Thursday, February 4, 2010

The Laundry Room

I’ll be completely honest.
It was primarily the laundry room that sold me on the house in Hooterville .
The laundry room and its unlimited potential more than compensated for all of the other things I didn’t/don’t particularly like about the house.
For a laundry room, it’s GINORMOUS.
I forget the exact dimensions but it’s at least 14 feet x 14 feet!  It’s actually bigger than any of the 4 bedrooms, or the kitchen.
Believe me, I’m not complaining but I can’t help but wonder…
WHY would someone design a laundry room that is considerably larger than the bedrooms or kitchen?
Here’s what it looked like the day we looked at the house.  I loved the pretty back door. And I actually liked the vinyl tiles.  The black diamonds and aqua border in them would have worked perfectly with the color scheme I wanted to use.   But, unfortunately,  the tiles were in really, really bad shape.   Beyond salvageable so the floor was destined to be replaced.

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Three days after I finished painting the laundry room a cheery shade of aqua (Valspar “Aqua Frost”) we had “The Flood” and the paint peeled around the seam of the wallboard and near the floor where it got wet.  ::sigh::   Re-mudding the seam and repainting is on the “To Do” list.  (The hole in the wall is only temporary and was cut by the plumber so he can access the water pipes from the bathroom on the other side of the wall and install a sink for me in the laundry room. )

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Also on the “To Do” list is cabinets.  Lots and lots of white cabinets.  Definitely a cabinet to hide the hot water heater.
I plan to make the “sink wall” in the photo above the dog feeding station with a cabinet to hold the 40 pound bags of dog food I buy, a place to store the canned cat and dog food, and perhaps even one of those tiny  refrigerators for opened cans of pet food.  I’m even thinking about a small microwave  too, for taking  the chill off dog/cat food that has been refrigerated.  (Our pets are SO spoiled!)
The long wall below is actually 2 or 3 feet longer than the photo shows and I envision floor to ceiling cabinets running the entire length of the wall.

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Maybe something similar to these Closet Maid cabinets…

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To the right of the back door, I would like to have a place to sit down to put on shoes.

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I LOVE this idea!  Isn’t it great?!  Only I think I  would need a smaller/shorter version since my wall doesn’t look this long.  I already told my hubby I have dibs on one of the stall doors on the old barn he is going to tear down.

funkyjunkinteriors photo source:  Funky Junk Interiors

I’ve been told the electrical plugs on the window wall can be easily moved over (and dropped behind the washer/dryer)  so the washer/dryer can be centered under the window.  Once they  are centered, I would like upper and lower cabinets installed to the left and right.  I’m also trying decide what kind of window treatment I want to use.  I believe this room is also big enough to easily accommodate a table for folding clothes so I’m on the lookout for something with some character…maybe like a small farmhouse table. 

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If you have been visiting me for a while, you might remember some months ago I wrote a post where I was undecided if I should get  a front loading washer because of all the horror stories I had read about the high rate of mold issues in front loading machines. 
As you can see, I decided to try a (Samsung) front loader.  I’ve only done about 4 or 5 loads but, so far,  I am really liking it.  However,  I can already see that if I am not diligent in wiping it dry after the last wash, it will probably become moldy very quickly because there is quite a bit of water the collects in the detergent dispenser drawer and the rubber gasket around the door.  We’ll see…

So there’s a little peek at the laundry room.  
Obviously there is a LOT more work to be done here.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Shari! Oh, what a wonderful laundry room you have! It's huge!! I love that and it sounds like you've already gotten your plans ready to make it spectacular! Love the color you painted the walls and looks like there's lots of light in there too! I'm so excited for you!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia;)

Anonymous said...

Wow that is a big laundry room. Too bad you can't find out why they did make it so big. Maybe in the beginning it was another room of somekind. Can't wait to see what you do with it.

Willow

Jocelyn said...

Wow Shari! What a great laundry room. Is it possible that this room was a carport or porch before? Maybe they closed it in, and that is why it is so large. This is going to be a great inside storage area.

Jocelyn
http://justalittlesouthernhospitality.blogspot.com/

Patricia @ ButterYum said...

I just leave my washer door open so it can air dry between loads. It works well for me. I purchased the storage drawer bases, but that makes the washer top heavy and it tends to move all over the place. Someone told us to fill the drawer with sand to weight it down, so hubby put bags of water softener salt in there and it keeps the washer from moving much (but I lost use of that drawer).

Anyway, wish I had a huge laundry room like yours!

:)
ButterYum

Lisa said...

What a super great room! I cannot wait to see your dog feeding station. How great! My dogs are social eaters so I have to be in the room with them! They eat in my bedroom!! Enjoy your great room!
Hugs, Lisa

Pink Roses and Teacups said...

Hi Shari,

Love the laundry room color! Glad you like the washer/dryer. Can't wait to see it finished. I wish I had a room like that.

Debbie

Adrienne said...

Love your big laundry room! Do you think maybe it was meant to be a laundry/mudroom/storage area to come into from the farm? I love your ideas and can't wait to see more. ~Adrienne~

Lottie said...

Shari, I love the color you painted your laundry room. The cabinets will be GREAT for storage and I especially love your ideas for the pet feeding station. In fact, I may try to re-arrange my laundry room after reading your post. Putting in the sink and moving the electric plugs under the window are great improvements! I like the bench for storing shoes, too. May I make a suggestion? The little refrigerator is a great idea for keeping catfood cold, but why not put a medium size refrigerator in to keep drinks cold? Then, someone sweaty and dirty from working could come in the laundry room for a quick drink and not have to come into your clean kitchen just for cold water. (I hear Florida gets hot in the summer time:-)

mah said...

This is a wonderful laundry/mudroom. It is probably large because the people had a farm there and it made it much easier to keep the rest of the house clean. I would make sure that some the cabinets would hold robes, clean shoes,etc. so when you come in from working in the barns and with the horses you can slip out of the dirty clothes, throw them in the wash and slip on a robe or whatever and go take a shower. Boarding horses and having a farm is not always a clean, neat experience. I grew up right outside of Plant City and my father had cows and planted a garden and that was dirty work too. My mother would have been so happy to have had a room like yours. Good luck

Gwendolen Elaine said...

Maybe someone used it as a sewing room?It is certainly spacious,though.I love your wall paint, and I really like the stall door/coat rack thingy...so creative and useful...

Melanie@TheOldWhiteCottage said...

Great laundry room! I'm surprised to hear about the mold issue. My parents have had front loading machines for years and have never had a problem. I'm dying for my top loader to die so I can reconfigure with side loaders.