Smart, busy homeowners are creating order out of chaos with laundry rooms that serve not only to clean clothes but as command centrals for their entire household. Intelligent design and advanced appliances are making this prospect more attractive every day. Here are our favorite laundry room hacks and perks.
Laundry Rooms That Do Double-Duty
Main level laundry rooms conveniently located just off the kitchen and side entry of the home are perfectly placed to be more than just a laundry room. Not only can these spaces work simultaneously as mud rooms for removing shoes and hanging coats, they can provide a convenient space to store pet paraphernalia. If you have a utility sink in the room, it can be used as a pet bathing station, as well.
Re-Think Your Sink?
Speaking of sinks, while you have the advantage of a plumbed room you may wish to consider reconfiguring your utility sink to have even more—utility! Farmhouse and traditional utility sinks are great for bathing smaller pets, but creating an area the combines the best of both worlds can make these mundane chores less cumbersome.
In-Room Folding Zone
Make the commitment to sit less and keep your laundry baskets out of the family room by installing a folding shelf either above your washer/dryer combo or on an adjacent wall. Then employ a routine that has the family retrieving their folded laundry items as they return home and after they have removed shoes and hung their totes and backpacks.
Another Man’s Treasure
Think of all the things we find in pockets and at the bottom of the washer drum every day. Create your own system of managing and even re-purposing those found items. This example is brought to you from the design mind of Bob Vila. Whether it’s a dollar bill, some coins, a paper receipt, or stray crayon, this premise of a hand-crafted organizer can be adapted to fit the vibe of any laundry room. And some of what you find could even become your fund for good—perhaps this is where you can collect your SPCA donation?
Hang in There!
This aspect can be as simple as adding a pole between two cabinets or above your folding area, or you can plan for a more integrated organization system with racks of varying heights that alternate with baskets and shelves. As we trend away from traditional ironing, these smart ways to hang and treat laundry while damp—for less wrinkles—become all the more essential.
Steam-Powered Ingenuity
Once you have one, you will probably wonder how you ever lived without it! These slim closet-like appliances do so much in just a small space. Standing laundry sanitizer/steam units are becoming the gold standard in clever, cleaner homes. Especially useful for homes with allergy or asthma suffers, these units refresh clothes, like business and formal attire, that typically need just that in between more formal cleanings. They help reduce odors and are great for sanitizing kids’ plush toys. Some models even have a gentle dry feature that preserves pant creases and are Smart Wi-Fi enabled!
