41 Laundry Room Ideas That Are Anything But Boring
Photo: Margaret Wright Design: Megan Molten
It’s time to stop letting your laundry area become an afterthought and start giving it love—and taking a look at these creative laundry room ideas will certainly have you feeling inspired to revamp your space. As designer Kristine Renee says, “Laundry rooms don’t need to look sterile and simply utilitarian anymore.” The Sacramento, California–based cofounder of Design Alchemy adds, “Significant time is spent in the laundry room so it’s important to make the space comfortable and inviting.”
Whether you’re a small-space dweller, have a laundry room that doubles as a mudroom, are looking for a simple DIY hack, or are about to complete a remodel or makeover, the small laundry room ideas below, which come from 30 different interior design pros, are sure to inspire you. You’re well on your way to designing the best laundry room on the block.
How can I make my laundry room attractive?
Laundry day is bound to be much more enjoyable when your space suits your style. There are many simple ways to ensure that your laundry room shines, whether you opt to hire a pro or take a DIY approach. Renee offers a few design ideas, which include experimenting with decorative lighting, fun wallpaper, cabinet colors, or backsplash to add instant flair. You’ll see all of these elements in the laundry room ideas shown here. You’ll also want to keep storage solutions top of mind to corral clutter—grab plenty of hangers, baskets, and hampers—and hang up some artwork or lay down a rug for coziness, Renee adds.
When it comes to picking a paint color or wallpaper pattern, note that the hues you select for your space are entirely your decision. “Play with colors and patterns that make you happy,” Hillery advises. “Diagonal patterns [are best] for those who want to be energized to work in the room and softer lines [are best] for those who like the routine of folding and find it almost therapeutic.”
How to turn a room into a laundry room?
You’ll need plumbing, venting, and electrical, but from there, you can certainly turn a small closet or other unused space into a laundry area. “If you are starting from scratch, consider building storage and counters that coincide with your washer and dryer placement,” Watts suggests. “If you are using an existing room see if you can repurpose closets, storage and layouts that already are in place.” When space allows, Molten is partial to a side by side washer dryer arrangement and adds that windows, if possible, are always ideal.
How to design your own laundry room
When designing a laundry room, it’s important to keep your personal preferences top of mind. Consider factors such as whether you will need a drying rack, prefer folding clothes in the laundry room or elsewhere, are looking for a way to tuck away hampers, and more, Renee suggests. You will want to base your laundry room design around these types of habits.
How do you make a laundry room look luxurious?
To make your laundry area look as luxurious as possible, pay attention to small details, says Kishani Perera, who operates an eponymous firm in Los Angeles. She states, “Why not create a mini destination with a vibe that diminishes the dreaded chore of doing laundry?” Look for interesting tiles, wallpapers, cabinet colors, and the like, she says. Keep in mind that the right lighting will also work wonders. Susan Yeley, the founder of Susan Yeley Homes in Bloomington, Indiana, recommends a mix of sconces, pendant lights, and lamps as needed. Don’t forget about custom elements, either. “Custom design features like built-in step stools and concealed drying racks can enhance both the aesthetics and functionality, exuding a sense of understated luxury,” Blakely says.
How to remodel a small laundry room?
When remodeling a small or narrow laundry room, Janelle Blakely, the founder of Blakely Interior Design in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, suggests opting for a stacking washing machine and dryer to make the most of your square footage. Be sure to install a base cabinet with a countertop too, she says, noting that this will come in handy when it’s time to fold clothes. “Utilize every inch with a built-in vertical drying rack and foldaway ironing board,” the designer adds. Don’t be afraid to add special touches, either. “A great way to add design elements and elevate a small space is to focus on the floor and the ceiling,” says Nadia Watts, the founder of Nadia Watts Interior Design in Denver. “When you have limited square feet you can splurge on finishes such as tile, flooring and wall coverings.”
How do you brighten a small laundry room?
