For many who make the move into one of our beautiful, brand-new homes, the dedicated laundry room can be a source of immeasurable happiness and pride. Gone are the days of washing laundry in the dusty garage or the dark basement—a set-up so typical in older homes. And gone are the days of schlepping armloads of dirty laundry, laundry soap, dryer sheets, fabric softener and rolls of quarters to the laundromat or apartment laundry room. Indeed, having a private, indoor laundry is one of the biggest attractions of owning a modern, functional home, such as those built by LGI Homes. Who wouldn’t want a quiet, brightly-lit room where your family’s laundry can be done in comfort and with convenience—and no one ever heaps your wet clothes on top of the dryer out of impatience?
To make the best of an already great thing, here are some tips on how to organize and beautify your laundry room, elevating this simple luxury to the best of efficiency and ease:
1. Keep it simple. Clutter can turn even the largest laundry areas into a tangled nightmare of half-empty bottles, broken clothes pins, and lost socks. The less you store in your laundry area, the better, so trim down to the basics, and don’t use the laundry room as your home’s biggest junk drawer.
2. Stay organized. A small investment in organizational items like storage bins, baskets, and shelving can keep your laundry room tidy, attractive, and functional. Additional helpful items include hanging racks for drying and hanging ironed clothing, ironing stations with wall-mounted ironing boards, and a pin board for hanging stain removal and washing tips in plain sight.
3. Get personal. An easy way to streamline laundry day is to have baskets assigned for each member of the family. Cleaned clothing goes into a designated basket, which makes delivering clean laundry back to each family members’ room easier, and keeps finished laundry from hanging around the laundry room for too long! Look for baskets that are large enough to handle the amount of clean clothes you generate per person. Also, baskets that stack when not in use are ideal for saving space.
4. Go smaller. Many of us shop at large warehouse stores, and come home with army-sized containers of laundry detergent, fabric softener, etc. Instead of lugging out these larger containers every time you do laundry, consider opting for smaller, decorative containers that can be left within easy reach, while beautifying your laundry space at the same time. See-through glass containers are a great choice for powders and liquids, and can be purchased cheaply (in a wide variety of colors and shapes) at home decorating shops as well as thrift stores. Simply refill when needed, and laundry instantly becomes more elegant!
5. Avoid sock soup. Finally, a tip for everyone who has ever mourned the loss of a sock: when folding laundry, keep a bin nearby for the inevitable stray socks that remain at the bottom of the basket. Once every month or so, go through the sock bin and match up pairs—an easy task that even preschoolers in the family can do, and the thrill of reuniting these kindred souls can be very satisfying. You’ll save frustration, save time, and save your favorite pair of socks!