Laundry rooms are where it's at. No, not really, but they should be as much time as we seems to spending them. Just because they're not the most exciting room in the home should we treat them as such?! What if we organized them, decorated them, and treated them as an extension of our home? Would it make laundry more enticing and exciting? Truth is, probably not. But it could potentially make it less dreadful. Maybe. But at least you would know where everything is!
My recent client believed in just this. She dreaded going into her laundry room, and made a conscious effort to avoid it at any cost. Would you truly blame her? When discussing the issues with the room, she said that there wasn't anything that was working to her liking. The client wanted a peaceful and serene space that felt less visually chaotic, and more inviting. And this space was anything but.
My solution to keeping the space tranquil yet functional was simple. Remove all items from the shelving and surrounding areas, and bring in light colored baskets to contain, but also hide the unsightly necessities. Also but removing all items, only what was pertinent to the area would return.
So we got to work. We took everything out. Every single thing. And we made a glorious mess! Once all was removed and said mess was made, we began the sorting and editing process, grouping like with like, removing items that didn't 'go', and trashing items that were deemed useless or beyond repair. Of all items, the biggest offender was that of her husband's. I have always wondering what it is with husbands and their misplaced stuff? Anyways, we sorted and had a plan of how to return the items back into the laundry room in a clear and concise way.
The best way in this circumstance and budget set by the client, was to use the existing main shelf and supplement with labeled white baskets. This would help to camouflage the unsightly but necessary items, while maintaining order. We broke down the items into 6 main categories. 1 category = 1 basket + a basket for above the washer and dryer for easy access to the daily necessities. And by only adding back items into these categories, all the items in the space were necessary. All other items found a permanent home elsewhere. By the time we were finished, not an item was without a home, and the space was clean, organized and inviting. Just the way a laundry room was meant to be. And the client reported the laundry room was calming and peaceful to be in, but the laundry was still equally a dreaded chore!