Not all laundry rooms feature windows, but you can remedy the situation with artificial solutions, Renee shares. “In addition to bright can lighting, we incorporate decorative light fixtures with separate switches whenever possible to integrate personality into the space,” she explains. “Who doesn't love a moody space?”
Where should a washer and dryer be placed in a small house?
If your home is lacking in square footage, you may wish to set up a laundry area nearby the bedrooms, Hanley notes, adding, “If you don't have an actual room that would allow for this, is there a closet in the hallway that could convert to a washer/dryer closet?”
Opting for a stacked washer and dryer is the best bet for those living in a small space. “There are great European stackable units on the market that are smaller in scale, and fit well in compact spaces, allowing you to incorporate your laundry into the main area of your home,” Renee comments.
What shouldn’t go in a laundry room?
Make note that you will want to steer clear of certain types of wall coverings as you map out your laundry room design. “Fragile wallpaper like silk or grasscloth is not suitable for areas where damp clothing might hang to dry, as it can easily be damaged by moisture,” Blakely says. Be mindful to not crowd your laundry area with too many extras—there is such a thing as too much laundry room decor. “Avoid placing too many decorative items or non-essential objects that can make the space feel cramped and disorganized,” says Kimberly Harrison, the founder of Kimberley Harrison Interiors in Lafayette, California. Additionally, she says, do not store holiday decorations, sports equipment, or other collections in the laundry room. Harrison adds that if you plan to house cleaning supplies in the laundry room, you will want to ensure that they are kept away from heat sources and appliances.
Below, find 41 laundry room ideas.
Play with contrast
When it came to this laundry room, Houston, Texas, designer Benjamin Johnston of Benjamin Johnston Design opted for “a fresh look with high contrast” thanks to the mix of Calacatta black flooring from Thorntree Slate's Stones & More Collection and cabinetry painted in Sherwin Williams' Pussywillow. The farmhouse sink is by Blanco.
Paint a soothing color
Cabinets painted in Farrow & Ball Oval Room Blue add a soothing touch to this laundry room that Clara Jung of Banner Day Interiors designed. The Berkeley, California, designer adorned the walls with Zia’s Moroccan zellige tile in Casablanca.
Opt for unique flooring
This black-and-white laundry room by Emilie Munroe of San Francisco’s Studio Munroe features floor and backsplash tile from Ann Sacks and two different Benjamin Moore hues: The walls are coated in the off-white color Calm, while Day’s End adds a moody touch to the cabinets.
Include unique lighting
Sara Hillery of Sara Hillery Design in Richmond painted the walls of this laundry room in Sherwin Williams Waterscape and then wallpapered the ceiling using Schumacher’s cheerful Cosmos pattern. A vintage Arthur Umanoff light in green makes for an ideal finishing touch in this colorful space.
Include artwork
This color-filled laundry room is anything but ordinary: Gucci paper adds a pop of pattern to the walls, while the paint color on the ceiling—Benjamin Moore Hale Navy—draws the eye upward. Designer Kristen Peña of K Interiors in San Francisco was also able to integrate a vintage woven bench into the space.
Find places to add pep
Lisa Gilmore of Lisa Gilmore Design in St. Petersburg, Florida, wallpapered the ceiling of this otherwise simple laundry space using Taylor Murphy’s playful Palma print. A Roman shade made from Schumacher’s Citrus Garden fabric adds another dose of pep.
Highlight metallic accents
Mindy Gayer of Mindy Gayer Design in Costa Mesa, California, wove touches of brass into this laundry room, installing a brass faucet by Cal Faucets and a bronze and aged brass pendant from Visual Comfort. The cabinetry is Farrow & Ball Down Pipe.
Choose a fun wallpaper
Elizabeth Drake, who operates an eponymous firm in Winnetka, Illinois, installed a chicken-printed wallpaper by GP & J Baker in this spacious laundry room, which also features open shelving and slate floor tiles from Artistic Tile.
Contrast solids and patterns
Rosanna Bassford of Eggshell Home in Cupertino, California, paired blue (Benjamin Moore Slate Teal) and yellow in this contemporary laundry room, using paper from Wallshoppe to add a dose of pattern to the space.
