42 Things in Your Laundry Room + Beautiful Decorating Ideas

42 Things in Your Laundry Room + Beautiful Decorating Ideas came about in two parts:  Part One – my desire to keep going on my various lists of 42 (more about that later), and Part Two – my lack of overwhelming delight in my own laundry room’s space.  Do you, too, have issues with your laundry room bringing you joy?

The above photo and accompanying photos are NOT my laundry room.  My laundry room, while a decent size, is a long dark hole.  And, because it’s a long, dark hole, taking a photo for this post is problematic, in fact, impossible!  When building our new house, after the fire that destroyed our old house, reading architectural plans wasn’t a talent I possessed.  Our laundry room looked just fine on paper, but if I had to do it all over again, I’d make a few changes.

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What would I change in my laundry room?   Here’s a list:

1. The width of our laundry room.  It’s long and narrow and while Charlie can get in it with his scooter, he can’t turn around.  He has to back up.  Since he does the laundry in our family (yep; I’m lucky like that!), I’d make sure the laundry room was a good size so that he could handle it easier.
2. I’d add a larger window.  The window in our current laundry is small.  It’s about 18″ x 24″ inches, lengthwise.  And, it’s on the north side of the house blocked from the sun by the garage on the west side of our house.  So, the room tends to be dark, even with overhead lighting!  It makes it hard to see the spots when pre-treating laundry!
3. I’d add a closet inside the laundry room to store our long-handled cleaning implements, like our vacuum cleaner, broom, mop, ironing board, etc.  Instead, we have to store our long-handled cleaning supplies in our hall closet.  Needless to say, we don’t put coats, etc. in our hall closet!
4. I’d put some kind of rod up (probably inside the closet I don’t have) so that clothes could drip dry.  The clothes and things we drip dry, we hang in our garage because we don’t have space in our decent-sized laundry room.

The laundry room in the photo above has a great window!  Large and full of bright light, it is the polar opposite of my dark, narrow laundry room!  It even has houseplants!  If I put houseplants in my laundry room, even by the window, they would not fare well.

For those new visitors to my blog, welcome!  I create lists of 42 for household inventory purposes and there are now 55 of these lists on this blog.  I do this because we lost our home in a fire and recreating a home inventory list for our homeowner’s insurance claim was a difficult process.  In fact, it was nine long, hard months of working nights and weekends, adding things to my endless Excel spreadsheet.  If you missed the story about the loss of our home in the 2007 Southern California wildfires, here’s a link to the first of the series:  Any Way the Wind Blows.

My hope is that readers will find these lists useful and/or share them with people they know who have had a catastrophic loss.  I encourage you to pin this post and the others to your Pinterest boards for easy reference!

Disclosure:  This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.  Click here to read my full disclosure policy.  By the way, I provide links to all these items to make your life easier.  Part of completing a household inventory list for an insurance claim involves providing the “cost new” of the item listed as well as its “replacement cost.”

So how do you start a household inventory project in your laundry room or any room?  If you’ve suffered a catastrophic loss, it takes a bit of visualization.  So, with that in mind, you mentally “step” into the room, look to your left and start describing what you see.  Let’s use this same photo as a “practice” session.  Moving left to right around the space, let’s list what we see:

1. Free-standing wooden clothes rack with shelf
2. Wooden hangers
3. Hand towels (on the hangers)
4. Large round wicker basket (on clothes rack’s shelf)
5. White bath towel (inside the basket)
6. Area rug
7. Front-loading washing machine
8. Brown bath towels (inside dryer)
9. Square wicker basket
10. Piece of wood spanning the top of the dryer over to the 4-drawer cabinet
11. More brown hand towels or washcloths (on top of the dryer)
12. Several empty clear glass bottles (on top of the dryer)
13. Two soap dispensers (on top of the dryer)
14. Six rolls of toilet paper (on top of the dryer)
15. Wall decor that appears to be a chalkboard
16. Small green succulent plant in a light gray pot (on top of the dryer)
17. A narrow wooden side table with a shelf turned upside down (on the dryer)
18. Three white and beige bath towels (on the upside-down shelf)
19. A rectangle woven basket (on the upside-down shelf)
20. Unknown stuff in the basket
21. Two square-ish woven baskets (on the upside-down shelf)
22. Unknown contents in the two baskets
23. Medium-sized “Mother-in-Law’s Tongue” plant in a pot
24. A wooden step stool (on the floor)
25. Round two-toned white and beige woven basket (on the step stool)
26. Unknown contents in the basket
27. Two bottles of laundry products (on the floor)
28. Four-drawer chest
29. Contents in the four drawers
30. Large round woven basket with handles (on the floor)
31. Large houseplant in a square pot (inside the basket)
32. Window blinds
33. White wooden bench (under the window)
34. Round woven basket (under the bench)

