Dream Laundry Room Ideas
From: Cindy M
This is an idea for handling laundry/clothes that I wish I would have used when my kids were still at home. It would require a good-size laundry room but save a lot of bedroom space. There would be cubbies for everyone – socks, underwear, t-shirts, jeans, anything foldable would go in the cubbies – being folded straight out of the dryer. This would eliminate the need for dressers in the bedroom and the space they would take up. Hanging clothes could either go on a rack in the laundry room if space allows, or in the bedroom closets.
I have to admit this would be my dream laundry room! Since my laundry room barely has room for me stand in I dream of this type of a laundry room everyday! LOL Tawra
My dream laundry room would have an eight foot long and four foot deep table that is the perfect height to fold my clothes on easily with the cubbies and rods above it to place things as I fold them. It also would have a place to keep the ironing board up all the time with a rod and cubbies by it to hang the clothes on. Last but not least it would have a rack to hang all those things like dirty dish rags or towels which need to dry before you dump them in the hamper.
To be honest I love laundry so much I wouldn’t mind dedicating one whole floor to a laundry room. I wonder if more people would enjoy doing it if they didn’t have to do it all in a little 5×3 closet all the time. Cooking and doing laundry are two of the main “have to do” things done in a home and yet they always make theses little tiny rooms to do it in but we create these bathrooms that are so big you could play tennis in them.
I mean how much room do you need to sit on a toilet or stand at a sink to wash your face??? They give you an 8 foot vanity just to brush your hair and put on make up and often don’t give you even one foot of space to fold clothes.
They even are now giving you an area in the bathroom so you can have a couch to sit and read on. I’m sorry but I can think of much more pleasant places I would rather read then laying and looking at a toilet that 4 male members of my family just used. Makes no sense to me. Although if you are a mom with 4 little ones under the age of 5 that might be your only place to relax. : ) : )
Jill
I read this and realized how blessed I really am. I too have a small laundry room, but it’s right off the kitchen and with a huge closet just to the right of the machines. So I’m able to hang and sort all my clothes right there, and what a timesaver it is!
Also, your comment about the bathrooms really made me giggle. Our early 70s ranch has two tiny bathrooms; my husband always gripes about them, and yet, I have always thought they were just fine for their purpose. And even with my 5 year old, I don’t want to spend that much extra time in there!
Thanks for the reminder in this post!
This does sound like a great system. The main thing would be the discipline to use the system. Discipline is the key ingredient for any system.
I don’t have a whole room to put our family’s clothing but I had my husband build floor to ceiling shelves outside our one and only bathroom for all the kids clothes. I don’t think I will ever allow clothing in their rooms, I have heard too many parents complain about clothes all over bedroom floors.
With a queen size bed, fibro and nerve damage in my arms folding sheets is an almost always no go.
Now I fold or roll the sheets top and bottom separately and put them inside the pillow case that matches them. extra pillow case goes in as well.
This saves my arm but room in my linen closet and everything is always together so no more running back for the missing item.
It also helps little ones learn to make their own beds or at least help by getting their own.
Years ago, my next door neighbour built an addition to her very small rural house. The addition was a larger bathroom, that would also house the laundry area. When it was done, the fixtures were very modest, but the sheer size of the room rivalled the living room. There was also a long counter area, and an upholstered chair in there. My neighbour was a very practical person, so this all seemed out of character for her. She admitted to us all when it was done, that she would sneak into the bathroom very early in the morning with an electric kettle, tea bag and mug, and a good book. Then she locked the door for about an hour before any of her four children were up and running for the day. It was the only place of solitude for her, carved out at the only time she could get it. Clever designing.
Jill, you just crack me up about your laundry room! but I must tell you that in our house growing up.. we only had one bathroom.. and there was Mom and 7 of us girls and our Dad. I remember my Mom saying that she couldn’t even get any peace and quiet in the bathroom cuz as soon as she sat down…. one of us would knock on the door cuz we needed to go too! LOL !
That is so the truth Linda. Love this cartoon picture of the mom in the bathroom with the door shut and a little hand is peeky out from under the door. I use to see hands and eyeballs trying to peek in the cracks. I imagine your never did get any peace and quiet. : )
When my dearly departed DH and I had our house built 11 years ago it was from my own floor plan. I have a “walk-in/laundry room/dressing room” closet. The room is 10′ long by 7′ wide. It has a 4′ metal shelved rack on the left that most of my clothes (used to be ours (sad sigh) but no longer) are folded and stored on. On the right are two clothes rods. A 7′ long rod, that I have to stand on a small stool to reach, which is above a 5′ long lower rod. This allows me to hang everything right there. At the end is a laundry sorter with three sections. Ok, here comes the good part. My washer and dryer are also in this closet! They are on the left at the end of the metal clothes rack. Plus I have an outside door so I can go right out to the clothesline. My bathroom is on one side of this room and my bedroom is on the other. How convenient! Because most of my clothers are right there I also get dressed in there. That is why I called it a laundry/dressing room. Plus, with the rack with the clothes on it right there I do not need a lot of bureaus/dressers. And I can see what I want without having to keep opening and closing drawers to find what I am looking for. The rack was $60 and bureaus/dressers are how much, each? Yes, very cost effective. I had a friend stop by to visit and like this idea so much she did it in her own house. :)
Very smart! Thank you for sharing!
Wow! You all are so creative. I am now considering how I can turn our laundry room into our closet. I am so stoked to make it happen, that I won’t tell my hubby until I have it planned out. Yay!