One of the rooms in my home that I don’t share a lot on Instagram is my laundry room. It’s likely because it serves as my catch-all room for clothes, extra vases, paper towels, dog food and loads more. But this small space is also my most practical area in my house for many reasons. So today I thought I’d give you a tour and outline a few design elements that really makes my laundry room fully functional.

Built-in Dog Crates.
First, the reason why I love this room so much is because of the custom built-in dog crates. Wow, do these come in handy. As you may know, we have two English Springer Spaniels about 40 lbs each that are crate trained. In the past, I’d have two wire crates in an extra room and they would actually scratch the floors when the dogs moved around in them. So when I was working with Coastal Georgia Cabinets in Brunswick on the cabinetry in my laundry room, I really wanted to make sure that we had allocated enough room for two built-in dog crates. I ended up just measuring their existing dog crates and used those specifications for the new ones. The toughest part was trying to find a breathable and durable wire mesh and a way to properly secure the doors. I ended up ordering a 2 inch wire mesh from McNichols online and I’m very happy with the results after two years. Once we received the wire mesh, Coastal Georgia Cabinets installed them at their shop. They were a little more expensive than I thought that they’d be but it was definitely worth the investment. To secure the doors, I ordered heavy duty surface bolts from Hardware Hut in Satin Nickel. My contractor attached these to the bottom of the doors and cut an opening in the tile for the bolt to lock in. These have worked perfectly! I was worried that I needed something at the top of the doors as well but these have been great for my dogs. Lastly, I worked with Overall Upholstery to create custom dog beds for a finishing touch.

Stackable Washer and Dryer Units.
A big decision was whether we wanted stackable washer and dryer units. I wasn’t sure if they would make it more difficult to do laundry or increase the noise level. But it was the best decision I made because it takes up less space! So I have more counter space for my iron, storage baskets, towels, etc. It also allowed me to have more upper cabinets to hide detergents, sunscreen, beach towels, cleaning supplies and extra candles.  I would definitely recommend stackable units if you want to maximize a small space. 

Garment Pole for Hanging Clothes.
Because I opted for the stackable washer and dryer, I had more space to include a garment pole for hangers. This has been very helpful for air drying clothes because typically I’d have them anywhere they would fit (like over doors, handing on door hardware, etc.) This seems like a basic essential but sometimes it can get overlooked in a design.

Pull Out Drawers for Dog Food and Recycling.
Lastly, one of my favorite features in my laundry room are my two pull out drawers next to the washer and dryer. One I use to hold dog food (typically two large bags at a time) and the other I use for recycling since the trash cans in my kitchen typically fill up quick. The pull out drawer perfectly hides the dog food while masking the smell.

I hope that this was helpful for you if you’re giving your laundry room a refresh or renovating. Oh, and I opted for a cool gray for the cabinets. I used Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter, such a classic. Thanks for stopping by!

Tamara Gibson Photography Exclusively for Lavin Label