That’s a lot of stuff for a small space!  When you add the things that are out of sight in this space (items inside the baskets and four-drawer chest), you can see how quickly the things in your laundry room can exceed 42!

Above is a photo of a sleek modern utilitarian laundry room space.  What I like about this room is its simplicity plus its many storage areas, making it easier to keep neat and tidy.  On the left are two cabinets, one shorter and the other taller.  Depending on the depth of that taller cabinet, it looks to me that you could store your taller cleaning tools in that space – maybe not your vacuum cleaner (because of the weight), but definitely your broom, mop, and anything else with a long handle, even your ironing board.  That’s what I’m missing in my current laundry room!  And the smaller cabinet space is perfect for buckets and cleaning products.

There’s a nice counter area for folding clothes, a sink for soaking and pre-treating, drawers, and cubbies for storage and display.  Do you know what this space didn’t have before I started editing this photo?  It didn’t have any decorative art!  So, I added the sign that says “Open All Night, Laundry Room, Wash-Dry-Fold” and gave this space a bit of a farmhouse vibe!  And guess what?  I’ve created a freebie for you – a small bundle of laundry-inspired signs that you can print at home!

Click here to download your freebie:  12 Free Laundry Room Illustrations to Print at Home.  You can print them, frame them, or decoupage them on a piece of wood to decorate your space!

42 Things in Your Laundry Room

Are you working on your own home inventory project, whether for personal use or as the result of a homeowner’s insurance claim?  I’ve created an eBook to help you see it through.  The Complete Book of Lists: Room-by-Room Checklists for Your Household Inventory Project combines the 55 lists on this blog plus 20 new lists and rolls them up into one eBook with 75 different home inventory checklists – all for the low price of $9.99!

Want the checklists?

Here’s the list of 42 Things in Your Laundry Room that you may already have right now:

1. Washer
2. Dryer
3. Washer and dryer pedestals
4. Washer and dryer covers
5. Laundry cart
6. Laundry hamper
7. Drying rack
8. Laundry bin sorter
9. Plastic laundry baskets
10. Overdoor hanger, organizer
11. Folding clothes caddy
12. Rolling caddy
13. Wall-mounted shelves (wire or wood)
14. Storage tower
15. Ball cap washer
16. Mesh wash bags
17. Sneaker washer and dryer bag
18. Curtains, shades, valance, blinds
19. Curtain rods and brackets
20. Lighting and light bulbs
21. Clothesline, clothespins
22. Clothesline pulleys, spreaders
23. Hangers
24. Lint roller, lint comb, lint brush
25. Throw rug, area rug, floor mat
26. Sweater dryer
27. Wall-mounted baskets
28. Laundry soap
29. Laundry pre-treat and stain remover
30. Fabric softener, dryer sheets
31. Storage baskets, bins, boxes
32. Storage canisters
33. Photos, artwork, posters
34. Decorative décor
35. Iron
36. Ironing board
37. Fabric finish and spray starch
38. Dryer lint brush
39. Table, chair, stool
40. Hand soap, paper towels
41. Trash can
42. Telephone

Plus other things you store in your laundry room, like a microwave, for example.  I used to have a microwave in my laundry room!  Yep – a microwave!  It’s a long story for another time, but the short version is that it wouldn’t fit in my kitchen.  The point in sharing this tidbit with you is that your laundry doesn’t always have just stuff associated with a laundry room.

I also want to point out that I didn’t include a sink, counters, cabinets, etc. in the list above on purpose.  That’s because, unless these items are free-standing, they are included (for insurance purposes) under the “dwelling” portion of your homeowner’s insurance policy and not under the “personal property,” i.e., your contents.

