Put a New Spin on Your Old Laundry Room

The ABCs of a Laundry Room Makeover:

 

1. Choose the mood

– Determine if you want your laundry room to be a simple safe-haven from a busy life, a spectacle of sophistication, or a walk on the wild side. Once you’ve determined the atmosphere that you’d like to create, the rest comes easily.

 

2. Colours

– Since laundry rooms tend to be small spaces, you may want to limit yourself to two colours plus a neutral. With one white or bright colour, add one neutral colour and a saturated accent colour to liven up the space. Consider the flooring when making your choices. Traditional basement laundry rooms are concrete and lend themselves well to rich paint colours. Or if the floor isn’t paintable, try a throw rug in a complimentary colour to your walls.

 

3. Light

– As always, light is one of the first things to consider in your laundry room. Do you have a window? More than one? If so, natural light is going to make any dark colour you choose much lighter in tone than you might seem on the swatch. You may want to play with the light using a pale gray or blue-gray on the cooler side. If you have poor natural light, a earthier laundry colour might be just what you need.

 

4. Sheen

– The amount of light will affect the sheen you choose, as will the practicality of the room. This room is likely to get a lot of dust, so a flat paint may be a poor choice. Eggshell, semi-gloss or satin would be better for quick wiping and condensation-resistance. Lots of sunlight will give paint with a high sheen too much glare, so using the minimum sheen you can afford will be easier on the eyes.

 

5. Pattern

– Want to bring a pattern into the room to carry your design? Try having your professional painter add a painting technique such as striping or chevrons for visual and dimensional appeal.