Old Fashioned Laundry Room

I have a "thing" for old porcelain sinks and this is one that's new to me. Love the overhead pull-down drying rack. This might be a country kitchen too. Anyway, there are other laundry rooms here for you to check out. My own kitchen sink wears many hats as a potting shed sink, dish-washing sink, hand-laundry sink, hair-washing sink, and can rise to many more non-culinary occasions when called upon. XO

Delightful Laundry Room

This laundry room is fabulous, isn't it?

I love the drying rack with a pulley.

found on Instagram

The folding doors to conceal the washer and dryer are lovely too. I would like an outdoor clothes line too, just steps away. It was cold and rainy yesterday and today is a repeat. Missy and I are having a nice weekend regardless of the weather. I hope it improves for those of you celebrating Mother's Day tomorrow. Have a Happy! xo

Another view of this laundry room.

Vintage Sink Repurposed in A Laundry Room

This laundry room is small but mighty. I love the vintage sink finding new life here. I think it could be a bath room or powder room too. I love it! 

Photo found here.

Laundry Room with Visiting Goat

Look what happens when you leave the mudroom door open. This room is fabulous, isn't it? Do you think there is a washer and dryer in the room too. That would make it perfect. It is already doing service as a potting shed and a place to wash off the vegetables from the garden. Love it❤❤❤

Great Laundry Room with Old Sink

I especially love the vintage porcelain sink with built-in drainboard. It looks perfect in this wonderful laundry room. The wall drying rack is nice too. via

Nice Laundry Room + My New Washer Update

I love this vintage sink between the washer and the dryer, don't you? I also like the marble countertops and backsplash. 

Now, back to my new Maytag top loading washing machine. When I first got it, I did four loads in a row in four days so I was pretty much caught up on my laundry. I did a mixed load yesterday because I didn't have enough for a white load by itself. I did 2 pairs of cotton slacks, 2 tee shirts, dishtowels, a small bathmat, one blouse, pajamas, underwear, and I can't remember what else. I watched a youtube tutorial about how to load the dry clothes. You aren't supposed to "wrap" a pair of long pants around the tub, but hold them up and drop them down. You are supposed to try to distribute the laundry evenly, so I did.

I used the "normal" setting that I knew to be a lot less water than I usually choose on the bulky/sheets setting.

I chose "light soil" and "warm water".

I did not want an extra rinse and I never do. I learned on the internet that if you turn the fabric softener dial, you will get more water even if you don't use fabric softener and I never do. My clothes weren't really dirty so I used the minimum amount of HE liquid laundry detergent (Tide Sensitive).

I set the timer on my phone for 45 minutes. I watched the beginning of the cycle. At first after the detergent was evenly dispensed in multiple squirts as the tub rotated and paused, the agitating began in not much water but the clothes were all wet. This was to get the concentrated water in all the clothes before the water was diluted. After a while more water was added and the agitating continued. Then I walked away and hoped for the best. 

I went down to the basement just before the 45 minutes was up and arrived at the very end of the spin cycle before the "done" light came on. The cycles using a big tub of water were over an hour so this was a shorter cycle and I liked that. I hung all my clothes outside in the sunshine and they were all clean so what can I say. Some days you just want a lot of water and some days you don't. Either way, your clothes will be clean so I am still over the moon with my new Maytag.

I love doing laundry now and don't put it off the way I used to. Another favorite thing is this vintage laundry basket with "make do" rope handles when the original ones broke. Another garage sale find, of course. 

New Maytag Washing Machine LOVE

My new Maytag washer arrived yesterday and I am thrilled with it.

The lid opens perfectly as if it had been designed for my tight spot. The dryer is recessed and my old front loader used to match it, side by side. But I think it looks fine this way. I had to pull the washer all the way up to the door surround in order to be able to fully open the door but I am very pleased with the way my new laundry room is working out. I absolutely LOVE my new washer and have done two loads. I think this top loader gets my clothes a lot cleaner than my old machine and it spins them almost dry. Today I did my double bed sheets and four towels and I will use the sheet setting again because I like a tub nearly full of water. The load I did yesterday was on a setting that used very little water but the clothes came out clean. I can't wait to do some sweaters on the hand wash setting. One of these days I will photograph the other half of the room which is a half bath but I need to do a deep clean first. 