Beautiful Decorating Ideas for Your Laundry Room

Oftentimes the laundry room is the last place in your house that you aspire to “decorate.”  A utility room at its basic definition, it is often located in garages or in small rooms and we just close the door so that friends and family don’t see it.  But if your space is the lead hallway into your home from your garage, quite often friends and family are always traipsing through it.  How often have you entered the home of a friend or family member through their garage only to walk through their laundry room?

So, I’ve rounded up a few beautiful laundry rooms from other bloggers to share with you as inspiration or aspiration of possibilities for making one of the most-used spaces in your home a little less utilitarian.  Plus, I’ve included some “mood boards” to give you a head start on your own laundry room makeover!

Source:  Lauren McBride

First up is Lauren McBride whose blog is the same name!  I love Lauren’s compact laundry room.  She has utilized every square inch of this small space to not only make it functional but make it modern transitional farmhouse chic!  The “chic” part is the feminine wallpaper; the “farmhouse” part is from the galvanized bins, the schoolhouse light fixture, the laundry sign, and the vintage washboard that can’t be seen from this photo’s angle (so visit her blog!); the modern transitional comes from the sleek white floating shelves above the washer/dryer, the lined wired baskets, and the wooden folding station on top of the washer/dryer.

Get Lauren’s Modern Farmhouse Look:

#1 – Lined Wired Basket || #2 – Black Powder-coated Steel “Laundry Co” Sign || #3 –  White Floating Shelf || #4 –  Galvanized Utility Bin || #5 – Black & White Floral Wallpaper || #6 – 3-Quart Glass Jar with Lid || #7 – Vintage Washboard Decor || #8 – Small Rustic Crate || #9 – Farmhouse Modern Industrial Light Fixture

Source:  Dear Lillie

Next up is Jenni from Dear Lillie Studio.  This beautiful laundry room refresh above is on her old blog, but here’s a link to her new blog’s home page, too.  Her floor tile is the focal point of this modern update.  Dramatic, it steals the show and makes this black & white room standout.  She continues the modern black & white theme with framed black & white photos, a hanging ironing board that’s not shown in this photo, plus touches of white accents like the ceramic potted plant.  She warms up this beautiful space with a tortoise-patterned bamboo shade, textural seagrass baskets, and water hyacinth baskets scattered about, and a wooden countertop folding station, also atop her washer/dryer.

Get Jenni’s Modern Black & White Look:

#1 – Black & White Floor Tile Decal || #2 – Bamboo Window Blinds || #3 – Matted Framed Black & White Art || #4 – Tall Wicker Basket || #5 – 3-Quart Glass Jar with Lid || #6 – Wood Clothes Pins || #7 – White Oval Seagrass Baskets with Chalkboard Label || #8 – White Ceramic Garden Flower Pots || #9 – Small Tabletop Folding Ironing Board || #10 – Small Square Seagrass Baskets || #11 – White Utility Sink Laundry Tub || #12 – Artificial Seeded Eucalyptus

Source:  Style at Home

Style at Home featured Jillian Harris’ knockout laundry room on their website.  A dreamy vision of soft robin’s egg blue, white, and gray with gold accents, this room speaks of modern glam.  Who wouldn’t want to do their laundry in such a beautiful space?  The large window above the farmhouse sink floods the space with light reflecting off the silver-colored washer and dryer.  The built-in cabinets envelop the washer and dryer using every inch of available space.  A fluffy white area rug rests at the foot of the farmhouse sink provides an unexpected glam vibe to the more retro gray and white patterned tile floor.  I say it all works; what do you say?

Get Jillian’s Modern Glam Look:

#1 – White Gooseneck Light Fixture || #2 – Mother of Pearl Shell Mosaic Tile || #3 – Gray and White Striped Curtain || #4 – Farmhouse Sink || #5 – Blue Glass Vases || #6 – Gray and White Tile Decals|| #7 – Large Woven Gray and White Storage Basket || #8 – Gray, White, and Gold Ceramic Pots || #9 – White Nesting Crates || #10 – Fluffy White Area Rug || #11 – Seagrass Storage Baskets || #12 – Gold-tone Drawer & Cabinet Pulls

Source:  Bless This Nest

Continuing the girlie glam look, Carissa at Bless This Nest has created a laundry room that reflects vintage farmhouse charm with a sprinkle of glam from the chandelier.  With galvanized accents everywhere, she brings warmth into the space with greenery, a jute runner, safety pin decor element hanging on the wall, and a ladder hung from the ceiling in pot rack-fashion that she found out thrifting one day, that she uses to dry clothes.  Genius!  Be sure to check out her lovely blog for more farmhouse charm!

