies would be good. Keeping that in mind, I found these butterfly decals that I decided to use. They have a mirror effect but it doesn’t really reflect or shine too much, so it would still be mostly muted. I wanted a laundry sign and these days there are so many cute designs, it was simply hard to pick one. I finally settled for a clean and simple. wooden laundry sign made of birch plywood stained grey.

I went with my usual slight touch of green with this set of potted artificial plants. I had a few old black photo frames that I spray-painted a matte silver, one had a floral design and in another one I put a printed picture that said “wash, dry, fold, repeat” (a very common laundry sign with many creative designs). Two other things I loved were these cute ceramic bird figurines in white and a rustic ceramic vase set in two-toned grey. Both of these looks so cute that I have a feeling they may leave this space soon and make its way to my living room. ;)

The two-toned grey vase set was a splurge but it had so many great reviews so I had to see it in person, and once I got it, I decided I was keeping it! But I also found these 3$ vases at a nursery which could easily replace them since its not a high traffic area. We didn't find the need to add a sink in the laundry room yet but we did add a custom-built laundry bin because we thought it would be better than having laundry baskets. We had it designed in a way that it matched the cabinet the builders gave us on one side and made a four bin cabinet that we could easily slide out to put laundry in. Finally, a two-toned grey rug and the laundry room was done.

Four bins to separate the light/dark/towels/bedsheets etc.

I also wanted to include some ideas for small laundry spaces/corners that I thought looked great with maybe adding a new cabinet or repainting the existing one. You could just get baskets to organize things, if you don't have cabinets, and put them on a shelf.

Personally, I am in a season of less is more and so kept this area minimal as well, but as you can see above, there are so many ways in which you can change little areas to create an atmosphere that you like. One thing I can say for sure is, when I go into this space it definitely feels a little less of a chore room, and that in itself counts as something in this task filled life...right? So go on, find joy in the mundane, pick spaces in your home and transform them from their usual associations to something more fun or charming.

Cleanse me, and I will be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow - Psalm 51:7

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