If you haven’t been keeping up with the madness lately…
Yes my friends, the chaos has not subsided and we have exactly three weeks until our wedding. With all of the surprises that continue to pop up, I have a feeling we won’t accomplish our September to-do list before we fly to Utah on the 26th to begin our wedding festivities (we’re marrying in SLC on the 27th and throwing a party for the weekend at the country’s largest private log cabin)!
Our wedding plans aren’t even finalized yet because we’ve been too focused on repairing/cleaning/renting out two vacant units, meeting with contractors and preparing our termite-infested Bungalow for tenting (which starts today), living in an unsafe and dusty construction zone as progress on our floor demo ceases due to extensive subfloor damage, and now overseeing the build of our new home which just commenced this week (more on that next!)
In the middle of all of this, I’m constantly planning and working on projects in our current house, and the next one on our to-do list is the laundry room:
This is how it looks now, after buying the cheapest washer/dryer set we could find on Craigslist that barely work, and now with the tile gone:
This room was originally a porch that was later enclosed, so it has a window to the kitchen. How special.
The walls are all textured stucco, so they’ll be fun to drill into (sense the sarcasm).
The room is only 5′ wide so there’s not much room for anything.
Door to the backyard:
And standing from the backyard, looking into the kitchen:
So, what’s the plan for this space, you ask?
I can’t tell you how many times I went back and forth on this design.
One thing I knew immediately is that I’d be using penny tile—I’d been wanting to experiment with a fun design for a while now, and small rooms are the best place to go bold! I think you can get away with the most in a laundry room. This is where you should try out your crazy ideas, guys.
At first I was set on using blue as the accent color, as it seemed most fitting for a place to wash things. Then somewhere along the line I switched the color to green—I just couldn’t fight the urge. Green is 100% my 2018 color of the year and you’ll be seeing it all over this house.
I haven’t seen a whole lot of black, white and green used together but here are some of my recent inspirations…
I don’t know about you, but there’s something about black, white, green and wood tones that make for the perfect mix of earthy and classic. So I’m going for it.
I’m partnering once again with Lowe’s on this project, and pretty much everything in the design plan is available to order from them.
Like this Bedrosians penny tile—it comes in an array of colorways, and I chose black, white and sage green. I spent several days adjusting the placement of these individual tiles in Photoshop until landing on something I was happy with. I’m actually still not 100% decided between these two options—do you have a favorite?
I’m also super excited to finally have a functional washer & dryer—I chose this Samsung set with the best reviews online (PSA—they’re 30% off right now!)
The goal is to keep this redesign relatively quick, inexpensive, and easy to replicate in your own space (no matter what you’re starting from). With that said, we nixed the idea of adding cabinets, so we’ll be using butcher block to make custom shelves (one counter on top of the washer/dryer and two narrower shelves on the wall above). We thought about using regular 3/4″ planks of wood to build these, but I really prefer the look of the thicker butcher block, and this one in particular because it’s stainable—I actually used this same stuff in the Cottage House Flip kitchen with a custom stain.
One feature that I’m excited about is the painted ceiling! I love that there’s tongue and groove up there now, but I’m not feeling the dark reddish stain, and it wouldn’t look cohesive with the light wood shelves. As soon as I get the green penny tile, I’ll find the closest Sherwin Williams match and give the ceiling an unexpected pop of color.
The old fan will also be replaced with this beauty:
I first spotted this chandelier months ago and I’ve been waiting for the right opportunity to use it (how is it only $100?!) It’ll warm up the small space and bring the classiness level up a notch or two. This room sure needs it.
Another big change will be swapping out the backyard door for this one…
Let there be light! You can never have too much light in a tiny space. I haven’t quite decided what color to paint it yet but it won’t stay white. And the door will be equipped with a Schlage smart deadbolt and matte black lever:
On the small back wall next to the door, I came up with a pretty clever solution (if I do say so myself). Here’s the deal: I’m addicted to wallpaper. After my wall mural changed my world a couple weeks ago, I suddenly need to wallpaper all the things. Of course, you can’t wallpaper over stucco walls though—so what’s a girl to do?
Make a new wall! We’ll attach a couple smooth 1/2″ MDF boards to it and boom, instant wallpaper canvas. Something like this (use your imagination here)…
I’m realllllly excited about this wallpaper…
It’s hard for me to get excited about anything more than wallpaper these days.
And five of these pretty little gold hooks will go on top:
This room may be small but it’ll pack a punch! What do you think of the design plan? We’ll be doing most of the work ourselves, or at least attempting to. I honestly don’t know where we’ll find the time, considering we won’t even have any of the materials this weekend. We basically have two weekends plus a handful of weeknights to get this done, and we still need to get through our flooring install first.
Maybe two big projects this month was too optimistic? We’ll find out soon enough ?
Follow along on my instagram for daily updates in the meantime…
Hallie says
two cents:
i think a ceiling fan in the laundry room is clutch. (especially helpful in drying out the washing machine and helping hanging clothes dry.)
another spot for the amazing chandelier?
looking forward to seeing it all go down!
Amber Shrader says
What lovely design plans! I can’t wait to see it come to life. The first example of tile is my favorite of the two. I saw this picture of a laundry room and it kind of reminded me of your laundry space! Best wishes on all your projects!
https://www.southernliving.com/home/decor/dedicated-laundry-room-trend#monica-stewart-black-white-laundry-room
jennasuedesign says
Yes, I have that black and white one pinned too! Love it.
