Our freshly painted laundry room is so bright and cheerful it makes me want to sing and dance. I started by repainting all the trim with Olympic No-VOC semi-gloss off-the-shelf white and painted the brown quarter round near the baseboards so it would blend with the trim. I applied three thin coats of the same Olympic No-VOC paint without primer — I used this method successfully in the living room a few months ago, and it worked well here too. For the walls, we used leftover kitchen paint to create a visual connection between the two spaces, since you see the kitchen from the laundry room’s side door.
Because the laundry room is small, we wanted a color that would elongate the space rather than interrupt its flow. We may add a subtle stencil or another paint treatment later if we want more visual interest, but we’re holding off until window treatments, a new light fixture, and storage are in place so the room doesn’t feel overdone. The wall color is Sesame 381 by Benjamin Moore, color-matched to Olympic’s No-VOC in semi-gloss. In our semi-light-filled laundry room the hue reads a bit more yellow than it does in the kitchen, and it’s decidedly cheerful — a greenish-yellow that feels warm and inviting.
Why this tone works here:
- It’s slightly brighter than the kitchen version.
- It reads a touch more yellow in this light, which livens the space.
- It brings a cheerful energy to a functional room.
As soon as I started cutting in, the room felt more awake.
Here’s what the laundry room looked like when we moved in:
That white board you see against the wall is a thick piece of plywood placed behind the stacked appliances to help stabilize them. We painted it white so it will blend in once we add shelving. Some of the photos make the color look a bit neon or odd, but in reality it’s not neon at all — more like liquid sunshine. It’s light, warm, and pleasant. We felt confident using a happy color here because:
- We’ll add lots of white shelving to balance the color and coordinate with the white washer and dryer.
- The room has a window and a glass door as well as an opening into the kitchen to break up the color.
- When we eventually install wood floors, the overall look will feel even more grounded.
We also had a metal fuse box cover in the room that stood out visually. We rolled and brushed several thin, even coats of paint over it without priming. Metal takes thin coats of paint well, so by avoiding thick, globby layers and applying multiple thin coats, we achieved good coverage while keeping the cover functional. Between coats we opened and closed the cover to ensure nothing became stuck — a simple trick to keep moving parts working smoothly.
The cost for this phase of the makeover was essentially zero since we used leftover paint from the kitchen; we only bought a pack of rollers for about $8. We still plan to add functionality and decor — shelving, storage near the door for shoes and a leash, art to brighten the space and disguise the fuse box, and more. Here’s the to-do list as it stands:
Paint the brown quarter round near the baseboards glossy whiteRedo all the dinged trim with 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 we can’t place them along the long wall)
- Replace hinges and knobs on the upper cabinetry
- Install a new light fixture — possibly a small DIY chandelier
- Add a window treatment, potentially homemade
- Add functional storage near the door for shoes and a dog leash
- Hang art to keep the room cheerful and help obscure the fuse box
Crisp white trim looks great against the warm greeny-gold wall color. The photo below is probably the most accurate representation of the paint — a soft yellow with a hint of green, almost like an artichoke heart. The result makes me oddly excited to do laundry.
P.S. Thanks for the kind comments about my haircut yesterday — you were all so sweet it made me blush. Stylists really do work magic, and it’s hard to recreate that exact look at home.