Go the custom route
Richmond designer Ashley Hanley completed a gut renovation of this joint laundry room and mudroom. As a result of this laundry room makeover, the space now features custom-designed and built cabinetry and a porcelain tile floor. Hanley selected two Farrow & Ball paint colors for the space; opting for Wimborne White on the walls and Light Blue on the trim and cabinets to “create a soothing palate that greets you as you enter and exit the home.”
Paint the cabinets green
Liz Goldberg of CarolynLeona in Raleigh, North Carolina, paired Sherwin Williams White Sand and Greenfield in this small laundry area. Brass hardware from Rejuvenation pops against the green cabinets.
Include vintage finds
Maren Baker of Maren Baker Design in Boise, Idaho, introduced a botanical element into this laundry room in the form of Cole & Son wallpaper depicting a lily print. A vintage milk glass flush mount fixture from the Czech Republic, sourced via 1stDibs, complements the floral design present.
Brighten with fun wallpaper
Casey Putney of Putney House Interiors in St. Augustine, Florida, brightened up this laundry room with Thibaut Corneila wallpaper in aqua and blue, along with Kith Cabinetry in the color Haze. The laundry room door is Benjamin Moore White Dove and the quartz countertops are by Cambria Ironsbridge.
Mix high and low
Sarah Fischer of Sarah and Sons in Yarmouth, Maine, mixed high and low in this laundry room, which features peel-and-stick vinyl floor tile from The Home Depot, Brewster Spinney Toile Wallpaper, and a rug from New England Loom. The wicker laundry baskets are both from Target.
Geometric flooring adds interest
Ashley Clarke of sKout Interior Design in Costa Mesa, California, added intrigue to this laundry room floor using tile from Mission Tile West. The cabinetry is painted in Benjamin Moore Simply White.
Checkerboards add a classic touch
Nicole Bhow Maier, who operates Threshold Design in Alameda, California, designed a checkerboard floor pattern in this laundry room, using a combination of Bianco Carrara and Nero Marquina tumbled marble tiles. The textured wall covering is the Jocelyn Grey Faux Fabric from Brewster’s Pacifica Collection. Handmade bins from the Etsy shop Woodman’s Pal adorn the open shelving above the sink.
Include pets in the design
This laundry room—which also serves as a dog feeding station and the homeowners’ main entrance—is full of vibrance. “The homeowner wanted it to be whimsical as well as practical,” says Annie Elliott of Annie Elliott Design in Washington, DC. Elliott used Jane Churchill’s Hot Dogs wallpaper and paired it with red penny-tile flooring from Waterworks.
Implement subway tiles
Betsy Wentz of Betsy Wentz Interior Design in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, paired white subway tile from Sonoma Tilemakers with Kenzzi Paloma flooring in this laundry room, which also features an industrial-style sink from Rejuvenation.
Open shelving adds easy storage
Design Atelier’s Melanie Millner features easy-to-replicate laundry room storage solutions in the form of open shelving and woven baskets and clear jars from The Container Store, which can be used to store everything from linens to cleaning supplies. The Atlanta designer covered the beadboard walls and cabinetry in Benjamin Moore Silver Song and installed black sconces by Visual Comfort.
Highlight light wood
While renovating her own home, Abbie Naber of A. Naber Design in San Diego chose to keep the laundry room bright and light, given that the space includes just one window. “I wanted to experiment with a lighter wood—something other than white oak—so we played with an AraucoPly and made some finger cutouts,” Naber explains. The flooring is Concrete Collaborative Hexagon Stringer Tile in Acacia.
Refinish sinks
Bethany Adams of Bethany Adams Interiors in Louisville, Kentucky, designed her own basement laundry room to also serve as a mudroom and main entrance to the home. She dressed up the concrete floors with a large sisal rug, refinished her sinks in a daffodil color and had them reinstalled, and painted the ceiling Benjamin Moore Palladian Blue, coating the window frames and exposed pipes in the paint brand’s Delightful Yellow. The lemon-printed wallpaper is from Serena & Lily.
