We don't have a laundry room. It's likely one of the first things I will look for in any future homes, but in our little Riverwood Cape Home the laundry nook under the stairs serves us well. *cue the Harry Potter vibes* When we first saw the Zillow listing photos for this home the laundry area was a bit of an eyesore. There were curtains and boarder paper and just a bit of an all-around bummer to look at. But, then we decided to buy it and the curtains were quite literally the first things to go - followed very closely by the boarder paper.
Thank you to Samsung for sponsoring this post.
So, to give an idea of our plans for the space I created a mood board to show colors and textures and style. Last year, when we were painting the whole house we went ahead and freshened up the space with white paint, hung a shelf, placed a few hooks and done! Of course, our Samsung washer and dryer set fit cozy in the nook and although the house came with a washer and dryer there was no chance of us getting rid of our Samsung set.
All that to say, we've been tolerating the space and it was mostly definitely better than before but it just didn't feel quite right. So, because we're always thinking up house projects we decided to add it to the list and make it a beautiful space, not just a tolerable one.
A Little Pre-Ownership View of the Laundry Nook
That picture just kills me!
Everything about it is bad. From the sign to the curtains . . . *cue laughing face emoji*. But as you can see the nook is just right out there in the open hallway and now that we've opened up the entire floor plan of the downstairs you can see it from the kitchen and island.
When we moved in, we talked about lots of different options for it: should we build doors to cover the space? Should we build cabinets around the washer and dryer? Should we try to reconfigure the space into the office closet next to it? Ultimately, we decided "no" to any structural laundry nook overhauls and doors just don't work in the short hallway.
It may be an unpopular opinion but I honestly don't mind seeing my washer and dryer from the kitchen. Our Samsung washer and dryer are actually really sleek and I saw no reason to hide them. Everyone does laundry. No need to hide it!
Our Grand Plans + Mood Board
So, like I mentioned previously, we made some changes to the space to get it the same color as the rest of the house (Clare Paint in Whipped). We hung some hooks, moved our Samsung Washer and Dryer into the space, and hung a shelf for detergent. At least it's not an eyesore anymore. But now we want to take it to the next level and finish out the space. Finesse it.
So here's what we're planning:
Like I mentioned, we're not going to build cabinetry around the washer/dryer but we are going to add a long walnut shelf that will span the back of the nook and then add a smaller walnut shelf above it. We wanted to bring in the exact same walnut that we used on our kitchen shelves since it's visible from the kitchen. So we ordered a beautiful piece of walnut from a local lumber yard and Lee's been finishing, staining, and cutting it to the right dimensions.
I wanted to add a bit more intrigue to the space and the white paint just looked a little lost so we're going to paint the back wall a lovely grey/green shade. Down the length of the long shelf, I'm planning on putting these wire baskets to hold our dryer balls, dryer sheets, and clothes pins then have a lovely little row of my Laundress detergents just above our Samsung washer.
Knowing me, a plant or two will end up on the smaller shelf and for the side hooks we wanted to keep it functional but beautiful so I ordered this amazing 3-hook from June Home Supply, and we'll add walnut pegs to the other side for our keys.
A few other details will be adding new Craftsman-style squared trim around the opening to match the rest of the house and adding a white dowel rod right up close to the top of the opening as an extra, hidden rack for hanging clothes to dry.
Fortunately, just a few steps away is a hall closet that we keep cleaning supplies in so our laundry space can remain uncluttered unless it's laundry day.
We'll share the full reveal of the laundry nook space in about three weeks but follow along on Instagram for some behind the scenes looks!