{Please stick with me! This is a long post. You’ll love the ending, I promise.}

I had no idea that a peaceful laundry room could change your life. Let me tell you…It can! I used to moan about laundry. Clothes were always around the house in various degrees of dirtiness, cleanliness or somewhere between the two. I never knew which was which and I was forever dragging multiple laundry bins up and down and all around–making my head spin!

Until I wandered unto The Masked Mommy blog. She claimed the month of January to get her head on straight about the “loch ness laundry” in her home. So did I!

The Laundry Room

We replaced our washer and dryers this past fall (this is an old photo, in case you were wondering why I had no laundry machines)

This, That & The Other Thing (Laundry and contents of the laundry room)

Clearing Out

The Reveal

The Details

I need to be surrounded with fun and inspiring things or I start to curl up and die….seriously, I think a part of me dies when clutter chokes out beauty. So, to create a little beauty, I put up a few helpful sayings (first saying shown, was made out of another salvaged game piece), hung a piece of art, and tacked up mistreated curtains. I created a spot with a re-purposed Clementine crate to capture laundry necessities. My new lamp redo has been a warm and delightful addition, to the bare bulb, that previously was the only light fixture it the room.

The How

Dirty: We have one laundry hamper basket upstairs at the end of the hallway. Yes, I said ONE! Everybody has committed to put their clothing in the hamper basket–every time! When the hamper basket is full (about everyday) it gets picked up and sorted into the laundry room bins. The basket gets put right back where it came from, cause I swear, there will already be another piece of dirty clothing waiting for a place to go.

I posted 6 “No” signs, in various patterns of red scrapbook paper, around the bedrooms and hallway. No More DUMPING! Just Say No! I hope this will help my family get a grip to clear-up the hall so we don’t trip on stuff in the dark anymore.

Laundry Bins: Each laundry bin is labeled by load description. I have space for 9 tall skinny sorting bins. (I have 3 bins and I am just filling in with what I have until I save up for some more). These bins never move unless it is to empty its contents into the washer.

Clean: I have one larger laundry basket for Clean Clothes Transportation (CCT). Clean items get a ride in the CCT to go back upstairs. Ideally, I would like to fold or hang something, only if, I can put it directly into the dresser or closet. Of course, if my four year old is helping, other arrangements will be made. This is my weakest link so we, Neat Pete and I, are going to see how we can use some teamwork in the next few weeks to iron out the details. {really, did I just make that pun? so sorry}

The Storage: I always leave empty space when I redo a room. I always need some free “places” to grow. I added a wall mounted wire basket holder and a rolling rack for household items like garbage bags, tape and soap. The blue bins are filled with art supplies and activities for the kids like finger paints, play-doh and paper.

The Comparison: If you are like me you scrolled up and down a bunch to see the before photo and the reveal photo, one after the other, okay, so maybe you aren’t as big of goof-ball as I am, but just in case…

Ta-Dah!

Can I, as a blogger, do anything anymore, without making a docu-drama out of it? Without the hint of a major blog-dom project party to link posts to, do other, non-bloggers, actually DO projects without their camera? Hmmm…..

Thanks to the draw of one such a project-post blog party, called Laundry Party Pow-Wow (hosted by The Masked Mommy), I have completed the little lamp that could project for my laundry room. {See, I knew sparing this lamp from entry into 2 years worth of garage sales would pay off…I just knew it.}

So, in the spirit doing projects, with a camera ever ready at ones side….here is a look at my nursery lamp redo.

While doting on my little lamp that could, I got hooked on lamps. I have always loved the warm feeling a shaded lamp offers vs. the harshness of overhead lighting. But, I never even thought about placing a lamp in my laundry room. In fact, I may have made fun of people with lamps on top of their washer.

That was before. People change, right?

Here are some de-light-ful inspirations that will get you hooked too:

Bless Our Nest has a mud-room dryer light and more.

Shabby Nest, lets her lamp tell it’s own tale.

Need a shade tutorial? Check out this super stylish black and white lamp from Candlyn, a Design Sponge reader.

I may have become just another somebody to laugh at, with my lamp-age all a glow on the washer. But, I am hooked on lamps in the laundry room.

To see what other people are hooked on this week, check out Hooked on Houses, cause she is having a Mr.Linky Party called Hooked on Fridays.

But, what happens when home doesn’t feel warm? What if home feels like the fangs of  used books, junk piles and spoiled paint cans are ‘closing in’ for a bite?  Or what if it curiously smells like old coffee and sharpie marker ink in the laundry room, on a good day?

It can stay that way.

OR

I can do something.

What a unique place, our homes, where we can define, design, and dally in a space without reason or with a million reasons.  To me “doing something” simply means, taking a chance to make an impact while harnessing my behavior, teaching it to value what it is I am doing.

Here to Hoping…

Here is a photo taken in the middle of my “doing something” to the laundry room. I have been taking a chance, all day, amping up this room in time for The Masked Mommy’s first ever Laundry Room Pow-Wow that is on February 1st!

I am so excited to share at the Pow-Wow about my room, my hopes, and my first ever fabric mistreatments, with a bunch of other bloggers, that needed to “do something” with their own life direction (or maybe just a new decor ).

I know! I know! Enjoy them (my kids) while they are little! Well, I have had plenty of “enjoyment” with my two little cooped-up bundles of joy.

So, I want to share about something else I am enjoying around here. My new door…er, my old, new door or my new, old door. Oh whatever, here are the photos…cause that is what counts anyway, right?

Did we have an earthquake (in MN) while I was taking this photo? I am not sure what happened to my cupboard door, but in real life it did not have a freaky shift in space.

Keeping It Real Clause: That dry erase board totally fell off after the photo. I used *gasp* tape. Yea, that doesn't work.

Thanks fil Phil for your ingenuity! He conjured up the idea…and did it for us. Neat Pete installed the hardware. I, Messy Jessy, added the clutter, of course.

All in all, this corner of our kitchen is my fav, fav, favorite.

The front loader windowed washing machine has been great. It substitutes for a fireplace during evening meals. Really, it is transfixing to watch the sudsy beast rotate around. Without a laundry room door we are often pulled into its gaze.

Below is a photo of Molly lulled by the swooshing of the watery wash cycle…

until she realizes that Pink (her chosen one) is in there.

Poor dear. Patience is not a virtue that you possess. Not yet anyway.

Of course Molly reigned victorious as she cuddled in her crib with her fresh Pink and other assorted loveys. Notice her slightly mistrusting eyes as if to say, “Take one step toward Pink and I’ll call Dad on you!”

I am joining in with Heavenly Homemakers today for a round of Gratituesday.

Laundry Room Lessons

Upon learning that my washing machine was in fact unrepairable I felt bummed. When I found out I broke the machine from jamming it too full for too many years I was disheartened.

We had a one month during which all of our clothes were being piled high and toted around to Grammy’s “Laundry-Mat”.

Yes, my son is jumping into the dirty "hamper".

Of course since we are in the middle of “redoing” the main level I was less than thrilled to reallocate funds from decor toward a washer. I mean, I was just about to buy fabric re-enter the fabric store for the 5th time hoping this would be the time I didn’t have a dizzy spell and dry mouth from utter disorientation.

But look it came with a friend. Awww

I thought for sure that when this day came I would kiss the pretty buttons and hug the machine for its awesomeness. But, instead what I found was a huge amount of gratitude for the simple ability to do the wash.

I am very grateful today for the honor to load up my family’s dirty duds. I hope this new found respect for clothing maintenance lasts a long, long time.

Love, Jess