One of the reviews I read said to walk away from the machine after starting the wash. I decided to watch it because it's fascinating the way it works without the center agitator that I grew up with. I did today's load in all white but threw in an old pink and white striped towel that I use for cleaning. It was so interesting to see that it changed positions in the load so the other things must have also. 

The stainless steel tub is huge but not overly deep so you can easily unload the wet clothes. See what I mean about the center device? I guess the sides work like a wash board and they say the clothes get clean by rubbing up against each other. There are lots of interesting sounds and the clothes are always doing something, sometimes fast and sometimes slowly. I was prepared to be disappointed but instead I am delighted with my purchase from Lowes. They aren't paying me to advertise this, I'm just sharing with my friends.

xo

Hello, September

Hello, September and hello all. Sorry I haven't been around for a while. My washing machine broke and cannot be fixed and I have had a really hard time finding a replacement. The part is no longer available (of course) and the repair man found one on eBay but it was $600. YIKES. I looked and looked and looked and absolutely could not find a front loader that would fit in the tight space in my laundry room. I settled on a Maytag front loader that will fit but it might not exactly line up with my dryer because I completely forgot about the shallow cabinets above. I might have to pull it out farther than the dryer in order to get the top open. I think it will be fine, fingers crossed. It is being delivered on Thursday. I am not at all excited about getting a new one and having to learn how to use it. Nothing is simple these days, right? Things don't last the way they used to and the manufacturers have planned obsolescence built in. I have gotten numerous tips by watching demonstrations on YouTube. Some of the comments are hilarious. My old one was a high efficiency front loader and I could see that it used very little water. My new one is HE too and all the comments were about the lack of water in the drum. It doesn't have the old-fashioned agitator that sticks way up either. My clothes are never very dirty except when I am down on my hands and knees in the garden. I have old work clothes so I don't care if they don't look brand new when they come out of the washer. Sorry to sound out of sorts. I am really fine and just wanted you let you in on what's going on in my life.

Enjoy the long Labor Day weekend. I am loving the cooler weather after a long hot spell. I am not ready to kiss summer goodbye, are you? I love fall except for the leaves which I never get raked until spring rolls around. I have learned the birds like it this way because they can find winter food underneath the leaf cover. I don't feed them so this is the least I can do for my feathered friends. xo

Wonderful Laundry Room

Yes, please. I want it all.

Inspiring renovation found here.

Vintage Laundry Sinks on Stands

I spotted these old porcelain beauties on cast iron stands at a Broker Open House earlier this week. I have a double porcelain sink in my own kitchen (click link to view) and would love to have these two for my finished basement. One for the laundry room and the other for the summer kitchen. I, personally, like having a laundry room in my basement. I have drying racks in the furnace room for the items I don't like to put in the dryer. Not pretty, but practical. I think one of the sinks above is being used as a drain for a dehumidifier. At one time the washer and dryer were down here but now they are upstairs in this antique house. I am probably the only real estate agent who toured this home and found beauty in the basement. Smile. xo

Laundry Room in a Vintage House

A laundry room and mud room in an old house that was recently sold in my area. I loved it when I toured at a broker open house and I'm happy someone shared my taste and purchased it. Photo from GSMLS.

Cute Wallpaper in a Laundry Room

This post will be short and sweet. I'm pooped from shoveling. Not much snow and easy to get rid of but I did most of the driveway too. I photographed this wallpaper in a laundry room at a broker open house some time back. xo

Laundry Room, Dog Bath, Dog Bed

This laundry room has it all. A place to bathe the dog or rinse off your muddy boots, a place for the dog to nap, and stacking full-size washer and dryer. So nice. via

Laundry Room Design: Neat and Tidy

A simple rearrangement of task areas takes advantage of vertical space to make cleanup easier for both two- and four-legged family members

Photograph by Ricky Rhodes

Laundry Room Mud Room Combination

This is the perfect setup for anybody, isn't it? I love the herringbone brick floor and the plank ceiling painted porch blue. This one was my favorite but there are more multi-purpose laundry room setups to consider here at Houzz. Who knows, you might prefer the one in the butler's pantry across from the wine. (smile)