I've come to terms with the fact that nothing about my home will ever even remotely resemble anything in Martha Stewart's home, or in her magazine. But that doesn't stop me from poring over the images of domestic perfection that she so effortlessly creates. Today, Martha blogged about her laundry room at Skylands, her home in Maine.
Of course, Martha Stewart has a stunning collection of antique and vintage hand-embroidered linens, which does require a multiple-person staff with state-of-the-art equipment to launder and preserve it properly. So I'm not even sure we can call this 'inspiration,' since it's on such a grand scale, but it's definitely making me drool (all over the lovely embroidery!) Check out some of her images of her huge, sunlit, quasi-industrial laundry room.
Part of what makes Martha's laundry room so impressive is the scale. Here, we see her three ironing boards lined up in front of windows, so that the beautiful views can make the chore "actually a pleasant pastime" for her staff. Notice the beautiful swooping iron base on the ironing boards.
In addition to the three regular-sized ironing tables, Martha also has a large padded ironing tabletop for oversized items like sheets and tablecloths. Using a padded tabletop as an ironing surface and a folding surface is an idea that we can definitely consider for our own homes!
I love this gorgeous wooden retractable folding rack on which Martha can air-dry her fine small linens. Very Gosford Park.
Martha also installed this insanely amazing Drying Cabinet, which has lots of surface area for drying large items that are too delicate to tumble. This actually seems to me like a useful appliance that I could really use in a small-scale version! See how the eye adjusts to grandeur?
Several of Martha's laundry machines are vintage and have a fantastic patina, including these ironing mangles that can quickly and safely press delicate pillowcases and handkerchiefs. Check out that big red button, like a 1950's B-movie device of destruction!
This is a flatwork finisher, which one can feed clean, damp tablecloths and bedsheets through to achieve a perfectly-flat and dry finish. Martha writes that she bought this machine because she is "passionate about finely ironed linens."
Martha posts more photos with descriptive captions on her blog, so be sure to check it out.
What do you think of Martha's laundry room? Are you inspired to incorporate any of her ideas into your own laundry area?
Images: themarthablog.com
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Hmm, this just stresses me out - thinking about how much laundry one must do to justify such a set-up. That's a lot of laundry! But then, I'm a "throw it in the dryer with a damp wash cloth and hope for the best" kind of girl when it comes to ironing...
Love the wooden drying rack- it reminds me of the one in my grandparent's house in NC- they didn't have a dryer until the late 80's & used to fill their living room with the rack to dry everything. If filled the entire living room & was a fantastic place to play amongst the sheets & towels drying- perfect pre-built fort!
Sorry folks, to burst your bubbles and sound bitter...but that laundry looks like a high-end sweatshop - which it basically is.
How boring. With all the money in the world, and she worries about linens and ironing. Don't get me wrong, I'm one of those nuts that occasionally finds ironing therapeutic, but this is obsessive, to be kind.
I agree Gosusgo,
It's dark and dreary and, let's face it, I'm sure Martha isn't spending her weekend laundering all of the tableclothes, napkins and such from Friday night's extravagant soiree....
this is ridiculous. i agree with Gosusgo. Martha is certainly not doing the laundry in this room.
Not much natural light in this room. It must scare the elves she has chained up in the corners we can't see.
I agree with Gosusgo on the sweatshop thing. Everything probably has to be done to such perfection that I would break out in hives every morning before work!
I am willing (and can be packed immediately!) to wash and iron Martha's linens. I find the "laundry room" bright and cheerful (lots of natural light) and all I would require is a tiny cot in the corner. Have iron, will travel!
That laundry room is larger than the first two apartments I lived in. Martha loves vintage linens and has the means to collect them and treat them appropriately. Good for her. If I hit it rich, I'll spend some of my money on a great way to house and expand my pottery collection.
Anyone who is "passionate about finely ironed linens" needs to find more hobbies, in my opinion.
what has the world come to.... we're interested in seeing martha's laundry room.
Yeah... um, If I had that kind of space...I would double my washer and dryer since the man of the house never moves his things through... ever.. But dang that is one boring room!! How about some color on the walls? It reminds me of the art lab i spent most of college, plain, boring, white and random vintage hardware strewn about.
Did the photographer intentionally leave the lights off to photograph the room? Expected more from the Martha!
There's just something kind of sad about a person who always has to have the finest and best of everything in order to be happy.
I'm of two minds here. One, I'd be terrified to work for Martha, because anyone who puts that much into her linens strikes me as a perfectionistic nightmare. Two, I'd really love to have the resources to have a laundry room just the way I like it (mine would NOT have three ironong boards, though!).
