I didn’t start with an ugly laundry room by any means, but when you spend SO much time in a space, I figured there wasn’t any reason not to make it more enjoyable!
Here is the laundry room as it was when we moved in. We were lucky to have a tile floor, cabinets and even a chandelier but it was just a little boring.
As I mentioned in our Home Goals post I also wanted to make it more functional, it goes without saying that with three kids I do quite a bit of laundry.
Here is the AFTER {I won’t make you scroll down!}
Its hard to see in the photos since the room has no natural light, but I painted the walls a pale blue color. I used my ironing board cover {Homegoods, purchased several years ago} for inspiration.
To give the ironing board a place to hang, I painted a wood plaque from Michael’s, drilled holes and installed cabinets knobs {similar} to hold the ironing board up. We did the same thing {except with hooks} for my Mom’s Craft Room.
The biggest need the room had– after painting it reduced the “boring” factor –was I wanted a large space to fold and sort laundry. Front loaders have disadvantages, but they make up for it by having all that great space on the top.
I measured the room wall to wall and purchased cabinet grade plywood which Home Depot cut to size. I attached simple wood molding to each wall to support the shelf.
I also used a molding strip along the back wall, as well as installing some inexpensive 12″ metal shelf brackets {I don’t have a picture} underneath so the wood would have some extra support in the middle.
I tacked a piece of molding across the front of the board so it looked a little prettier, and don’t be mistaken by the cleanliness of these pictures, the shelf is put to daily use with piles of laundry!
On the other side of the room, I hung some IKEA brackets {the come black, but I spray painted them matte silver, similar ones are HERE if you don’t live near an IKEA} with some standard small ready-made shelves from Home Depot.
Underneath, I added a some decorative hooks {also spray painted, similar HERE} to use to hang things to air dry. These shelves hold the laundry once its been folded and is waiting to be put away.
I added a few decorative touches, like this little sign which seemed appropriate for jobs that can get boring very quickly!
In between the washer and dryer I placed a small shelf like this one and filled it with some wire baskets {available HERE}. I will admit that this room is so much more functional now, but it also makes doing laundry a little nicer…and since the laundry doesn’t seem to end, I think it was worth the effort!
{Update: we’ve moved! You can see the progress in our new home HERE}
XO,
i love this! I want to add cabinets and counter tops to my laundry room and this makes it look so easy. I also think you have the washer/dryer that I’m planning on buying 🙂
Thanks Heather–it really was easy, especially with the helpful Home Depot guys to cut the wood (and I appreciated that they recommended the extra brackets underneath the large counter too). Good luck! My washer/dryer has worked out really well, I think Christy has the same ones? I have been happy with them so good luck!
Amy
Lovely room…great job!
Thanks Beth, I appreciate it!
it looks fabulous. i’m having trouble figuring out how to add storage above the W&D since i have pedestals!
Thanks and yes–thats a tough one and part of the reason I didn’t get pedestals though actually loading the washer and dryer would be much easier with them. Good luck figuring it out, I am sure there is a way, can you build shelves on another wall maybe? Thanks for visiting,
Amy
It looks so calm and peaceful! I have 5 children so I totally understand wanting a nice pretty room to do laundry in. 🙂 One of our goals this year is to finally finish our laundry room.
Blessings,
KrisAnte@ourthriftynestof7
I know you said the paint was a pale blue color…do you know the name?
Thanks 🙂
The paint is Windy Sky By Benjamin Moore–it was a great blue (and blues can be tricky!), I had it mixed at Home Depot though. Good luck with your laundry room!
Amy
Amazing job! I’m sure the shelf on top of the washer and dryer changes the way you do laundry! I have a laundry “nook” so a shelf isn’t in the cards for me, but I’m filing this away for someday when I have a whole room dedicated to laundry!
Thanks Ashley–It does make life easier! Thanks for visiting 🙂
Amy
The counter is BRILLIANT! The perfect addition to a beautiful room! (It almost inspires me to throw a load in the washer right now . . . 🙂
Turned out fantastic! I love all of the little details ~ the extra molding, the tray, the basket, the frame and quote. So lovely!
Gorgeous! I too am currently working on a laundry room makeover so this is great inspiration. Thanks for sharing!
Wow! Beautiful job, Amy!
