A Boring Laundry Room Transforms into a Sleek, Storage-Packed Space (for $250!)
ABOUT THIS BEFORE & AFTER
HOME TYPE: House
PROJECT TYPE: Laundry Room
STYLE: Modern, Scandinavian
SKILL LEVEL: DIY
RENTAL FRIENDLY: No
Sometimes a necessary home project inspires an entire room makeover, like how Ryo Ogawa (@neko_builds) turned needing to buy a new washer and dryer into a chance to transform his laundry room. “There was nothing special about the space,” he says. “Since we had to replace the washer and dryer, I decided to give the room a quick facelift,” Ryo adds.
Before he took on this DIY, the room didn’t have much going for it beyond housing the laundry machines. “It is a very small room with just a washer and dryer, featuring the original unstable shelves from the early ’90s,” Ryo says.
He managed to give the 35-square-foot space a total refresh for $250.
Repurpose leftover materials from past DIY projects.
“I used leftover materials from other larger projects to remodel this laundry room, such as a wood slat panel and white oak plywood,” Ryo explains.
First, he got rid of what was in the laundry room and prepped it for a new look. “I removed the existing shelving and painted the walls to freshen things up,” he says. Ryo used BEHR’s Ultra Pure White to create a blank slate.
With the new washer and dryer in the laundry room, he added some useful counterspace. “I built a laundry shelf over the new washer and dryer using 3/4-inch white oak plywood,” Ryo says. While it provides a new place to fold clothes or store items, he says he would use a thicker material for the shelves if he were to do a similar project again.
Continuing with the modern, clean lines, he added some interest with a wall treatment that pulls double-duty. “I also placed a wood slat panel as a backsplash, which helps conceal the wiring and pipes,” Ryo says.
Add functional storage.
“Because it is such a small space, it was challenging to add storage without making it look cluttered and closed off,” Ryo says. A Scandi and organic modern approach with clean lines helped him achieve the goal of storage that wasn’t too bulky.
“I installed a simple new upper cabinet sourced from a local hardware store and added a floating shelf next to it,” he says. Plus, Ryo found that hanging the cabinet was actually much easier than he’d expected it to be.
In fact, all the projects went smoothly. “It was my first time remodeling the laundry room, but everything was simple and straightforward,” he says.
The final design of the laundry room does exactly what Ryo hoped it would. “I’m happy that I was able to store clutter out of sight in such a limited space, making the room feel clean and updated,” he says.
Inspired? Submit your own project here.
Further Reading
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