…excuse the pun, but I’ve been looking through corny laundry-room signs (my favorite: “In this house, ‘normal’ is just a washing machine setting”)!
I’ve been thinking a lot about laundry rooms lately. (This may be due to the fact that I have a preschooler and a laundry closet rather than a room.) I’m one of those weird people who doesn’t actually mind doing laundry, but it gets monotonous even for me. Now that I’m dream-designing my (nonexistent) laundry room, I’m getting excited just seeing how much you can do to make a constant chore more enjoyable!
Start off with a fun hamper. That way, when you go to empty it (the first step of the oft-dreaded laundry process) you’ll have something to make you smile. Try these:
A sleek, modern choice. Bonus: its bored-through surface allows air to circulate in the dirty laundry so you don’t need to hold your breath while emptying week-old sweat socks.
The compact, unusual shape of this one, combined with its integrated cotton bag and unique metal “cage” and lid give it a clean, unobtrusive look.
This may look like a typical laundry basket but its (faux) leather construction (available in red or orange as well) and internal divider make it both practical and classy. (Who knew a laundry basket could be considered classy?)
Next, get a great laundry sink for delicates and you may never go to a dry cleaner again! You don’t need a lot of room; some are compact and can even be wall-mounted.
If you do have room for a freestanding laundry sink (lucky you!), pick one that’s stable, fairly deep, and a comfortable height for you to use.
If you have a pet, these sinks can also be used to bathe him or her easily without soaking your bathroom floor or pulling out the hose.
Add a handy, multi-directional use laundry faucet and you have a great hand-wash station!
This one is wall-mounted and double-jointed so that you can turn it any way you need while you’re using it.
Add bright colors, accessories, and wall hangings. Since the laundry room is somewhere that you hang out constantly but company doesn’t usually venture in, feel free to make it as fun as possible! Paint the walls a bold and/or lively color to wake you up, find an unusual shelf or cabinet to store your laundry paraphernalia on or in, and adorn your walls with humorous laundry-related signs and sayings (I get a kick out of these, so if you’ve seen any original ones, please let me know!). Get an interesting drying rack and/or ironing board (I hate to iron but love using my brightly-patterned ironing board) to liven up mundane day-to-day laundry tasks.
And of course, don’t forget to reward yourself when you’re done! Sometimes the neatly folded stacks of clothes is just not enough. Enjoy some of your favorite chocolate and pat yourself on the back for doing the laundry without complaining!
I really enjoyed this article and laughed through it, happy to hear I’m not the only one that feels like laundry has taken over life-and not exactly enjoying it. You had some really good ideas, that I’d like to try to implement. I could really use one of those giant Laundry Sinks and liked those funky laundry hampers.