One Room Challenge - My Laundry Room Inspiration

Thanks for stopping by to check out my progress. I hope that you tuned in to the launch of the One Room Challenge this past Wednesday and plan to follow along with the makeover of my beastly laundry room into a blue and white Chinoiserie beauty. The inspiration board above gives you an idea of the direction I am headed. These photos below are rooms that are inspiring me as I fine tune my plans.  The painter and electrician were here this past week and the wallpaper hanger is about to arrive. Let the games begin!

Black and white floor with blue and white and Chinoiserie

Another black and white floor with blue and white and Chinoiserie

Miles Redd - Ikea striped rugs sewn together as a runner

Overlapping rugs as a runner

Lots of blue and white Chinese porcelain and I love the symmetry (and the pooch)

I like this style table and the idea of stools

A palette of all blue and white and Chinoiserie

Blue and white in bold patterns and Chinoiserie

A beautiful soft blue and white palette

My Tibetan Spaniel Isabella (Izzy) did a very good job supervising the painter and the electrician and both jobs were done to her satisfaction. She is the watch dog in chief.




These lights were installed and they look great.


Now for the big news. I really wanted the Brunschwig & Fils "Ironing Bored" wallpaper and needed about 14 rolls because of the large room, high ceilings and huge repeat, about $1,500 worth. I was skulking about on eBay a while ago and someone was selling 18 brand new rolls of it for $150. Yes, you read that right. This will even make Linda, the Queen of Craigslist, envious. My wallpaper hanger starts prepping the walls today and I am so excited to see the paper go up.


I am also shopping this week for a new washer and dryer. I read the serial numbers off my old Maytags and checked online and found out they are from June of 1983 - 30 years old! After lots of research, I have decided on a Whirlpool Duet front loading washer and dryer in white.

It's a funny thing with me and white. I am not a white fan at all when it comes to cars, wall color, decor, or clothes. But I only like white sheets, towels, woodwork, kitchen appliances, and washers and dryers. I saved a Washington Post interview with the interior designer Draza Stamenich who did this laundry room that is my inspiration and here is what he had to say about laundry rooms and the subject of colors for washer and dryers - it's worth a read -




Thursday, April 16, 2009
Laundry would not seem like a chore if you were washing clothes in a space dressed with hand-painted wallpaper, custom storage and a designer chandelier.

Draza Stamenich, the young McLean designer who created the show-house laundry room in a minuscule space tucked off the kitchen, says it's time to upgrade life's everyday doings in these grim economic times. "Today the luxury is going to be the things we do at home," Stamenich says.
You may notice the GE front-loading washer and dryer in old-fashioned white. ("The colored ones are tacky for some reason," he says. "Only get stainless steel or white. These are modern and special in their own way.") But the key element in this room is the Gracie wallpaper, a nature scene with intricately painted birds, butterflies, branches and flowers. Calling it wallpaper underplays its beauty, Stamenich says. He describes it as artwork.
Whatever you call it, it's flanked by two floor-to-ceiling white wall cabinets designed by Capitol Closet Design. Stamenich ordered aviary wire online and used it on the cabinet doors. Polished beige travertine tile makes a solid surface for folding laundry.
Enough with the high-end details. Here's an upgrade you can easily emulate: "Get a beautiful jar and a scoop from the Container Store," and fill the jar with detergent powder, Stamenich says. Or buy two glass jars and fill the second one with dryer sheets.
Now that's a room I could spend time in.

Liz Seymour, Washington Post Writer

Next week I hope to show you the room wallpapered and the new washer and dryer. Then my fun begins with the workers gone and the house to myself and I can start decorating. A big thank you to my Chinoiserie Chic sponsors and supporters for providing pieces for my room you will be seeing soon -