Oh gosh. This one took me a long time. Mostly, I just couldn't wrap my mind around what I wanted to do with this bland space. This is how it looked when we moved in.
It has the same cabinets as the ones in the kitchen. It also has washer and dryer hook ups that were installed backwards. I know that's a weird thing to say. However, having the utility sink on the left, then the dryer and then the washer is silly. Rather than changing it around, I decided to just work with what's there. I prefer front loaders but that proved to be problematic. You might be able to spot it in the photo above. There's an angled wall right in front of where the washer goes.
Do you see how the washing machine door opens? It's that way because the washer is usually on the left. In order to load it, I either had to reach over the top of the washer door (opening it to it's maximum left almost reaching the angled wall) or I had to stand in the corner, open the washer door and then slide my back down the wall. It was super silly. Unloading it was even worse. Thankfully, there was a second washer/dryer hookup in the basement that I was planning on fixing up for my mother-in-law so I bought a new washer that had a reversible door and brought this one down to her space.
Yay! No more being stuck in the corner trying to pull wet clothes out! After this, I just put together a makeshift structure to hold a tabletop for me to fold clothes on. It was in rough shape, but it served it's purpose.
I left it this way for about a year while trying to decide how to make the space feel better. When I took down the desk in the kitchen, I ended up with extra upper cabinets so I brought them up here. It seemed the best way to reuse them.
It took me a while to come up with the right arrangement. I didn't have enough to span the length of the wall so I decided I'd put some shelves in the empty space there.
The next thing I wanted to tackle was the countertop. I wanted the same across the sink and on top of the machines. I started with the sink.
Once I got the new counter in, I realized it was too light next to the sink. Also, I hate the faucet. The sink is huge and that faucet is so tiny. I couldn't properly rinse the sink. I paused at this point and started looking at peel and stick wallpaper. I was so excited when I found the right one! It's so pretty!
I also bought a great faucet with a pull down sprayer.
Adding trim around all the edges just finished it off so nicely. Later on, I added even more trim. I basically trimmed around all of the wallpaper.
Next, I added shelves and more peel and stick wallpaper to the entire back wall.
It was looking great except for the horrid florescent light fixture.
I wasn't too sure what I'd find when I pulled it down so I put it off for a bit, just like with many other parts of this laundry room update. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great.
The wiring was coming through that middle hole (which isn't fully centered in the room). There was no junction box up there. The hole to the left of that must have been a mistake. The other two holes are where the screws holding up the florescent light came through. I had to cut a new hole and install a junction box in order to put a different light in. I bought a retrofit (or old build) one that has plastic wings that come out to hold it in place when you tighten the screws. It can only hold a maximum of 6 lbs but that's fine because I have been holding on to an old brass chandelier for years with no place for it...until now! I pulled it out of the box it's been in and weighed it to be sure. It is only 3.5 lbs, along with the light bulbs. It had some cute shades that came with it that brought the weight up to 6 lbs. I wasn't sure if I was going to use them or not.
The shades are adorable but it dimmed the room down too much and I was uncomfortable with the weight being at it's max. All that was left was to patch the ceiling holes and finish up the trim.
I'm absolutely in love and keep going in there, turning on the light, and just standing there to stare at it. I've been promised some antique pieces from various family members to add to the decor and I can't wait to bring them home to fill the shelves and the tops of the cabinets. It's even more special when I can add things to my home that came from loved ones. I think about them every time I see the items. It's like mini visits.
This room took way too long but I'm glad I took my time because it turned out great. It's been on my mind for so long, I'm not sure what I'm going to work on next. I guess I'll start putting my tools away. Now where's my tape measure?
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