The builder’s latest laundry features wood cabinets glazed in red, then wiped down with some white for emphasis; a limestone floor with gray veining and taupe accents; and rich, chocolate-colored walls. “The floor is important,” notes Carter. “It becomes an asset to the house.”
And the laundry room is becoming more of an asset to the homeowner. Many are transforming the utilitarian, wash-the-clothes space into a multi-functional room for storage, exercise equipment, gift-wrapping, scrapbooking, and even homework.
“Women are moving into the laundry room and they’re bringing their children with them so they can do their activities—like homework, crafts, even watching TV—while mom does the laundry,” notes Reed-Granger.
Paul Radoy, manager of design services for cabinet manufacturer Merillat, says homeowners are installing kitchen-quality wood cabinets and drawers for sewing notions, craft supplies, and gift wrap. “There are myriad things you could do in the laundry room besides just laundry,” he says.
The family laundress also is bringing her personal style into the laundry room. “It has become a finite room with a personality of its own and it’s definitely whimsical,” notes interior designer Carrie Antonello, owner of Tuscan Touch Designs in Raleigh, N.C. “It reflects the hobbies of the family.” Antonello has helped clients create laundry room theme decors with wallpaper, door pulls, and knick-knacks featuring roosters, seashells, wine, gardening, or birds. “They don’t want it in the kitchen because it’s over the top and they may get tired of it, so they put it in the laundry,” she says. “They want it to feel like an extension of their personality.”
And they want it to accommodate the lifestyle of their families, says Latiolais, who designed one laundry room with undercabinet dog beds, a drawer for dog food storage, another for feeding and water bowls, and a doggie shower.
Carter says customers who opt for a second-story laundry room usually include skylights to shed more natural light on folding, ironing, and hobby work. Still, the room’s primary purpose is for washing clothes, and more homeowners are doing it in style.
A few manufacturers have heeded the consumer call for color with shiny, black, blue, and even stainless steel washers and dryers. Kenmore’s front-loading HE4T washer, for example, comes in Pacific blue, bronzy Sedona, champagne, and black, as well as traditional white and bisque.
In addition to a wider array of colors, most manufacturers are making quieter, low-vibration models for use near bedrooms and front-loaders are becoming popular because of their energy efficiency and the free space on top.
Clothes steamers, drying cabinets, built-in ironing boards, and folding tables are favorites for dual-career couples who want to make quick work of the seven to eight loads of laundry that the average family does each week.
And it all has to look good. “It used to be that the laundry room was a section of the house that you closed off when you weren’t using it,” says David Small, director of marketing for Pergo, which is selling more wood- and tile-look laminate floors for installation in laundry rooms. “Now homes are designed with more open spaces, and a lot more people are integrating the look and feel of the home to an adjoining laundry room.”
“People enjoy pretty rooms,” notes Carter. “Even if they’re on a restricted budget, people are saying this is a priority.”
This story first appeared in BUILDING PRODUCTS magazine.