Use art for a pop of color
Danielle Slutzky of Flair Design House in Newport Beach, California, designed an eclectic laundry space featuring flooring from Moroccan Mosaic & Tile House, a mudcloth wall covering from Pelican Prints’ Global Style Collection via Wallquest, and colorful artwork that the homeowner salvaged from a San Francisco dumpster in the 1990s and has displayed in each of their laundry rooms since.
Lean into a neutral look
This neutral laundry room by Leah Ashley of Living With Leah includes terra-cotta pavers from a local tile company, Clay Imports, “to give the room durability and add to the European farmhouse feel,” notes the Austin designer. Caeserstone quartz countertops add function to the space, while the custom cabinets are covered with Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige. “I love the timeless warmth that the paint color gives the space,” Ashley says.
Create a transitional space
Heather Bernstein of HKB Interior Design in Kentfield, California, designed this transitional laundry room which includes a Da Vinci Marble backsplash and countertop, bronze cabinet pulls by Rocky Mountain Hardware, and floor tiling by Tabarka Studio, on top of which lies a vintage Khorassan rug.
Reimagine classic aesthetic
Shea McGee of Studio McGee says that the floors in this laundry room are one of her favorite elements of the entire home and were made using limestone and Calacatta marble. “It feels classic and fresh all at the same time,” the Draper, Utah–based designer says. “Through a clever combination or color palette, you can easily elevate a standard square tile aesthetic.” McGee says that she deliberately left the space underneath the farmhouse sink open in order to hang a café curtain. “A lot of traditional design elements are back in trend right now, and I’m loving the sense of nostalgia that comes with them.”
Design around a favorite wallpaper
Ashley Macuga of Collected Interiors in San Carlos, California, drew upon her New Orleans heritage when selecting Rebecca Atwood’s Marbled Ferns wallpaper for this laundry room. “It was the first selection we made of the laundry room, and was the inspiration for all that followed,” she says. She then selected a Visual Comfort pendant light to add depth and warmth, and explains that the custom flooring from Los Angeles–based Arto Brick was “deeply functional, as there are a lot of dirty cleats that are washed in the farmhouse sink.”
Go bold
Jennifer Barron of Jennifer Barron Interiors made a bold statement in this laundry room using Pierre Frey’s Arty wallpaper alongside Farrow & Ball Studio Green. “I loved that it looked black, but if you really look closely, it is dark green, just like the dark green in the wallpaper,” the Houston-based Barron shares. She selected a simple mosaic floor tile so as not to detract from the busy patterns present and tucked away cleaning supplies in a basket from Pottery Barn.
Design a multipurpose space
Maggie Griffin of Maggie Griffin Design in Gainsville, Georgia, designed this laundry room to serve as a multipurpose space. “At once a laundry space, a homework space, and a small home office, the room is spacious but so functional,” she says. Having plenty of storage solutions was also essential. Open shelving houses books, vases, and beyond.
Include dynamic and high-quality materials
In this laundry room, Courtnay Tartt Elias of Creative Tonic in Houston opted for a combination of Western Brick laid in a herringbone pattern as well as sleek green subway tile by Daltile. “Amping up the interest in a small laundry room by focusing on high-quality, dynamic materials is always a win,” she says. Elias selected Phillip Jeffries' Tease wallpaper to play off the herringbone on the floor and kept function top of mind by adding a built-in ironing station to the wall.
Pick an accent color
A serene mix of blues and purples shines in this laundry area by Kara Adam of Kara Adam Interiors in Dallas. The striped wallpaper is Aux Abris, flooring is from Ann Sacks, and the cabinets are painted in Farrow & Ball Cook's Blue.
Match floor and wall tiles
Renee mixed together green, black, and white in this laundry space, using Sherwin Williams Rockwood Dark Green as her paint color and introducing two variations of Ann Sacks’s Kodra tile on the wall and floor.
