Hi Everyone!
I’m so excited to finally be sharing our laundry room update today. This is a space we’ve been working on bit by bit since we moved in and we recently finished up one of the most impactful changes so far. It’s been suuuuuuch a slow process, so I thought this is a good time to pop on and dive in to some of the details of the space, as well as share what we will be doing moving forward. But first let’s take a look at the room we started with…
Lordt yall! I don’t even know where to begin with the ugliness. The floors, the light fixture, the farm animals curtains, the beige walls….just throw the whole damn room away! In all honesty, though, we were really really lucky to find a house with indoor laundry at all so while it wasn’t an aesthetically pleasing space we were happy just to have it. It had plenty of room, access to the backyard, and a closet for storage. All the ugly stuff could be remedied.
We started the changes in here by taking out the traditional water heater in favor of a space saving, more energy efficient tankless system. (More to come on that later)
We had the tankless water heater installed on the exterior wall in the backyard. That single change made a HUGE diffrence in here. It freed up space for more storage, which is always a good thing in a small home.
At the same time we had some doors installed, including exchanging the exterior door in favor of a dutch door! I knew since the day we first toured this house I wanted to put in a dutch door somewhere and this was the perfect location.
We also decided to replace the door between the laundry room and kitchen with french door. It lets in lots of light between the two spaces, and also acts as a sound barrier when the machines are running.
The next round of updates happened recently and includes the installation of some bold wallpaper, replacing the curtains, and swapping out the lighting.
To say Im obsessed with this wallpaper is an understatement. I really really wanted something bold and unexpected in here and this Aja wallpaper by Justina Blakeney from Hygge and West was absolutely perfect. Purple is my favorite color so I was looking for a way to incorporate it into our home in a really impactful way. I always tell people not to forget about ceilings and this is the perfect example as to why! Had I just chosen to paper the walls it would’ve been pretty and fine, but not nearly as amazing. The ceiling is the 5th wall and its the perfect place to really make a visual statement in a space.
For the window coverings I chose bamboo shades from my favorite source: Blindster. All of our window coverings in the house are from Blindster and we just love them.
The lighting is from Lucent Light Shop. It’s actually the light we had in the kitchen prior to getting the lighted pot rack. I LOVE the copper paired with the purple, and its a major upgrade from the lighting that was here before! I’ll be adding more copper details in the space as well.
We still have just a few things left to do in here, but Im loving how far its come.
Still on the to do list:
- paint the dutch door trim and French door black
- install a wall to wall shelf under the window-(will be used as a propogation center)
- install a drying bar above the window
- replace floors-(this will be done at the same time the kitchen floors get replaced)
- install shelves in nook where water heater once was
- wood for a folding surface on top of the machines.
- have piece of plexiglass cut for side wall next to sink
- DIY sink skirt-(still contemplating this one. it may get nixed)
- replace closet door knob with glass
Make no mistake here, I still LOATHE doing laundry, but at least we will now have a pretty space for me to loathe doing it in! Im looking forward to cranking out some of the other details in here soon.
Until next time friends…
Sources
Dutch door & French door-local store The Window and Door Shop
Wallpaper- Hygge and West
Bamboo Shades- Blindster
Glass Door Hardware-Emtek via The Window and Door Shop
African Mask-Flea Market
Baskets-c/o Indego Africa (plateau, floor basket)
Chendelier-Lucent Light Shop
Prayer Beads-Fredericks and Mae
Kathy says
I love this! I’ve recently seen someone paint a laundry room sink and it turned out really cool. Might be something to check into if you don’t want to do the traditional skirt.
Brianna says
Hello! Beautiful space and I’m soooo happy I’ve stumbled upon your page. Quick question – what color blinds did you pick? When I visit the blinds page it has various colors and I want the ones you used. Do you mind sharing the color?
Thank you!!!
Vanessa says
Did you do the wallpaper yourself? It looks great!
I have also just done a laundry room, not quite as cute as yours but I did finally get rid of the 1979 vinyl flooring and freshen it up otherwise. I happen to love laundry, dislike dishes. I wonder if we all split along those two chores?
Final thought, wouldn’t it be nice if they made counter depth washer/dryers? Why do they need to take up that much space in a room.
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Vanessa!
No I did not install the wallpaper myself. I always hire out wallpaper installation and my buy is a ninja! And OMG counter depth washer/dryers would be AMAZING!
Jenny says
Hi Shavonda! When we re-did our laundry room I found that switching the traditional flexible dryer vent to a telescoping hard one allowed us to set the machines back like 4 additional inches closer to the wall. Something to look into if you haven’t already to really maximize the space. I’m loving the amount of style you’ve already managed to impart in this typically overlooked space design wise.
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Jenny! Yes, we do have a plan to receed the venting into the walls to give us a couple more inched of space to work with:) Thank you so much!
Anne says
I love the wallpaper! And the light fixture! I’ve been considering wallpaper in my laundry room and I think you’ve pushed me into definitely yes!
Shavonda Gardner says
Yes yes yes!!! Such the perfect opportunity to make a great design statement! You should definitley do it.
susan says
Oh. My. Goodness. I want to live in that room. The wallpaper and the light are absolutely amazing.
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you so much Susan!
Marybeth Bizjak says
I love that wallpaper!
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you Marybeth!!
Oona says
Hi, Shavonda! This room makes me so envious. Our cottage has laundry space right in the backdoor end of the kitchen, with no space for a wall to separate the two. I may have to wallpaper our whole kitchen… Wheeee! Meanwhile, on the super practical side: I am in love with your back door. Can you share the brand/source for it, please?
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi there!! The sources to the doors are in the “Sources” section at the end of the post sweets!! Unless there’s a different door you are referring to?
Oona says
Oh, mercy me, Shavonda! Gotta get my brain in synch with my reading glasses… Thank you for being patient about my question.
Carli says
I adore your use of this wall paper in this space Shavonda! But can we just talk about that dutch door (all the heart eyes!!!!!)
Shavonda Gardner says
Yes friend! I HAD to happen!!! I love it so much and its so perfect for the laundry becuase I can air dry all the things easily inside.
Caris says
That is stunning! You sure picked a beautiful paper, so beautiful that you want it crawling up the wall and onto the ceiling. A nice feeling of envelopment. Love the purple and copper. You are so talented!
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you so much Caris! Im so happy with it. Its just such a great space to be in now:)
Aimèe says
Love this room.
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you so much Aimee
Julia@Cuckoo4Design says
I e never been this excited about a laundry room makeover. It’s so so good.
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi friend! Lol! Thank you sweets. Girl, me either! Im so exited about it. Its such a fun space to be in!
Amy says
Wowza! I love that the wallpaper is on the ceiling too, it looks so big and bold!
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Amy! YES!!! In a space this small I just HAD to go big or go home!
Darcel says
Love it! Kinda tired of light and airy laundry rooms. I’ve seen some that are really nice, but this is such a welcome change of pace and style.
Luisa says
Oooh la la! It’s gorgeous!!!
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you so much Darcel!