Design guide: 4 simple laundry ideas
The household laundry room is a space that has undergone huge changes over the years. From a purely functional room where as little time as possible was spent, the laundry has been transformed into somewhere that feels connected to the rest of the home, with an aesthetic all of its own.
As such, there’s been an increased demand for high quality fixtures and fittings such as top range laundry mixers, taps and sinks, as well as increased thought into the design of these spaces.
If you’re looking to give your laundry a makeover, and bring it in line with the rest of your house, we hope these tips will help get you on your way.
Laundry design ideas
1. Make use of clean, straight lines
Straight line motifs are particularly popular in laundries for a number of reasons. Firstly, this is a modern interior design approach, so if you’re looking to bring a tired or older laundry room up to date, clean, straight lines are the way to go.
Secondly, this look is generally associated with feelings of order and tidiness. Given laundry rooms are associated with household chores, it makes sense to have a room that’s highly functional and easy to use, rather than somewhere that’s a maze of different shapes and contours.
So, how does this work in practice? Primarily, creating an orderly, linear feel is achieved through the selection and placement of your appliances and furniture. In a laundry, as well as cabinets and counters, your laundry sink is a key element of the space that can also offer good clean lines. In particular, Abey Australia’s Schock granite sinks effortlessly blend function and aesthetics, and are perfect for creating a modern-feeling laundry. If you’re looking for something equally sophisticated, but a little more traditional, ceramic sinks might be the way to go.
Whichever material you choose, be sure to think carefully about the size of the laundry sink you want, and whether you want a multiple or single bowl unit, as this will have a significant impact on how you use it.
2. Think vertically
This tip is particularly handy if your laundry has restricted floor space. although it’s applicable to laundries of all shapes and sizes.
Generally speaking, most laundries will have one or two main counter tops, with cupboards and cabinets fitted beneath them. If you want to get more out of your laundry space, stick to our earlier advice about clean, straight lines. Building storage above the countertop is also a good idea.
Depending on your needs, this could simply be to provide additional cabinet space for storage, or, alternatively, a drying rack for clothes as an eco-alternative to an electric dryer.
3. Consider different tap options
It can be easy to get carried away with choosing the bigger items in your laundry – things like washing machines and dryers – and to forget the smaller elements that still have a huge impact on the room’s functionality.
Taps are one such often overlooked essential. We highly recommend opting for wall mounted laundry taps and spouts. Not only are such options highly durable, they can also save you space compared to taps and spouts mounted onto the sink unit itself.
Again, functionality is key. We’ve all tried to fill a bucket underneath a faucet that simply isn’t high enough, and the end result is normally a half filled bucket and an unwanted shower. In this instance, the additional height that comes with GooseNeck laundry spouts makes these a particularly effective solution that is both elegant and practical.
4. Add some greenery
Laundries have a tendency to feel somewhat sterile and lifeless, and just because these are rooms where we come to do chores, doesn’t mean they can’t be relaxing and pleasant environments.
The perfect antidote to a stark feeling laundry is to introduce one or two well-placed houseplants. They will, quite literally, bring some life into the room, and, if you choose to go with scented plants, they can also help cover up odours that can sometimes linger in laundries.
Again, however, we recommend keeping these features to a minimum so that your laundry remains a functional and easy to use space.
For more advice and tips on how to make more of your laundry, and the fittings and fixtures you need, feel free to visit your nearest selection gallery or get in touch with the knowledgeable team at Abey Australia.