DIY – Laundry Room Makeover – Part 2

I am knocking out this laundry room! Two step down in two weeks ? Maybe I can crack this out before the end of the year and start something new. But lets not get ahead of ourselves. Lets get these cabinets hung so we have some storage, and some color!

On top of adding some color to the room, these cabinets are going to add so much storage. And it solves my number one rule when it comes to organization: out of sight, out of mind. I love the ability to hide things so these cabinets are perfect.

I also decided to add some open shelving so I could add in some design features and accessories! I’ve purchased open shelving in the past, but this time I wanted a ‘raw’ wood finish and just decided to go to the hardware store and get a 6×1 piece of wood. Honestly, for $15 it worked out great!

Materials:

• Cabinets
• Screw Driver
• Paint Roller
• Paint Brush
• Paint
• 4 inch Screws
• 6×1 piece of wood

Step-by-Step Process:

1. Take everything down off the wall – This was the scariest part for me, there’s no going back once you start ripping stuff off the walls. We had a single wood shelf, put in by the builder, and a wood hanger rod. One of the tips I learned on YouTube was that it’s very easy to rip these shelves off the wall. All you have to do is break the seal with a boxcutter and the glue should pop right off the wall. While this might be true for the majority of homes, this was not true for mine. My shelf was hung with nails and ripping them out the wall took some major elbow grease! I literally pushed up, on the shelf, until I finally blacked out and it ripped off the wall 🙂
2. Measure the walls – Once you’ve measured your wall you can play around with how many cabinets you’ll need and what size. If you’re purchasing pre-made cabinets then they will come with a standards height (30 inches) and depth (12 inches) so you the only thing you’ll need to decide on is the width. My personal preference is to draw it out, both on a piece of paper and on the wall (using blue painters tape). Drawing it out on paper gives you a good feel for what will physically fit in the space. Then to get a good feel for how it will fit for the room, you’ll have to draw it out on the wall. Then, of course, purchase the cabinets that will work for your room.
3. Paint – Once you’ve gotten everything purchased, it’s time to paint! Lucky for me, I was able to purchase un-stained cabinets at Lowe’s Home Improvement. These are perfect because you’ll just need to prime the cabinets, then paint.
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4. Hang the cabinets – This can be a little tricky, depending on your level of strength. I’ve seen people purchase an adjustable stool specifically for shelf hanging. But in my experience, my husband and I were able to hold the shelf up on the wall for long enough to drill through the studs and drill in the screws. Just make sure to use a level to make sure you’re hanging them evenly.
   • When measuring out where to hang your cabinets, make sure to use the level and make sure your ceiling is flat. You’d be surprised how many slanted ceiling there are in the world! Then, once you confirm it’s level, then measure the distance from the ceiling to the intended cabinet. This way you can make sure each cabinet is at the same height.
5. Cut and hang floating shelves- These floating shelves were so easy and inexpensive! All I did was go to Lowe’s, pick out my piece of wood, have them cut the length, then attach it to the wall with these brackets. You can opt for a more industrial look with these but I just went for the cheapest option.
6. Add first set of accessories – I was going to hold off and post all the accessories in a separate post, but I couldn’t help myself, I already started decorating!
   1. “Alexa do the laundry” sign – I found the printable on Etsy for $5, had it printed over at FedEx Office for $15, and found an adorable poster frame at Target that matched perfectly with the shelves. Total cost: around $30.
   2. Glass containers – I got these containers a couple of years ago at Walmart, then I spray painted the tops of them gold to add a more glam look. Total Cost: Around $25
   3. Hanging pearl plant – The best thing about fake plants, you can put them in a room with zero sunlight. I bough these hanging pearls on Amazon and I keep finding new uses for them! They are the perfect fake succulent.