Guest Blogger: Francesca Holmes
The laundry room is one area of your home which is frequented on an everyday basis, and where you get a lot of household work done. With so much going on in one place, it is bound to get cluttered which can, sometimes, leave you overwhelmed. Whether it is the pile of dirty clothes, coats randomly thrown around, or soiled socks strewn about, they’re all eyesores.
Though organizing a laundry room will require a more utilitarian and practical approach, you can also add an aesthetic element to it. A well-organized laundry room will have ample storage, be easy to work in, and help you facilitate your chores.
Here are a few organization tips for people with small laundry rooms.
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Clean It Out
First and foremost, know that you’re dealing with a cluttered laundry room, so it is important that you clean it out completely. When it comes to small spaces, more means less. Start by removing everything from your laundry room. Everything, except your washing machine and dryer need to go.
Take a good look at the items that you have. Sort out what you need. Discard the empty detergent bottles, packets or boxes. Get rid of items that may have passed their shelf-life. Toss out or donate the unwanted items and keep only what you know you will use.
When cleaning out the laundry room, do not forget that area behind your washer and dryer. Pull them out from the wall and vacuum behind them. Use a clean mop to give the floor a sparkling-clean finish. Clean out the washer on the inside and wipe the washer and dryer on the outside. Clean your storage spaces as well.
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Evaluate Your Space
Once your laundry room has been thoroughly cleaned, you’ll like it better. But your job isn’t over yet, in fact it has just begun. You need to take time and evaluate the available space and figure out how much space is actually available.
Because your washer and dryer are fixed in one place, it makes sense to start your space planning exercise from there.
Make a note of what you want to see and need in your laundry room. Figure out where each of those things will go or fit. Whether you’re thinking of installing shelves, racks, bars, or cabinets; measure the space so you know what size you need of these items. Write these measurements down so you can refer back to them at the hardware store.
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Save Space
Make saving space a priority and opt for multi-purpose products. There are several detergents available in the market today which double up as stain-removers. Fewer products mean less bottles and more space.
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Install Shelves
One of the most effective storage solutions that help you maximize space is the humble shelf. Fit as many as you can neatly on a single wall and watch your floor space clear up. Not only will your laundry room look more organized, it will also look much cleaner.
Store items that you use only a few times in the year on the top shelf, so that you don’t have to keep reaching for those items on that shelf again and again. Use storage containers in suitable shapes and sizes to store cleaning and laundry supplies and line them on the shelves.
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Use Dividers
If you are going to use shelves, it makes sense to use dividers as well to make them look neater. These will go a long way in helping you keep folded linen and other items in neat stacks.
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Fix a Drying Bar
Cotton clothes tend to shrink when they are washed and it is best to remove them from the dryer when they are still slightly damp, followed by air-drying. While a drying rack is helpful in such cases, it can hold very few clothes.
It is better to fix a couple of sturdy drying bars in your laundry room. All you need are a few durable hangers to hang your clothes; no other costly purchases are required. You can easily find well-made and robust hangers at Only Hangers.
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Wall-mount the Ironing Board and Storage Racks
When space is of the essence, it makes sense to go for items that are wall-mounted, can be folded up and stashed away easily. I’m talking about ironing boards and storage racks. Pull out the ironing board when needed, close and hide it when done to reveal ample standing space to do other things.
One of the best places for wall-mounting a storage rack is behind a door. It frees up your floor, as well as, walls where you can add more shelves, or to just keep them plain. Plus, it also does its job of helping you gather your supplies and organize them systematically.
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Get a Foldable Clothesline
Instead of putting your clothes in a dryer every time, why not hang them on a clothesline to dry and gain the extra bonus of cutting down on your electricity bills! Get a foldable clothesline which can be opened up and used when needed and can be stored away out of sight in a cabinet. Again, a great space-saving option.
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Pay a Visit to the Nearest Dollar Store
If you buy at dollar stores, you may have noticed small plastic baskets or trays being sold. Buy a few of these as they can come in handy in organizing your laundry room when it comes to grouping items and putting them in their place. These organizing items can actually help organize your entire laundry room.
10. Labeling Will Save You Time
This one’s a no-brainer, but there’s no harm in spelling it out. Labeling your boxes, containers, bottles, and baskets will make it extremely easy for you to distinguish between and locate your items, thereby saving you a lot of time and energy.
So there you have it. Not too difficult, is it? Most of us have small laundry rooms, which have a knack for getting cramped. There is only one solution to this plight – organization. Once you make a place for all the components of your laundry room, even the small space will seem bigger, and you will have no trouble locating your things. So wait no more; time to get organizing!
About the Author: Francesca Holmes is a writer and often writes about home improvement tips. When not on a mission to bring high-end architecture to the masses, she enjoys exploring the great outdoors.
