Laundry Pantry Progress

close up of shelving unit with bead board
backing and movable shelving system inside
each unit

Last posting documented our conclusion that the washer dryer unit has to go on the left side of the pantry space. The exhaust was cut into the wall, the old exhaust patched, and the unit moved to its new location. It also involved moving the electrical outlet for the unit. Once moved there are some pipes exposed to the right of the unit. We will have to solve that visual dilemma in the future, we need use of the unit immediately. We will have to live with seeing the pipes for a while.

8 inch deep wood/gold toned shelving

You can see in the photos that at the same time the work was being done in this space, it was being painted. We went for a neutral green with a beige tone to it, and also painted a bright white ceiling.  All of that improved the feel of the room. It continues to amaze me, how just a coat of paint can transform a room. New paint can make a dreary room perk to attention.  If you can't afford renovation, yet you want an immediate life improvement, paint the room yourself. It is not difficult to take up a roller,a small foamy 9 inch roller is very easy to work with, for anybody.  Chunk it by doing a bit at a time if you must, but realize your willingness to do it, is your best asset. You can change your life for the less than $30 a gallon of paint can cost.

After the painting was concluded, shelf design began. This is currently our only storage space in this old house. We have to maximize it. First priority is that we want it as attractive as possible. We opted for shelving that looks like furniture. A visually pleasant finish was very important.   Falling back on our old favorite bead board, which we used extensively in the kitchen as trim features,  we chose bead board to back the shelving units. This was to give the units stability by being a backboard that was structural and decorative.  As the shelves went up, so did our hopes for better organization, and access to our belongings. In truth we expected too much from the new shelves, and we are still in the process of moving things around and deciding what deserves precedent of easily accessible storage.

standards inside units for
adjustable shelving

The shelves we designed were a complete wall, floor to ceiling, of 12 inch deep shelves. 90% of the shelves are movable so that we can adjust the heights of the shelf space to suit our needs. We designed them out of pre-finished shelf stock, a wood product that is finished white. I think it is either a foil finish, or a melamine finish. I am not sure which. They wipe clean, and are quite sturdy. The white of the shelving really perks up the room compared to the wood and gold tone 1970 shelving that dominated the space before renovation. Actually the room had multiple styles of shelving ranging from those 8 inch deep wood shelves with gold toned standards, to raw wood 10 inches deep held up with L shaped hardware screwed in place and not adjustable.

This unit is a great design. It came out great. I will put some photos of the units below. The next challenge was to master use of the shelves, for our best advantage. That has proven to be the big problem. I am still working on that.  The pantry-laundry room is not finished yet because there are still issues to be solved. What do we do with the blank wall to the left? How do we provide for ironing?, we need a shelf for the laundry basket when emptying the dryer and sorting laundry. How do we do that? What do we do about the exposed pipes in the rear. As you can see this is an evolving project, though the big part has been done.

wall of units

back board of units

units attached and installed in the laundry and pantry room