Wallpaper the ceiling
Molten is all about saying yes to the unexpected when it comes to laundry room design. “Go bold with your color choices when you remodel a laundry room,” she says. “Lately, we’ve been applying wallpaper to the ceiling and adding color to the cabinetry.” She explains that the ceiling is the prime position for wallpaper given that cabinetry will demand most of the available wall space.
Implement a wow factor
When designing this laundry room, Amanda Leigh looked to the kitchen for inspiration. “We strived to replicate the kitchen’s wow factor and bring in the dark cabinetry and statement marble to establish a sense of elegance and sophistication in the space,” explains the managing partner at House of Rolison, based in Los Angeles. Leigh is all about making a statement in even the most utilitarian of rooms. “Do not be scared to go bold,” she says. “We aimed for all elements to marry and introduce a sense of drama and depth while ensuring functionality.”
Choose floors the mask dirt and grime
Watts wanted to design this laundry space to feel like a respite. As she says, “Why can’t the laundry room be a beautiful and functional space?” Watts’ laundry room design contains floor to ceiling cabinetry to conceal clutter behind closed doors, given that storage space was paramount. When it came to the laundry room flooring, Watts decided that brick, which easily hides dirt, was the perfect choice for this laundry room and mudroom combo. “The brick adds warmth and texture to the small space,” the designer reflects.
Look to nature for inspiration
Harrison wanted to make the most of a small laundry room’s footprint while celebrating elegant, playful design. “We carefully selected each material to bring a harmonious blend of nature-inspired elegance, texture, and sophistication to the room,” says the designer. The wallpaper by Sarah Von Dreele is meant to resemble storm clouds over the ocean, while the string light fixture from Bone Simple Design boasts “a striking horizon line effect.”
Plan a number of uses for the space
This room is more than just a laundry space, it’s also a gift-wrapping station, a spot to sew, and a place to wash the family dog. “She wanted it to be a happy room,” Suzanne Hall says of her client. As such, she opted for a Zak and Fox wall covering featuring monkeys, selecting a mustard colorway that “gave such a vintage energy back to the space.” The senior designer at Alice Lane Interior Design in Draper, Utah, adds, “We wanted the space to be functional and one of a kind.” Don’t stop with just a washer dryer if a multipurpose area is calling your name.
Create a powder room hybrid
Blakely designed this laundry room so that it also functions as a powder room. The cane doors in the space are both functional and fun, allowing for proper air flow while adding texture and privacy. There’s nothing wrong with going colorful in this type of space. “The energetic coral cabinet color and palm wallpaper honor the vibrancy and playfulness of this beach house; both colors interweave throughout the home,” Blakely says.
Layer texture
“This laundry room design is a fan favorite for being unexpected, layered with texture, whimsy, and color, and at the same time grounded in simplicity and practicality,” Yeley says. She sourced the tile backsplash from Good Press Ceramics and adorned the neutral cabinetry with hardware from Sietto.
Match the home’s architecture
“In this laundry room, we were trying to create a mood that felt consistent with the architecture of this classic Spanish home,” Perera says. Compact in size and lacking in natural light, this laundry room design boasts custom carved door panels, tiles, and a wall that draws the eyes up. “We wanted to create brightness, interest, and impact through the details,” Perera says.
Maximize space
This space that Molten designed is a laundry room and mudroom combo, a setup that is common in historic houses within her home city of Charleston. “Maximizing the use of this space in these rooms is essential,” Molten says, explaining that she therefore placed the laundry machines on one side of the room and installed cubbies and cabinetry offering storage solutions aplenty on the other. She covered them in the soothing paint color Benjamin Moore Van Courtland Blue. “We added the lucite hardware and Visual Comfort lights to bring in a touch of modernity,” the designer notes.
Include favorite colors
Given that her client’s favorite color is red, Rachel Cannon, the founder of Rachel Cannon Limited in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, wanted to incorporate the bold hue into the homeowner’s laundry area in some way—and she was able to do so by using a pepper Schumacher wallpaper. “Wallpaper will always make a laundry room feel luxurious,” she says.
Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
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