4 Tips for Designing a Functional Laundry Room

Maybe you’re one of those people who really enjoys doing laundry. On the outside chance that you’re not, implementing a few smart, easy organizational items that can easily fit in almost any laundry room can help lighten the load. You can have that with the Closet Works.

What you’ll discover is that there’s so much more to organization than a prefab, pre-made system that doesn’t fit anyone’s laundry room exactly right. You’ve got loads of laundry to do, and we’ve got loads of possibilities for you to explore.

Here are just a few ways to create an organized and functional laundry room

1. Drip Dry Clothing Without Making a Mess

You’ve probably got a few articles of clothing that could benefit from a gentle drip dry instead of a tumble in a heated tub. But if drip dry to you means hanging clothes on the shower bar and spreading out towels to catch the water, you’re missing out on one of the most convenient features available.

Cabinets or shelves mounted overtop a laundry utility sink give you the option of putting a hanging bar underneath. That’s the perfect space for your delicate clothing to dry.

2. Make Ironing Less of a Chore

Does anyone really like to iron? Maybe part of the problem is how annoying it is to have to set up a full size board and then put it back when you’re finished. Sure, a lot of clothes don’t need ironing at all. But for those that do, wouldn’t it be nice to never wrestle with an ironing board again? With a wall-mounted ironing board, that’s never an issue. Just fold it down when you need it, and then fold it back up again once you’re done.

If you’d rather have something even less conspicuous than a wall-mounted cabinet with the ironing board inside, what about a version that pulls out from a laundry room base cabinet? That’s extreme convenience. Withdraw the board to use it, swivel it around if you like, and then slide it back inside when you’re finished. No one will ever know that it’s there, and you won’t lose any space in the room to an oversized board. These ironing boards aren’t suited for a huge pile of dress shirts or blouses, but for a few touch ups, perfect!

3. Sort Clothes from the Start

Another laundry day chore is sorting clothes. In many homes, that equals piles of whites, lights, colors and darks across the laundry room floor that you have the not-so-pleasurable experience of stepping over. Now imagine if all of your laundry was sorted before you started the job, like Martha Stewart recommends?

Separate hamper baskets encourage you to put your different types of laundry into their respective places as soon as they’re dirty. If each member of the family, has the obligation of bringing their own clothes down to the laundry room, you can have a basket for each type of laundry and then you never have to separate clothes again. And you can have as many as you want in tilt-out or slide-out styles. If you only need a couple, two hampers can fit nicely inside a cabinet. If you need several, that’s also an option. Some of the hampers that we offer are metal basket-style with a removable canvas liner. Wash the liner occasionally, and the hamper stays clean, too.

4. Don’t Forget About a Work Surface

Laundry rooms need an easy-to-clean, hard surface for folding clothes, occasional mending and other jobs, such as stain treating. With the wide range of countertop materials available at the Closet Works, your laundry room can look and function as beautifully as your kitchen. Laminates in a wide range of colors and surfaces such as granite and Corian are some of the materials we can install. We can even give you a fold down table, if you have no room for a permanent countertop.

Although it might sound like a luxury, a separate folding table can really be a laundry room workhorse. By adding as few as a couple of cabinets, or as many as you like, we can design and build a folding station that not only moves that task away from the machines, it also gives you additional storage underneath.

There’s so much that you can do to improve the laundry room, which is the spot that This Old House says is sadly neglected. Your cabinet accessories can work overtime to improve not only storage, but the overall aesthetics. Choose from slide-out baskets that let items breathe, a wide range of hanging rods (some that lower for easier accessibility), and hampers that tilt or slide to improve access.

The cabinet configuration can work to suit you, too. If you buy laundry detergent in an economy size dispenser, a sturdy shelf over the machine means you won’t have to carry it across the room. If your family is prone to losing socks, a small basket by the washer lets anyone toss in a stray one when they find it. Need a place for a dog bed or crate? How about storing large sacks of pet food? All that can easily be configured in your design.

For practically everything that you do, our designers can help you create a better solution. Looking for more laundry room ideas and solutions? Ready to transform one of the busiest rooms in your house? Schedule a free design consultation today!