Beech Street Bungalow: The Laundry Room

I am excited to show you one of the happiest rooms in our home today: The Laundry Room!  

You may remember that before we moved into our home, I was adamant about about completing the four major rooms in the back of the house where we would be living:  the Master Bed Room, Master Bath, Kitchen and Laundry Room.  Having these four rooms completed would be key to my sanity during the rest of our renovation.  We have had the basics finished in the laundry room, but it has taken me a while to write about it because I was waiting on something very special to show you!  Since that special piece is now in place, I can share our progress in this room with you!

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When we purchased our home, you entered the laundry room from the hallway.  In the past this room was used as a bedroom, not a laundry room.  (The laundry hook ups were located in the kitchen.)  It didn't take us long to see the potential in making this a large laundry area!  

We knew that when adding the master bath, we would need to extend it into what would become the laundry room.  We weren't interested in removing the window or moving the exterior door--so we didn't have much of a choice where the wall would go!  We also extended into the hallway to create our master closet -which removed our entrance into the laundry room.

Our kitchen is so small, we envisioned the laundry room being an extension of usable space to make it feel a little bigger!  You probably remember from the Kitchen blog that we moved the giant pocket doors to separate the kitchen from the laundry room.  The pocket doors would be located to my left in the picture below.

Here is a look at what it looked like once it was torn out, studded and sheet rocked!

Incorporating these doors in this area was a lot of fun, because I keep them open most of the time (to make the kitchen feel bigger and brighter), but can close them whenever I feel like it!  That was Phillip's idea, so he gets the credit!  Here is a picture from the day that I painted the doors.  Phillip secured them standing up so that I could paint both sides!

When we tore out the laundry room, we realized that there was exterior brick around the bottom of the wall where the water lines would need to go.  To make our lives substantially easier, we decided to build out this wall by 8 inches so that we would have enough room to run our plumbing without having to go through bricks.

Once we put a fresh coat of paint on the walls, you almost didn't notice the place! 

Now, here's a glimpse at our laundry room from the kitchen today.

My favorite thing about this room is how bright it is!  I just love the wall color--I think it is perfect for a laundry room!  It is Sea Salt by Sherwin Williams.   This small table traveled with me from Athens.  It is actually from the bakery where I worked--so it makes me happy when I look at it!  It is a fun place where kids can eat or craft, I've used it for both!

Don't you just love all of the natural light?  (P.s. here is the first peek at what I've been waiting on!) 

I was hesitant about how the deep window sill would look when finished, but it ended up creating the perfect space for my little plants!  This room is so bright, it is like a green house!  My succulents and begonias love it in here!

I know you probably thought I was crazy when I said that the Laundry room was one of the happiest rooms in my house, but do you see why now?!  It is so bright,  full of color and plants!  Not to mention it now holds a very special piece.

When we realized how big our laundry room would be, I knew I wanted a sink.  One day, while we were living with my Nana, I was down at the barn while Phillip was washing his truck.  My Papa's old cast iron sink caught my eye.  Now this sink, that looks so clean and shiny, did not look in the least bit like this on that particular day.  I stole the water hose and began to scrub!  I didn't get it this clean, but I definitely saw it's potential!  Nana thought it was a great idea to use Papa's sink in our home. It sat for years collecting dirt and leaves--now it has been restored to its original glory!

*Side Note:  Bar Keepers Friend worked wonders on the rust stains in this sink!  It did not, however, work on the stains in our cast iron tub.

My Papa had this sink hooked up at the barn to clean fish in.  My grandparents had a small pond behind their house where all of us grandchildren learned to fish.   I can remember standing at this sink learning how to scale a fish with a spoon.  Fishing was one of my Papa's great loves--and that is what I am reminded of when I look at this sink.  Sweet memories--these things are what makes a house a home.

Phillip outdid himself on this piece.  He used reclaimed rough cut pine to carefully craft this sink base.  He spent days preparing the lumber, designing the look, building and sealing it.  I couldn't have asked for anything more perfect.

It is amazing to watch him do what he does best.  This piece will forever be cherished and will now become a family heirloom! 

I hope you've enjoyed this little look into our life, and how talented my husband is!  I just love my laundry room so much, it makes doing laundry not so bad!

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!