Before & After: A $200 Makeover Adds Color and Cheer to a Laundry Room
Like death and taxes, laundry is one of the near inescapable drudgeries of modern life. Kate figured if she has to spend time on it, she should do it in a space that doesn’t totally bum her out. With a few trips to Target, some leftover paint and oh-so-limited free time, she created a laundry room that injects a little cheer into a chore.
From Kate: I think “boring and builder basic” sums up our old laundry room up nicely! Oh, and cluttered. SO. MUCH. CLUTTER. When we moved into our home three years ago, this space always felt sterile and dreary.
With two kids under five, we are CONSTANTLY doing laundry, and I always dreaded spending any time in this space because it felt so boring and impersonal. I decided to give this space a colorful, cheerful makeover so that maybe — just maybe — I wouldn’t completely dread folding our towels and socks day in and day out.
I work full time outside the home, so I tackled this project in spurts at night after my children were asleep. From start to finish, the project took me several months (with plenty of stops and starts!). I was able to give the laundry room a makeover for under $200, as I took advantage of leftover paint, as well as accessories and other items that I already owned. A few trips to Target and HomeGoods helped me keep costs in check as well. I didn’t bring in any outside help — I’m saving contractors for the day when I have a bigger budget and can create a swoon-worthy, high-end laundry room. Thankfully I didn’t experience any major setbacks, but I will say that I had a harder time working with the vinyl peel-and-stick tile than I had originally anticipated.
The entire room is so much more colorful now, and just an all-around more pleasant place to be. I love it. My favorite parts of the room are the faux slate countertops and the flooring. While the peel-and-stick tile was a bit tricky to work with, it was a real game changer for the room. As for any changes I’d make, I wouldn’t mind choosing a different cabinet color. I do love yellow and the reason I used this particular paint is because it was leftover from another project, but perhaps in the future I’ll repaint them in a blue or green hue.
Kate’s words of wisdom: My best advice is to stick with projects that are simple — like painting cabinets projects (no tools required!) or using peel-and-stick wallpaper to line the back of your cabinets for an added pop of pattern and color. With these kinds of projects, it’s also fairly easy to make adjustments if you make a mistake. That’s my kind of project!
Thank you, Kate! You can see more on Kate’s blog, Kate Decorates.