How To How To Design a Functional Laundry Room

If you’re feeling like doing laundry is drudgery, a laundry room makeover is in order. The first priority is figuring out how to design a functional laundry room. But a close second is making this space beautiful. Some solutions will be easy DIY laundry room hacks, while others may have you thinking about a laundry room renovation.

If you’re thinking about investing in a larger project such as an addition, a kitchen remodel, a bathroom renovation or finishing a basement, consider incorporating the laundry space onto your project. Because these spaces tend to be small, purchases for items like wallpaper or floor tile will be minimal. And the results will have you happy to be separating laundry, fluffing it and folding it!

Here are 11 ideas for how to design a functional laundry room that include laundry room storage, laundry room organization, laundry room remodeling, small laundry rooms and laundry room style.

1. Work With the Space You Have

While large new homes can have laundry rooms that are bigger than some kitchens, historic cottages and bungalows require more creativity. Not to worry, you can still figure out how to design a functional laundry room no matter what its size or shape!

In this historic home, we tucked this laundry and mudroom space along a hallway that connects the kitchen and a casual entry to our client’s historic and charming home. The mudroom is located close to the entry door, where there’s a bench, shoe racks, hooks and cabinets for outerwear. Further down the hallway are the washer and dryer, with pull-out drying drawers next to them and a drying rod overhead. A countertop connects the two.

To the left is a utility sink so the whole family can wash their hands as soon as they enter the house. The sink is also convenient for working on stains or handwashing delicates.

2. Hide the Washer and Dryer With Clever Concealment

Sometimes there isn’t space for a dedicated laundry room. Or perhaps leaving it open will leave another room feeling more airy and bright.

That was the case in this kitchen renovation project, where we made the mudroom and laundry room look like an elegant extension of the kitchen. Keeping these areas within one open floor plan allowed all of them to enjoy the natural light from the double glass doors.

We kept the mudroom cabinetry on the left cohesive with the kitchen cabinetry for a seamless look. An integrated bench provides a spot to sit and take off shoes, then stash them in the drawers beneath. The large doors open to lockers for each family member.

On the right, bifold doors conceal front-loading laundry machines. The quartz on top matches the kitchen countertops, and the surrounding cabinets hold all the laundry supplies. The result is a clean-lined laundry room that’s hiding in plain sight.

3. Use One Space For Multiple Functions

If you’d like a larger laundry space, consider making it multifunctional. Other uses can include spaces for pet crates, food and bowls, mudrooms, a spot for an extra fridge and pantry storage, designated cabinets for cleaning supplies, brooms and mops and even coat closets.

Expansive countertop space in a multifunctional laundry room can also be used as a work station for home command central, homework and crafting.

4. Include a Tall Broom Closet

A tall cabinet in a laundry space provides a handy spot to keep mops, brooms, and even the vacuum cleaner.

5. Create Drying and Folding Strategies

In this laundry room, there are two air-drying solutions. One is the simple clothing rack. Beneath it, drying racks tuck away just like drawers. Items can be hung from the rods for a day or be laid flat and tucked away to air dry. There’s also countertop space for folding clothing and linens.

Drying and folding solutions include:

Drying rack drawers
Heated drying cabinets
A clothing rod
Ample countertop space
Wall-mounted drying racks
If pressed for space, a hook on the back of the laundry room door can accommodate a piece of clothing on a hanger

Here is another example of how to incorporate drying rack drawers.

In this compact laundry room, wall-mounted racks provide space for drying when needed, but can be folded out of the way when not in use.

6. Divide and Conquer

Figuring out how to separate laundry in an efficient way can be a challenge, especially in a busy family household. In this bathroom, handy rolling hampers make it easy to keep whites and colors organized and ready to load into the washer. We left an opening under the countertop so that they have a designated space to be tucked away.

Another option for hampers is a slanted pull-out cabinet front or a pull-out cabinet similar to those seen in a kitchen for trash and recycling. When used in a laundry room, the latter is used to separate lights and darks.

7. Split Up the Machines

There’s no rule that says washer and dryer have to be side by side. In the case of this laundry room, our clients preferred a visually pleasing symmetrical look, with a large farmhouse sink in the center. The countertops continue up the sides and across the top of the machines for a cohesive look.

8. Meet Pet Needs

A laundry room-mudroom is a great space to tuck away pet supplies and their other needs. When thinking about how to design a functional laundry room, think about pet functions.

Items a laundry room-mudroom can incorporate include:

Freestanding crates
Pet beds
Built-in crates
A hidden litter box
Pull-out bins for pet food
A space to place pet bowls, whether on the floor or into the cabinetry
Hooks for leashes
Drawers for storing pet toys

Here’s another laundry room with a litter box built into the cabinetry. It is neatly tucked away and off the floor, but easy to access through the cabinet doors for cleaning.

In this renovation, our clients wanted a dedicated faucet for filling up their sweet dog’s bowl. Using this is much easier (and drier!) than carrying the bowl from another room.

9. Customize Cabinetry

When pondering how to design a functional laundry room, think about all the things you’d like to store there. If you buy extra large boxes of detergent, size storage accordingly. If there are things like dryer sheets you’d like to be able to grab with ease, consider open shelving with baskets.

In this case, our clients wanted paper towels and cleaning supplies handy, so we customized a pull-out for those things. This keeps the paper towel roll off the counter and out of sight.

Cabinet customization our clients have enjoyed in laundry rooms and laundry-mudrooms include:

Slim tall closets for brooms and mops
Vacuum cleaner cabinets complete with outlets for charging
Paper towel holders
Linen storage
Cleaning supply cabinetry
Drying rack drawers
Pull-down ironing board or ironing board drawer
Extra pantry storage
Charging drawer for personal devices in mudroom-laundry room spaces
Shoe cabinets or shelving
Pull-out bins for pet food
Pull-out pet bowl
A panel-front second refrigerator that blends right in with the cabinetry

10. Add a Sink

As mentioned, a sink in the laundry room is always handy. It’s not only great for working on stains and handwashing delicates, but also for creating a flower arranging station. A utility sink is also good for muddy cleats.

11. Elevate the Finishes

OK, so we’ve talked about how to design a functional laundry room. But we also want to make sure your laundry room is beautiful as well. Because laundry rooms are usually thought of as purely utilitarian spaces, they tend to get short-shrift on the finishes.

Change your thinking by considering laundry room style in the same way you’d consider the style of a bathroom or kitchen. A laundry room should feel just as calming and cheerful as these spaces do.

Finishes to select with care include:

Countertops
Wallpaper or wall paint
Cabinet style
Cabinet hardware
Faucets
Lighting
Window treatments
Doorknobs
Accessories

We hope that this blog post has helped you learn how to design a functional laundry room. If you’d like professional help remodeling your laundry room, please contact us for a free remodeling consultation. Our design team will help you find the most functional and beautiful solutions for fluffing and folding spaces!