Laundry Trends and Design Tips

Gone are days when the laundry was the forgotten room with the essentials only. Creating a laundry that caters to your needs and is a bespoke design to maximise function is the new norm. Let’s discuss the trends we are seeing and our tips to make sure you don’t miss anything when designing your laundry.

TRENDS.

1. Flowing aesthetics

Customers take a lot of pride in the flow of their aesthetic palettes and details throughout. They are mainly coming through from the kitchen with the same cabinetry and benchtop colour. If people choose not to go with the stone benchtop they have in the kitchen, often, they will select a laminate benchtop that is similar to the kitchen benchtop.

2. Innovative Products

There are innovative products fitted into laundry drawers and cupboards, such as the ironing board. There is a product from Hafele called Hafele Ironfix; it is a fold-out ironing board that is mounted into a drawer. It folds out into three and clicks together to be a sturdy board base. Laundry hampers are very on-trend at the moment- people are making space for these now too. You can integrate them into the cabinetry or have them exposed on an open shelf. Having more than one is essential to separate lights and darks (one less job to do). Both are perfect for saving space and keeping all laundry jobs in one room.

3. Large Sink

If space allows it, having a large sink can be a big bonus in the laundry as you can be more efficient with a larger bowl. Partnering this with a gooseneck tap with a pull-out nozzle will make everyday tasks a lot easier.

4. Bring Nature Inside

Just like herb walls in the kitchen, bringing plants into the laundry area can freshen up the space. The greenery adds texture and depth into what can be a plain room. It is best to get plants that thrive in humidity, such as ferns.

TIPS.

1. It is crucial to make sure the laundry is as ergonomic as you would make the kitchen. This will reduce any double handling through the washing and drying process.

2. Storage is a top priority in the laundry. The one space you need to consider is a tall cupboard to house an iron, mop, vacuum etc. Tall cupboards are also suitable for adding shelves to store folded linen and towels.

3. Along with storage, benchtop space is so important, especially near your sink and washing machine. Make sure your benchtops are as deep as your appliances, so they do not stick out, creating a flush line that we all love.

4. Having upper cabinets helps store items that you want to keep out of reach of children, like cleaning products and laundry powder. Open upper shelving/ floating shelves are a great way to add detail by having them in different colors; they are also convenient to have access to commonly used items.

5. A must that you never knew you needed is a drying rail or drying racks in the laundry. This is commonly placed in between two upper cabinets to hang shirts etc. If you do have a rail here, keep in mind to have your sink to one side and not under the rail as it may obstruct your ability to use the sink with wet washing there.

6. When drying, it is important to have direct access to the outside washing line if possible, making it easier to hang washing directly outside. Placing your dryer next to or stacked above the washing machine minimises the movement between the two.

7. Ensure that the laundry is waterproof as it is considered a wet room. Surfaces and flooring should be easy to clean and splash-resistant. Tiles are a great example, as well as Lino flooring. Drying up spills and water immediately is imperative so that watermarks don’t appear and ‘bubbling’ doesn’t occur in cabinetry or benchtop, depending on the material.

8. Good lighting might be put on the backburner for your laundry. However, we suggest that having ample amounts of natural light where possible will make doing the laundry far more inviting. If natural light isn’t an option, functional lighting such as downlights and an LED strip behind the upper cabinets will be just as good. Having the LED strip under the upper cabinets allows for the benchtop space to be well light when doing your everyday jobs on it.

We have covered quite a few points on this topic, but we believe them all important considerations. Use this as a checklist when designing the laundry to ensure you don’t miss anything you want to include when meeting with your designer.