Laundry is for the birds!!!

Have you seen the incredible laundry rooms in blogland.  WOW!! 

Like this one http://www.centsationalgirl.com/2010/05/laundry-room-reveal/






And of course this incredible one
http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-beachy-laundry-room-reveal.html



Wowza!!!  If one of these were mine I would do everyone's laundry on our block.  Well maybe I would just invite them in to do thier laundry and bask in the beauty!!

So I decided that I should tackle my laundry room.  I cannot find the before pics.  But needless to say it was contractor grade white flat paint.  You know the type that is impossible to clean!  The cabinets were 1980's with icky stain - that reddish brown that seemed to dominate in the 80's  .  The floor was white and green linoleum.  The one thing in there the prior owner had done was to hang wall paper border.  Sail boats with laundry lines strung in between them.  Quit laughing - I am serious.  No seriously - stop laughing!

I took FOREVER deciding what I wanted to do in there.  I just knew that I wanted it to be cheerful and bright.  I finally found my inspiration piece.  A sweet little plate:

First I sanded, primed, and painted the cabinets.  After I pulled all the doors off, I found the blog that suggested numbering the cabinet doors with painter's tape so that you know which ones came from where.  That would have saved ALOT of time putting them back on.  Honey replaced all the hinges with brushed nickel - they were 80's brass.

(Notice the cute little clearance Easter basket  garbage can)

Then I painted the walls - Behr Marmalade Glaze.  The poor walls were so in need of good quality paint that all I had to do was hold the roller near the wall and the wall would suck the paint right off.  Just kidding - but the walls did absorb alot of paint.

Next on to the floor.  I knew I was not quite ready to tackle the wet saw, tile, and grout route.  So I bought peel and stick tile.  I did go with the thickest I could find with quite a nice warranty.

Now to accessorize:
On the wall facing the door my oldest daughter bought the sweetest little canvases for my birthday

Below that I hung an apron that my mom made when I was a little girl.  I had a matching little bitty one that was mine when I was about 3 - but I cannot find it (sadness)

On the wall with the folding area I hung a plaque - just added a brown ribbon

Same wall but behind the door
Tissue paper puffs - there are lots of tutorials in blogland for these and they are fun to make.  I also cut out several pieces of scrapbooking paper and threw them in a frame.

On the corner of the folding counter I put the inspiration plate, some little bird figures I found, and a pre-scentsy wax/oil burner that I have had for years.  But every room in my house must have a burner and I have not found one that goes well in here

On the washer and dryer wall I found another plaque that went with the room

And along the lines of the above picture - I scrubbed all the wood work down with TSP and then restained it.  That was a HUGE improvement.  The baseboards were in really bad shape.  I also replaced the doorknob with brushed nickel.

Now I have this pic of my grandson we snapped at the zoo to frame and hang somewhere on that wall:

I think it is perfect for this room!!

(Oh - and everyone can gaze at his adorableness!!)

I even switched out the light fixture myself.  Honey stood and watched to make sure I did not electricute myself.  But I did it all by myself-woo hoo.  And went from a one bulb, contractor fixture - brass with frosted glass to 180 watts of pure light:



On the floor is a stool that my mom and I made when I was about 6.  We painted it yellow and decopauged owls and morning glories on it.  After all these years of use - and I use stools alot - the designs were all but gone.  So I scraped the remaining decoupage off and sanded it down.  I painted it with the wall color, modge podge on a couple of birds that I cut out off scrapbooking paper, painted on tree branches, antiqued it, and then sealed it with clear matte spray paint.  I am so glad to keep it!



So there you have my cheerful new laundry room.  It makes me smile!

But no matter how cute the room is - Laundry is for the Birds!!!!


 
Thanks for looking!!

Susan

Linking up at:









http://comeandpeek.blogspot.com/2011/06/mudroom-makeover-link-party.html