Our freshly painted laundry room feels bright and cheerful enough to put a smile on my face. I started by repainting all the trim with Olympic No-VOC semi-gloss in off-the-shelf white and painted the brown quarter round near the baseboards to match the trim. I applied three thin coats of Olympic No-VOC paint without primer—the same method I used successfully in the living room a few months ago—so no primer was needed.
For the walls we used leftover paint from the adjoining kitchen to create visual continuity between the two spaces. Since you can see the kitchen from the laundry room when you enter from the side door, keeping a connected color palette helps the small laundry area feel larger and more cohesive. We may consider adding a subtle stencil or another decorative paint treatment later, but with window treatments, a new light fixture, storage and artwork on the way, we want to see how everything comes together before adding more visual elements.
The paint color is Sesame 381 by Benjamin Moore, color-matched to Olympic’s No-VOC paint in a semi-gloss finish. Our narrow, semi-light-filled laundry room has a door and a window that let in daylight from the carport; it’s not exceptionally bright, but it’s brighter than the windowless kitchen. The shade leans toward a pleasing artichoke tone—a mix of green and yellow—that:
- reads a touch brighter in this space,
- appears slightly more yellow here than it did in the kitchen, and
- feels uplifting and cheerful.
As soon as I began cutting in, the room came alive. The small scale of the laundry area makes the color feel concentrated and intentional rather than overwhelming.
Here are a few photos of the room when we moved in:
And here is the room now with the fresh color and a few other updates we made.
That white board you see in the photos is a thick piece of plywood placed underneath our stacked washer and dryer. The plywood provides a sturdy base across three walls to stabilize the appliances, which can help them last longer. I painted the plywood white so it will blend with future shelving and look integrated with the trim and machines.
Some of the photos look a bit more neon or green than the color is in real life. In person the shade is softer—more like liquid sunshine than anything garish. We knew the room could handle a cheerful hue for a few reasons:
- We plan to add generous white shelving and the washer and dryer are white, which will balance the color.
- There’s a window, a glass door, and an open doorway into the kitchen that break up the wall color and keep the space feeling open.
- When we eventually install wood floors, the warmth of the wood will further temper the paint and create a more subdued look.
We also tackled the metal fuse box cover by rolling and brushing several thin, even coats of paint directly over the metal—no primer. Metal responds well to thin coats rather than thick, gloppy applications. Between coats we opened and closed the cover a few times to make sure nothing would stick as the paint dried. The painted cover still functions normally and looks much less conspicuous.
This phase of the makeover was nearly free—total cost: about $8 for a pack of rollers—because we used leftover paint. We still have plans to add functional storage, art, and finishing details, so the room will evolve further and the painted fuse box will be integrated into the overall design.
Current to-do list:
Paint the odd brown quarter round by the baseboards glossy whiteRepaint all the dinged-up trim in semi-gloss whitePaint the walls- Replace the dryer hose with a safer all-metal one
- Add adjustable built-in shelving in the nook next to the stacked washer and dryer (the room is only 3.5′ wide, so unstacking the machines isn’t an option)
- Replace hinges and knobs on the upper cabinet
- Install a new light fixture—possibly a small chandelier or a DIY option
- Add a window treatment, potentially a homemade solution
- Add storage near the door for shoes, the dog’s leash and other daily items
- Hang art to keep the room cheerful and to help disguise the metal fuse box
Crisp white trim pairs beautifully with the warm green-gold wall color. The photo below is a good representation of the paint’s true tone: a soft yellow with just a hint of green—reminiscent of an artichoke heart. The new color, combined with the white trim and planned storage, has transformed the laundry room into a space I don’t mind spending time in—suddenly, I actually feel like doing laundry.
Thanks for the kind comments about my haircut recently. I appreciated the compliments and the encouragement—especially since a great salon cut is hard to replicate at home.