One Room Challenge Laundry Makeover Done!
We did it! Laundry Room makeover completed AND first time One Room Challenge conquered! I can now officially say it, especially since we have done many loads of laundry already in our newly renovated laundry room. Yes, it makes doing laundry not as painful because it's so pretty in here you guys.
Remember what our laundry room used to look like? This is it. Basic, closet size, builder’s laundry room.
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Here it is now after joining the 8-Week One Room Challenge - tada! Do stay on to read the laundry list of things we had to do to make this space over and get information on all sources used. (Did you see what I did there?)
FLOOR UPDATE
I stripped the old brown vinyl flooring and replaced it with a Peel and Stick Vinyl in a Marble Design and grouted it like a pro! I have never done either one and I have to say, I would do that again. What a difference already at this stage. By the way, don't mind my unpedicured feet in the shot, I thought I'd add it here to remind myself that this project was done during quarantine times, part of the reason I was able to find time to join this challenge to begin with.
WALL UPDATE
Our laundry room was a white canvas. We had this painted a year ago and used Extra White by Sherwin Williams. From my previous ORC Week 1 Blog , you'll see my inspiration behind our laundry room design. The walls need Wallpaper! A pretty color with a pretty pattern.
A quick segue way if you'll allow, I have to thank friends on Instagram that chimed in and suggested wallpaper companies they've worked with and they've used before. Thank you Anya of @heartthatbuiltme . I immediately fell in love with Livette's Wallpaper. They have an amazing collection of patterns. Even more amazing, you can customize the color! This way, you can create your own style and you won't see the same design and color in everyone's home. I immediately fell in love with the Grey Botanical Wildflower from their Modern Farmhouse Collection. This comes in both peel and stick and traditional wallpaper: I chose the peel and stick. Easy to apply, beautiful quality and such a wonderful company to work with, the trifecta!
For an added visual and layer, we added bead board that was capped with an angled wood strip. With this wall feature, we added caulking, sanding, and painting to our list of to dos.
CABINET ADDITION & HANG BAR
We added two pre fabricated cabinets and a hang bar to use for hangers. We bought a wood dowel that we cut to size and wood ends to hold the bar. Both pieces were sanded and painted in Repose Gray by Sherwin Williams that we already had. And as for the installation of cabinets, the entire family helped, all four of us in a small space.
Having a hang bar was on the must have list. I needed to make sure that I can hang clothes in hangers immediately after getting things out of the dryer. I also made sure I can reach it (short people problem).
A side note: All materials were all purchased from Lowe's , including the two brass knobs that we installed on the cabinets. Lowe's has a branch that is conveniently 10 minutes away from us. They offered curb side pick up which I took advantage of a few times.
TABLETOP
Another must! I can't tell you how many times I've had to fish out little clothing items from the side and back of the washer and dryer. So, my husband and I went to Lowe's (for the nth time), chose the wood and cut to size. Thank goodness they offered this service! For the wood tabletop support, we used 2x2s and screwed them in the studs. Make sure this is level.
I wanted to leave the tabletop in the same light wood finish to give the room some warmth but I also wanted something unexpected. I ended up getting the wall paper color matched the same green and painted the tabletop green. We also added a lip by attaching with wood glue a piece of wood trim that's 3/4 in size to get a more finished look.
THE SHELF PIECE TO HIDE THE HOSE BOX & ELECTRICAL OUTLET
Not sure what else to call this but this was unplanned. I needed to find out what I could do to hide the electrical outlet and hose connections. I didn't want them in plain sight. I think if I I left them as-is, I would constantly focus on them instead of the many other pretty things we did in this room. Anyone else like this?
Once again, I reached out to my followers on the gram asking for suggestions. They did not disappoint! There were many options sent but I have to thank my friend Heldy @lavenderrosehome for sending me Shelley @crazywonderfulblog's piece on what she did to hide the same two things. Isn't this genius?
So, three days before the reveal week of the ORC and since I had extra wood pieces left over from the table top, I decided to do the same thing that Shelley did to hide the same two things.
I measured how tall and how wide the two connecting pieces should be to make sure that I have the right coverage over the hose box and electrical outlet.
Now two days before the reveal, this T piece was sanded, primed, painted and nailed together. We ended up making an error along the way where we could not hide the incorrect nail punctures, one late night. Tip: Avoid husband and wife DIY projects when tired. Especially when you are both DIY novices. To correct this eye sore, I bought a 1/2 an inch wood trim and glued it over the top piece section and voila, what nail holes? Oh, and what hose box? What electrical outlet? I don't have them in my laundry! (wink)
CABINET KNOBS AS HANGING KNOBS
You can never have enough spaces to hang clothes on, so as a cute idea, I decided to put some round cabinet wood knobs on the wall where I have always wished was more useful.
What you need: Cabinet Knobs. I chose a natural wood finish that I painted the same custom green and I purchased two different sizes. You will also need Dry Wall Anchor, Screws and Hanger Bolts. Make sure these are all the same widths.
Instructions: Drill in your screw, hammer in the dry wall anchor, screw in the hanger bolt (sharp side in first) and attach your wood knobs. Easiest and cutest little add. It always makes me smile when I look at this round bobs.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST, DECOR
I needed pieces to warm up this room. So, I started to decorate with a piece that you can see even before you come in the laundry room. This reclaimed wood Growth Ruler from @aimeeweaverdesigns is the perfect wall decor in this skinny wall section we have! I got this idea from Kelly's @hartley_home laundry room makeover. She also had the perfect spot for this in her home!
Basket & Accent Rug are from World Market
The old lighting fixture had to be replaced with this stylish Drum Ceiling Mount fixture.
Vintage framed artwork found in our garage. This was in my to donate pile and I'm so glad we still had it!
White Large Serving Tray is part of the House of Margo Collection.
Vintage Honeypot brought the perfect wood tones in this room.
Vintage Glass Container has been unused and brought in here as a coin jar.
We hung lint bins on an empty wall in lieu of a garbage bin. This is a very small space and it helped keep things from crowding the floor.
So, there you have it folks, our laundry makeover was completed in eight weeks! I have to thank my husband, Andy. He was such a trooper during this entire project, he is the calm and collected between the two of us. One of us had to be, right? I also have to thank our neighbor, Aaron who is in construction. He let us borrow tools we needed and even offered to do things for us! If you've been thinking of giving your laundry room some TLC, I hope this inspires you. Thank you for reading!