Creating a functional & beautiful utility space

I will fully admit that laundry rooms are one of my favourite spaces to design in our custom homes. The overall design starts as the floor plans are being developed. I want to ensure that we have good clearances, enough space for a proper sink, additional storage for things like an ironing board and extra linens, and what the sightline is from when the door to the laundry room is open.

Sightlines

This laundry room was a prime example of a vital sightline. As you walked up the stairs to the upper level and looked down the hallway, you looked into the laundry room. The original design had cabinets and a wall, no window, across from the entry door. To create something more visually appealing, and more functional, I moved the sink to be across from the door with a window above. By making a change to the layout, it not only gave us a great excuse to use this fantastic sink, but we were now getting more light into the hallway, which was a bonus. 

Sink | Light | Cabinet Hardware

Storage

The laundry room below gives the clients a great combination of storage options. On one side of the washer and dryer section, we created a built-in linen cabinet with adjustable shelving. The other side was open with a plug inside to keep the trusty Dyson vacuum & ironing board. The hanging bar above the washer & dryer countertop is also a great use of space. The hanging space allows clients to hang items directly out of the dryer.

With this laundry room, we wanted to take advantage of the open wall space, so a wall-mounted drying rack was a great solution. If you have extra wall space and are looking for additional drying options.

Here are two options for wall mount drying racks.

6-tier white rack | 7-tier steel & wood

Pull out laundry bins are also a client favourite, and when there is the room, we do incorporate them we do. In our own personal home, we have 4, one for lights, colours, darks, and then athletic wear. In the laundry room below, from Mount Royal {Morrison}, we had room for 3, and with easy access to the secondary bedrooms, it is the perfect spot for the dirty clothes to land.

Overall Design

Finally, don’t forget to have fun with your laundry room design. Whether you add wallpaper, different coloured cabinetry, a bold backsplash, a pop of colour, or a patterned tile. This space deserves to be a happy environment, so have fun!

We have some great laundry rooms in the works for our custom homes all over Calgary. Our Springbank {custom} build features built-in ironing boards and a great tile design on the floor, Elbow Park {11th} will have a beautiful brick flooring and two tone cabinetry, Lakeview Village {custom 2} has more cabinetry and storage than some kitchens and that is just the start. Looking forward to revealing these all once they are completed!