Closet Laundry Makeover
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Part of moving from our large home in the Southwest to our small home in the Pacific Northwest was giving up my wonderful, huge laundry room. Now - well - I just have a closet. What I learned was that the large laundry room never was necessary.
We Super Downsized
Our previous laundry room: large area with storage cabinets, counters and space for my extra refrigerator.
Moving to our new “cottage” meant I would no longer have the large laundry room. I needed to seriously downsize. Plus, the new room required a lot of work to make it serve the functions I needed.
With a bit of paint, some electric work, an added shelf, and re-organizing, I created the perfect space in my new “tiny laundry.” And the best part? I no longer have a huge laundry room to clean! Plus I am not able to “accumulate.”
The entire room (the room that contains the laundry closet) was overhauled - you can see that process in other posts.
Before the make-over, the closet laundry had accordion doors. I HATE accordion doors because of the potential for damaged fingers. Those had to go first thing - no pinching fingers for me!
The photo also shows the flooring partially removed. You can see that awful project here.
You can see a cord hanging from the ceiling on the left side of the photo. There was a light near the ceiling of the closet, and it plugged into an outlet behind the washing machine. The cord hung down in my way. When the project was totally finished, I had a professional electrician change that set-up. He installed a new outlet in the wall on the left side of the closet for the light to plug into, and he installed a switch for turning on the light. Much nicer. Quick and easy fix.
As with all of our projects, we were renovating many areas at the same time. At this point, our sparkly ceiling had been removed, the walls and ceiling were painted, and the floors were being removed - all while I fixed up the laundry closet. You can see the decorative shelf in the third photo below. I am short, so this shelf is very handy for items I frequently use.
After the doors were off, I cleaned and painted the shelves and interior of the closet. Just the painting alone created a cleaner, brighter feeling.
The following photo shows shows my husband removing the flooring that was under the washer and dryer.
We had to move things to work on an area, then move them back. Later, when floors were installed, we had to remove everything again. It is very unhandy to live in a house you are renovating! But - it all worked out in the end.
Besides the odd electric cord, there was a cloth wrapped around the faucet, and a strange storage bin on the wall. It was plastic and did not add any charm :-) Both were removed. We had never noticed a leak, but they must have had the rag there for some reason. We called in a plumber to check things out. He inspected the set-up, tightened the faucet a bit, and assured us that all was well. Always have potential leaks inspected by a professional.
Once the shelves and walls were painted, I bought bins and containers for organizing my laundry items. It was light and bright! There was a small hole in the wall on the left of the washer that still needed to be repaired (and the electrician and plumber had not yet done their work in the photo below).
The floor was installed after I had completed painting the laundry closet. Once the floors were in, my husband installed the baseboard (after I found the time to get the baseboards painted).
We also added a decorative shelf to hold little odds and ends. The plant adds “life” to the area.
A bar was added for drying clothes. I also love the storage bar with hooks for dust mop, broom, etc.
Once the closet laundry was completed, we added a curtain. I love it! When wee ones are around, I don’t have to worry about pinched fingers. I have a light, bright, cheery laundry area, and the laundry closet blends nicely into the room.
We LOVE our bright, beautiful, new laundry area!
PROJECT SAFETY TIP: Always bring in professional plumbers and electricians.
Read my latest article to help get motivated :-)
Give yourself the gift of freedom. Exchange the endless tidying up of your home for hiking, sewing, crafting - or following your own true passions.
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