Reader Laundry: Pretty Wallpaper Pleases a Fan of Washday
This renter calls doing laundry a hobby. She created a beautiful space to make it even more enjoyable
This series profiles laundry room renovations shared by homeowners on Houzz.
The price tag for making over a laundry can range quite a bit, depending on what is done to the room. To get a snapshot of some laundry room projects and their price tags, we asked readers to share their stories. Today we look at a 56-square-foot laundry room makeover in Los Angeles that cost about $2,300.
The price tag for making over a laundry can range quite a bit, depending on what is done to the room. To get a snapshot of some laundry room projects and their price tags, we asked readers to share their stories. Today we look at a 56-square-foot laundry room makeover in Los Angeles that cost about $2,300.
BEFORE: Carrie Johnson and her husband had already worked with a decorator to improve the looks of the rest of their rented apartment — with their landlord’s permission — when she decided that she wanted to revamp the laundry room. “It started when I fell in love with Cole & Son’s Aldwych Albemarle wallpaper and had no place left in the house to put it,” Johnson says. “The only room I hadn’t made over was the laundry room.”
Johnson actually likes doing laundry. “Doing laundry is, weirdly, kind of a hobby for me — I even do it on vacation!” she says. “So I started thinking about how much time I spend in there and decided it would be worth the splurge to put up some pretty wallpaper, especially since I wouldn’t need much in such a tiny space.”
Johnson actually likes doing laundry. “Doing laundry is, weirdly, kind of a hobby for me — I even do it on vacation!” she says. “So I started thinking about how much time I spend in there and decided it would be worth the splurge to put up some pretty wallpaper, especially since I wouldn’t need much in such a tiny space.”
AFTER: Johnson loves not only the colors and the print, but also a special feature this wallpaper has. “Parts of the wallpaper design are covered in tiny crystals for subtle shimmer.”
Once she settled on the wallpaper, she had to find “equally pretty window treatments,” she says, plus crown molding to finish the look of the wallpaper, and new hardware for the cabinetry. You know, the decorating domino effect. She worked with her interior designer, Leslie Landis, who had helped on the rest of the apartment. The pair traveled to the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood to pick out the fabric and trim for the Roman shades. After that, Johnson hired and coordinated the professionals to install the wallpaper and to make and hang the shades.
Johnson saved by reusing a ceiling light fixture from another room.
Style muse: Landis calls the laundry room style “Auntie Mame traditional,” Johnson says, referring to the 1958 film, a description Johnson also has adopted.
Wallpaper: Aldwych, Albemarle collection, Cole & Son; Roman shades: Les Touches, Brunschwig & Fils; shade trim: Dolce pompom fringe in Blueberry Pie, Samuel & Sons
Once she settled on the wallpaper, she had to find “equally pretty window treatments,” she says, plus crown molding to finish the look of the wallpaper, and new hardware for the cabinetry. You know, the decorating domino effect. She worked with her interior designer, Leslie Landis, who had helped on the rest of the apartment. The pair traveled to the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood to pick out the fabric and trim for the Roman shades. After that, Johnson hired and coordinated the professionals to install the wallpaper and to make and hang the shades.
Johnson saved by reusing a ceiling light fixture from another room.
Style muse: Landis calls the laundry room style “Auntie Mame traditional,” Johnson says, referring to the 1958 film, a description Johnson also has adopted.
Wallpaper: Aldwych, Albemarle collection, Cole & Son; Roman shades: Les Touches, Brunschwig & Fils; shade trim: Dolce pompom fringe in Blueberry Pie, Samuel & Sons
This photo shows the new gold pulls Johnson had installed on the cabinetry, to the left of the narrow door that leads to the powder room. (This area of the room is opposite the washing machines.) Johnson saved by purchasing the cabinet pulls online at a discount; they mimic the look of more costly ones she loved.
The photo also shows the second Roman shade, hung on the door leading to the backyard. Johnson had the shades custom-made. “I never thought I’d pay $200 for a few yards of pompom fringe trim on the Roman shades, but only Samuel & Sons offered the size, uniformity and quality I was looking for. There’s a lot of crummy pompom trim out there!”
“Uh-oh” moment: “We ordered a special primer to make the wallpaper adhere better in this humid space, but also remove more easily if we ever need to take it down,” Johnson says. “The box was sitting on our dining room table overnight before we realized the can had come open during shipping and half the primer had seeped out all over our dining room table.” Fortunately, the couple’s oilcloth tablecloth protected the table, and they had plenty of primer left for their project.
Walls moved: No
Plumbing moved: No
Plumbing replaced: No
Professionals hired: Paul Comi Jr. of Spectacular Trim; Jim Matthews of J&M Budget Blinds; Vicky Bracamonte, wallpaper installer; Leslie Landis, interior designer
Special features: Wallpaper design with tiny crystals that shimmer
Splurges: High-quality pompom fringe
Savings: Reused a ceiling light fixture; found discounted cabinet pulls
Cost breakdown
Design fees: $120 for time and work selecting shade materials
Accessories and decor: $810 for shade fabric and trim, wallpaper, wallpaper primer, cabinet hardware, and Anthropologie cleat on the powder room door
Crown molding: $400 for labor and materials
Labor: $990 for creation and installation of shades and for installation of wallpaper
Total: $2,320
More Reader Laundry Rooms: A Better Way In for $4,100 | Open to the Light for $1,400 | An Updated Look for $800 | A Spa-Inspired Space for $18,000 | More Storage for $900
The photo also shows the second Roman shade, hung on the door leading to the backyard. Johnson had the shades custom-made. “I never thought I’d pay $200 for a few yards of pompom fringe trim on the Roman shades, but only Samuel & Sons offered the size, uniformity and quality I was looking for. There’s a lot of crummy pompom trim out there!”
“Uh-oh” moment: “We ordered a special primer to make the wallpaper adhere better in this humid space, but also remove more easily if we ever need to take it down,” Johnson says. “The box was sitting on our dining room table overnight before we realized the can had come open during shipping and half the primer had seeped out all over our dining room table.” Fortunately, the couple’s oilcloth tablecloth protected the table, and they had plenty of primer left for their project.
Walls moved: No
Plumbing moved: No
Plumbing replaced: No
Professionals hired: Paul Comi Jr. of Spectacular Trim; Jim Matthews of J&M Budget Blinds; Vicky Bracamonte, wallpaper installer; Leslie Landis, interior designer
Special features: Wallpaper design with tiny crystals that shimmer
Splurges: High-quality pompom fringe
Savings: Reused a ceiling light fixture; found discounted cabinet pulls
Cost breakdown
Design fees: $120 for time and work selecting shade materials
Accessories and decor: $810 for shade fabric and trim, wallpaper, wallpaper primer, cabinet hardware, and Anthropologie cleat on the powder room door
Crown molding: $400 for labor and materials
Labor: $990 for creation and installation of shades and for installation of wallpaper
Total: $2,320
More Reader Laundry Rooms: A Better Way In for $4,100 | Open to the Light for $1,400 | An Updated Look for $800 | A Spa-Inspired Space for $18,000 | More Storage for $900
Laundry Room at a Glance
Who lives here: Carrie Johnson and her husband
Location: Los Angeles
Size: 56 square feet (5.2 square meters)
Total cost: $2,320
Construction time: Four weeks