Introduction: Designing a Fun and Functional Laundry Room

By Grandmas House DIY
About: Around here you'll find we love to: refinish old furniture, re-purpose old pieces, build it from scratch and continue bettering our home one step at a time!

How many times can a person move one washer/dryer combo until back and forth in a room until they finally decide the right side to put it on? Seven. The answer for me is seven! lol So, I hated my laundry closet. It is actually a pretty decent size at just over six feet wide by just under four feet deep. But I couldn't really reach the upper cabinets over the machine and basically either side of the machine was just awkward and wasted space.

So, one night, I took everything out of there and figured out that my machine would work far better facing into the room and sitting on the right side. By a stroke of luck I didn't need to buy longer water hoses or a longer drain. My grandma's old enamelware counter top fit perfect over the machine. I used leftover bead board and L brackets to support it about an inch above the machine.

I also took my hinged closet doors down and added castors so they roll now.

Step 1: Shelves, Trim and Paint

For such a small space it took a lot of lumber! I decided to simply build a backer board above my machine as the back right corner would have become a black whole otherwise. I had just enough leftovers 1xs in various widths to make it work.

I wanted open shelves here no matter what and I had a few leftover 2x8s so I decided to use them. I had to cut them at an angle so they would still allow my upper cabinet door to fully open. With them "floating" by my screwing four inch screws into them and into studs I then added all of my trim.

I wanted my old cabinets and new additions to all look like it was built at the same time together. 1x4s trimming out everything I think made it really cohesive, especially after I painted!

I had always planned on hanging a curtain across the back wall. This one I ended up with made me smile the moment I saw it. I purchased it off of Amazon for less than $20 and, its actually not a curtain, its a table cloth!

Step 2: Completion, Functionality and Beauty

I've always been a firm believer that a space needs to function first before it can be pretty. But I also believe that even our working spaces can be lovely too! Accessories helped me here in both areas. The rolling pantry that fits in snug beside my machine totally hides but is so easy to access. The hanging laundry basket turned out perfect for kitchen towels and the like. The broom holder works great for me tacked to the front of my open shelves and several containers for cereal storage that I purchased at Walmart worked perfect for things such as borax and baking soda.

The rug and the prints really brightened the whole space up and honestly, I just love this little room now and I'm not a fan of doing laundry at all. The entire space cost me less then $200 mostly because all of my wood was scrap I had on hand.