Get Carissa’s Farmhouse Glam Look:

#1 – Oval Galvanized Tub || #2 – French Country Farmhouse Chandelier || #3 – Large Rustic Metal Safety Pin || #4 – Faux Lavender in Galvanized Pot || #5 – Galvanized Washboard || #6 – White Floating Shelves || #7 – White-Washed Wood Crate || #8 – Galvanized Wall Pocket Hanging Planter || #9 – Cast Iron Shelf Brackets || #10 – Chunky Jute Floor Runner || #11 –Lost Socks Sign || #12 – Plastic Laundry Basket || #13 – Retro Olive Bucket || #14 – Faux Eucalyptus Wreath || #15 – Whitewashed Windowpane Photo Frames

Here’s one more laundry room decorating and decor idea for you, although another blogger isn’t featured.  The above is a stock photo that I doctored up just a bit.  I doctored it up by adding one of my father’s contemporary abstract paintings, called Solar Flare, above the sink and then added a bit of farmhouse vibe by adding the “Laundry” sign above the washer and dryer.  The “Laundry” sign is one of the freebies included in the printable mini-eBook mentioned earlier, so if you didn’t download it earlier, scroll back towards the middle of this post and download it now!

I’m calling this look “Modern Navy.”  Decorating with navy and royal blue with a post-modern contemporary look is all the rage right now and in fact, has really never gone out of fashion, but has just been “on the back burner” for a while.  So using this photo as inspiration, I’ve created a mood board that’s all about a modern contemporary look in bright colors anchored by navy blue.

Which decor items in the mood board below would you choose to “glam” up the navy blue laundry room above?  I think I’d put all those random white dispenser bottles scattered over the counter on top of the tray with gold handles (#7 below).

And I’d probably put to faux hydrangeas (#3) in a vase on the counter, especially if the room didn’t have a window.  I’d put the floor runner (#5) in front of both the sink and the washer/dryer and hang the dark blue wooden panel with the hanging vase (#15) to the left of the “Laundry” sign.  Can you visualize that?

I might even substitute the “Laundry” sign with the “This is Us” sign (#12) and put a scattering of red butterflies running up the side of “Solar Flare.”  Well, heck, I’d probably use them all!  And, voila, the laundry room would be transformed!

Get the Modern Navy Look:

#1 – Solar Flare abstract painting || #2 – Navy Storage Baskets || #3 – Royal Blue Hydrangea Silk Flower Heads || #4 – Blue Eucalyptus Botanical Prints || #5 – Dark Blue Runner Rug || #6 – Rustic Wood Floating Shelves || #7 – Navy Tray with Gold Brass Handles || #8 – Navy & White Striped Laundry Basket || #9 – Navy Blue Glass Jars || #10 – Lace Crochet Basket || #11 – 3D Butterfly Wall Decals || #12 – This is Us Wooden Sign || #13 – Navy Blue Chandelier Print || #14 – Whitewashed Brick Wallpaper || #15 – Dark Blue Wood Panel Hanging Vase

Below is a photo made especially for your Pinterest board!  Will you do me a favor?  Would you share my post on social media?  The multiple pinnable images scattered throughout this post are for your Pinterest boards so that you can bookmark this post and come back to it later.  Thanks for sharing!

And don’t forget to sign up to receive my newsletter in your inbox.  As a thank you, I’ll send you a freebie!  Look for the sign-up boxes near the top of this post and again at the bottom of this post.  Thanks so much!

If you could remodel and have your dream-come-true laundry room, what would you do?  I’d love to hear your ideas because maybe they’d help me with my ideas.  Who knows; maybe a laundry room remodel is in my future!

Tootles,

Related Posts from Toot Sweet 4 Two’s Archives:

42 Cleaning Supplies and Equipment

42 Kitchen Basics for Your New Home

42 Must-Have Kitchen Utensils

You Might Also Like:

Seven Genium Ways to Bring Storage into a Small Laundry Room from Jen at Tatertots & Jello

15 Laundry Closet Storage Organization Ideas from Christine at Jar of Lemons

DIY Faux Brick Wall in Laundry Room from Heather at Beauty for Ashes