Before and After: This Laundry Is Now the Exact Opposite of Basic and Boring
This laundry room was pretty nice—lovely daylight, pleasant neutrals, plenty of storage, and a few beautiful accessories. But after a dozen years of basically ignoring it, the room’s owners were more than ready for a makeover.
Here’s the scoop on the issues with the laundry room:
Our laundry room is central to our house, situated off of our living room and right next to our bedroom. It is the way we access the backyard, and since we have two dogs, we are in and out of that room several times a day. It was perfectly sound and functional, but a room I never thought about much, which is reflected in the dull wall color and floor tile that I kept for 12 years (chosen by the previous owners) and the junk that kept piling up on top of the small cabinet.
It’s funny how sometimes the rooms that get the most use get the least attention—they’re no longer “seen,” just passed through endlessly. It’s always exciting when someone is able to convert one of those constantly used spaces into a room they actually enjoy.
Kara, creator of the gorgeous Huskmilk Pottery, has transformed this neglected spot into a bright, bold space with a ton of lovely details and plenty of practicality. The room is full of beautiful neutrals—black, cream, white, wood, wicker, and stainless—that are invigorated by that stunning tile floor. It was a bold move to add such a saturated tone, and the brave choice paid off gorgeously. It must be wonderful to be greeted by that glorious blue every time you come through the door, and the tile adds a spa-like vibe to laundry chores, while also being a practical choice for a mudroom.
All those neutrals deserve another mention, are they really are very well chosen and combined. The tan and cream candles and linens stored on the shelves are beautiful in their own right, and the various woods enhance each other wonderfully. In a rare turn of events, the impetus behind this remodel was an heirloom:
My boyfriend inherited an antique cabinet that belonged to his grandmother, and since our house is on the small side, the only logical place for it was the laundry room. It is so special to him, and had been lovingly restored by his father, so it seemed a bit disrespectful to put it in such a miserable space. Our washer and dryer were 19 years old, and while they worked well, they were incredibly loud. Since the room is next to our living room and bedroom, doing laundry was more of a nuisance than doing laundry should be. An upgrade was in order.
It was nice to replace the washer and dryer before we needed to. It gave me plenty of time to do research and wait for the machines we wanted to go on sale, rather than scrambling to replace them when they finally broke down, possibly spending more than we wanted to spend.
Again, this was a very nice laundry room! It all works, but it could definitely be improved upon.
Installing a wooden shelf on top of the washer and dryer was so clever, creating a roomy work surface for folding and more. The jar of detergent keeps the laundry essential at the ready and looking its best, while the plants enliven the workroom.
A mirror makes the most of the windowed door, bouncing light beautifully for stain inspection, general brightness, and even photoshoots:
I don’t think I would do anything differently, which is a first! I’m so glad we went with front-loading machines because we really needed the countertop for various reasons. I make ceramics and needed a permanent spot to set up and take photos, and since this room gets the best light in the house, the countertop really comes in handy. I love the bright white walls and the blue penny tile is just about the most gorgeous thing I have ever seen. I’m so glad I took a risk and went with a bold color for the floor.
Here’s a closer look at the old tiles; they’re perfectly fine, unoffensive, and in decent shape—way better than a lot of laundry room floors. But they’re decades-old, and probably have some issues that aren’t showing up in the photo.
Here’s what it took to take this room from ignored to gorgeous:
We did all the work ourselves and the final cost (not including the washer and dryer) was $863 for paint, shelving, the light fixture, tile and materials, butcher block countertop, and a new rug. The work was done in bits and pieces over several weekends, but I spent one day painting the walls white, and two days installing the tile. We were fortunate that the existing tile floor was in perfect condition, level and free of cracks, so we tiled right over it, making sure the back door had enough clearance to open since the new floor would be slightly higher. My boyfriend installed the new light fixture, replacing the old florescent one, put up the shelves, and trimmed 6 inches off of the countertop.
Not many floors can be described as “luscious,” but this floor is one of them. The various hues of blue are fascinating, and the overall look is luxurious—but not out of place in a laundry room. Kara was able to afford them thanks to some dedicated price monitoring:
You’ve heard it a million times, but when considering any upgrade to your home, take your time. Shopping around to find the best prices was important to me, but I also know when something is worthy of a splurge. Many sites use dynamic pricing so the price can change from one day to the next. I scored a great price on the tile by checking back every day for almost two weeks. Also, don’t be afraid to try something new. I have never installed tile before, and chose a difficult tile to work with, but it turned out great. I also created a mood board to make sure everything I wanted was going to look good together and to make sure we would be happy with the final result. We are thrilled and doing laundry is an absolute pleasure now.
Laundry is a pleasure? That’s the dream!
Thank you, Kara of the gorgeous Huskmilk Pottery!