Joined you from Thrifty Decor Chick and love your laundry room – it’s so pretty! I also love the paint color you used and wanted you to know I featured it on my blog today. Thanks for the inspiration and have a great day! 🙂
Thank you! That is great news. You have a great site!
Amy
I was searching for DIY shelves for the laundry room and came across your blog- absolutely love it! I wanted to try making the ironing board hanger so I went to Home Depot to buy cabinet knobs, but they didn’t have the greatest selection so I wondering where you purchased yours! Thanks for your inspiring projects!
Hi Ellen, I purchased the knobs at Home Depot in the cabinet hardware section. I got them last summer? If they don’t have them, I think Lowe’s has a great selection as well. I have ordered knobs off ETSY and EBAY in the past, if all else fails you might try there! Good luck 🙂
Amy
I love it! Where did you get the Laundry detergent box?
Stephanie,
I got it at Homegoods, years ago…unfortunately!
Beautiful room! Is the shelf removable?
Thanks! Yes the shelf removes, it just rests on the support wood and brackets. Now i need to build one in my new house 🙂
Have a great day!
Amy
I’ve been looking everywhere for a clear tutorial on how to add a dang counter over a front loading w/d set! THANKS!
You wrote in the above comment that the countertop is just sitting on the support wood and metal brackets. Have you come across a situation where you may have put something heavy (box or something) on the front part of the counter and the counter fell off?? That is my worry because our laundry room is in the mudroom which connects our garage to our house. We would probably load/unload lots of things in this room.. and the counter would be the #1 spot for putting heavy things as we are coming in. But I don’t want to nail in the counter to the support wood in case we ever need to access the shut off valves that are under the counter. Do you have any ideas? I was thinking about cutting out a portion of the counter and adding hinges so that you could lift up a section of the counter should you need access.
That is an interesting situation. Our laundry room was upstairs so other then a basket of laundry we didn’t really put anything heavy on it. I would think using more support brackets–I only used two so use as many as you feel safe with, and using fairly thick board would make it able to hold more weight. I think a hinge is also a great idea, mine was set up to slide out as necessary but that would also work well. Good luck with your project!
Amy
I just love what you did. I have been planning on doing this “one day” and I just bought a new washer and dryer being delivered tomorrow and came home and googled shelves over front loaders and found this. We need to add cabinets above our shelf. Was wondering if you added those or if they were already there. Any suggestions on where to find them?
Thanks! Cant wait to follow your blog.
Hi Sarah! How exciting to get a new washer/dryer! The shelves did come with my home. I would probably say to look at the big box stores–like Home Depot or Lowe’s for stock cabinets. You can paint them and hang them yourselves? I think that would be the cheapest route. I have also seen cabinets at Habitat Restore if you have one of those nearby! Good luck and be sure to come back and let us know how your laundry room turned out!
Thanks,
Amy
Thank you so much for sharing this! I have been wanting to utilize the wasted space between our washer, dryer and cabinets and this is exactly what I was looking for! P.S. I have that same laundry bucket (the metal one with handles on each side) 🙂
Thanks for the ideas! I’m redoing the laundry room for my wife’s birthday and this was very inspiring.
Mark–you are a GREAT husband! I should say your wife is lucky since she gets a madeover laundry room! So glad you got some ideas. Good luck with the project and be sure to wish your wife a happy birthday from us 🙂
I absolutely live the counter top. I am going to do the exact same thing in my laundry room. What did you use on top of the plywood to make it smooth and shiny?
Hello There. I found your weblog using msn. This is a really well written article.
I’ll be sure to bookmark it and come back to learn more of your useful info.
Thank you for the post. I will definitely return.
Hi-
Just found your blog. I love your laundry room and your blog –
Your attention to detail is perfect. I am a detail person as well.
Have a great day.
Rose
I am researching how to make a shelf above the washer dryer without purchasing an expensive granite top. Did you paint your counter? If so, what type of paint did you use. It looks AMAZing!!!
Hi Marianne! Thank you–honestly I just used plain old off the shelf white paint! I don’t remember exactly what brand, most likely Home Depot. You could also use a clear coat to seal it if you wanted a tougher finish but if you just stack clothes you should be fine with just paint. Good luck with your project! XO, Amy
What is the color and brand of that spray paint
Thank you for your quick response! Weekend project here we come:) Thanks for your inspiration. Your new home is a dream as well!