The lighting in the photos is designed to prevent us from seeing the dust bunnies in the corners.
thats ridiculous that one person needs all of that crap! lol. I love Martha and think she is extremely talented, but this is a little crazy!
Looks more like an asylum to me!
I think some of you are taking this out of context: Martha's "home" is also very much a part of her business, photo shoots are a near daily occurence, and the volume of linens etc. are by no means meant to be replicated by us mere mortals. I believe she shows us these snapshots of her "life" so we can pick and choose the things that suit us.
That said, she is known to be a bit difficult to work with, and I did giggle at the "sweatshop" remarks. It's a good thing!
Okay, I admit I got a little buzz from looking at all that stuff...But, that pressing machine and all that stuff in the basement??..I have to wonder what Martha makes with her dryer lint?? Dog toys? If Martha came and saw my basement laundry setup, which I like just fine..she would, as my mother would say "Have kittens!"
This is institutional in scale. And makes sense for Martha given the integration between her business empire and her home life. What irks me is that it drives demand from wannabees who could never, ever justify this kind of set-up based on volume. Just send it out to a fine laundry.
i thought this was creepy looking too.
I like the padded table idea. Not that I do much ironing, ever.
I find this room repugnant and decadent and an excellent example of when one has more money than they know what to do with.
OK - I agree with all of these comments that this looks creepy because it's clearly not meant for a single homemaker to do daily chores. But... I have to say that, if you haven't tried it, you ought to iron your sheets at least once to know how much nicer they can feel. I do it once in a while - same with the linen napkins. It's a definite luxury. My mom actually ironed all of our sheets, napkins and handtowels weekly when I was a kid.
Padded ironing tables lead to padded cells.
Martha! Martha! Martha!
Sorry. For some reason I couldn't help myself.
What's wrong with having servants or a large manor and matching social functions?
It's like being the lord in Remains of the Day. I won't be able to achieve it, but maybe one day one of my descendants will inherit it on our backs and their kids can blow it a generation later.
That's human economics at its best!
I can only imagine how good it smells too. I freshly pressed anything always makes me feel good. I don't know why, but it's a wonderful feeling!
I wonder if this wasn't inspired the the laundry room in the prison she stayed in?
I mean...
I wonder if this room wasn't inspired by the laundry room in the prison she stayed in?
:P
I agree a bit about this being an over-the-top setup. The electric mangle, however, is an incredible appliance if you have never used one. They are quite commonplace in European community laundries. In fact, they replace machine-drying of linens. Just feed them through the heated mangle and they come out dried and pressed, in one step!
Martha Stewart's houses are not so much homes as the scenery for all of her media empire. Obviously no normal person needs that kind of laundry room -- but consider that these photos appear in a blog on a site that promotes several magazines, product lines, a television show, radio show, etc. Both the linens laundered in this room and the room itself are basically sets and dressings.
Maybe part of the conceit of the Martha Stewart brand is that we can emulate her when in fact we cannot. But I find that she actually has a nice mix of accessible housekeeping advice (i.e. how to fold a fitted sheet) and what is, to be crude, housekeeping porn.
People iron sheets?
It is always interesting to see how nasty and judgmental commenters are when it comes to martha stewart. People are so over-the-top about her.
I wish those first two pictures weren't so dark. It is really hard to see anything.
I understand Martha's Maine home is called Skylands, and was built by Edsel Ford. I think it's obvious this laundry room is original to the house. I have seen pictures of her kitchen with literally a wall of old fashioned refrigerators that she left in place, but I don't think they work, as she has installed a pair or more of modern refrigerators.
martha runs her home kitchens and laundry rooms like commercial kitchens and laundry rooms. Skylands is a mini-hotel [15 guestrooms] and probably generates alot of laundry.
Why are people such Martha haters? Her entire business is about homemaking for crying out loud. What do people expect?
I can't think of anything nicer than crisp ironed bedsheets (and yes - I do iron all my bedding all the time). Maybe its a US thing because you all just have dryers (and doesn't the per capita emissions of the US show it too), but the rest of the world have always used clothes maidens to dry everything - when I was a child, we even had a hand operated mangle in the garden that I used before putting things on the line to dry.
Well done laundry is a thing of beauty that really makes the everyday feel luxurious - especially if you use old fashioned lavander water to iron with.
"See how the eye adjusts to grandeur?"
I see! I see!
The room's a bit wow, but I like the idea of the drying cabinet, albeit in a smaller scale!