Cindy Osborn says
Green is my favorite color and there are some beautiful options out there with all paint lines. I repainted my kitchen cabinets and walls recently and did black, green and white. Walls and upper cabinets are white, lower cabinets are green. Hardware and lighting are black as well as the door which I used your black door color from the cottage house flip :)The picture you have above from Building Walnut Farm was one of my inspo pics, too!
Is the wallpaper you are using removable? I have seen some designers using it lately that just peels right off. Is all wallpaper like that now or just specific types?
jennasuedesign says
Ahh that cabinet combination sounds gorgeous! We’ll be using regular wallpaper paste for this so I don’t think it’ll be removable. Not too concerned though since it will be applied to removable sheets of MDF rather than directly to a wall 🙂 Normally I would prefer the temporary papers though (like our living room wall mural).
Aryn says
That’s one of my favorite color combos, too. I’m excited to see you pull it all together!
Penny Miles says
I love options 1 for the penny tile. And Love the sage green colors, wood, black and white Tones togetherare my favorite. Green is my go to color, can’t seem to get away from it. Can’t wait to see this when your done.many blessing on your wedding. My husband and I just celebrated our 30th. Sept. Is the best month to get Married?
jennasuedesign says
Thanks Penny! And Congratulations on 30 years <3
Christy says
Wow. You have a lot going on! Quite an understatement. I like the second tile option (clean lines). I like to dry a lot of my work out clothes and have a rod or hanging bar would be really nice. I have seen a fold out type you could use maybe on he side wall?? I like fashion but function is where it’s at. Good luck girl. You will crush it once again. ??
jennasuedesign says
Thanks Christy! Trying to think of where we could squeeze in something like that. Since no one will be living here full time, there will be less of a need for air drying, but it’s always nice to have the option.
KRISTEN FALKENSTINE says
Omg I’m tired just reading about all your projects! On top of a wedding! Breathe in, breathe out…
BoyMom says
Love all your designs!! What color is the green paint?
jennasuedesign says
Thank you! I haven’t picked out the paint yet, I’m waiting until I get the green tile to color match it!
Lindsay says
I live just outside of SLC and Sept is the perfect time for a wedding here! The leaves are changing already so it will probably be the tail end of it by the time you’re here, but it’s the perfect temperature and everything – especially in the mountains – is so pretty! I can’t wait to see pictures!
jennasuedesign says
AHH I can’t wait! Fall weather here we come! <3
Christina says
Love the penny design. Can’t wait to see it done.
kalina says
So excited for this! Love your design ideas, this is going to be gorgeous!
marilyn Dennis says
You hit it out of the park again!! You put penny tiles on my mind. I want a saying for my puppy room..like “woof” or “snort” pug and frenchie owners will get this one lol, powder bath, laundry + The fact I can run down the road to Lowes for all this makes it all seem possible. PS I have a Samsung purchased from Lowes and it is fantastic. I had an issue with a prior one and they gave me full credit to pick a new one out after 4 years of use! #lovesamsungnlowes I like the extra detail on the top tile idea. I will come help you:) If anyone can pull this off you can!
jennasuedesign says
Thanks Marilyn! You should definitely do penny tiles in the dog room, a cute saying would be perfect in there 🙂
Carly says
I have this situation right now so curious how you’re going to handle it. My washer/dryer are about 28″ deep, plus I keep a small gap away from the wall. Butcher block typically is only about 2′ deep. Are you going to rip a second piece? Not take the block all the way to the end of the units? Do something else? I’d love your thoughts!
jennasuedesign says
The washer & dryer are 34″ deep and the butcher block is 39″ deep (we’ll cut it down to match). This butcher block is made so you can use it on an island or cut it to your own size. Skip the narrow stuff and get this one!
Elizabeth says
Let me say first that I love the design and can’t wait to see it come to life. I usually NEVER leave comments – but after my (an my mom’s) horribly experience with Samsung machines I feed the obligation to warn you against them! They work great until they don’t and then you cannot get them fixed. Repair men won’t touch them. Go with a washing machine brand expert – Maytag or Kenmore. My Samsung only lasted 1.5 years !!!! just outside the warranty period, my moms lasted 2 years. Plus they don’t clean as well as opt load.
Ok rant over 🙂
jennasuedesign says
Thank you Elizabeth! I’ve had a ton of feedback on these appliances, a few folks have had similar experiences but most were positive… I’ve had good results with other Samsung appliances (not washer/dryer) and like the features of this one so we’re going to give it a shot (they are already ordered actually ;)) Fingers crossed!
MARA SMITH says
I second this comment! We spent close to 2k on a new washer and dryer set from Samsung/Lowe’s and it barely lasted 2 years. I’d cancel that order in a heartbeat and go with something else. We had to buy a replacement set and after doing A LOT of research this time, went with Whirlpool. Can’t recommend them enough!
jennasuedesign says
What a bummer! I’m sorry you had a bad experience :\
Krystle says
I love the second tile layout! ? I can’t wait to see the results. I love black, white, green, and wood together.
jennasuedesign says
Thanks for your vote Krystle!