Organizing All of That Laundry

So we are back in the laundry room today and talking about organization.  After installing our new shelving we had a ton of space for storage and we are still trying to work it all out.  Before now our laundry was all over the place, in different rooms, piled in closets - we were having issues.  So when installing our shelves we knew we wanted to create a designated laundry sorting station that would be organized, easy to get to and out of the way.  So we decided to use the space underneath our shelving for our laundry sorting.  Only thing is, we had some beat up laundry baskets - that were overflowing (especially since we now have four people living here).   This wasn't working for me..

So we went on a search for new laundry bins and this is what we ended up deciding on: Crate & Barrel's Folding Bins - and we love them.  For one, it looks so much better and two, they are large enough to handle all of the laundry coming through this space now.  Now, these things were not cheap.  We searched so many different stores - even the discount ones and we couldn't find something that we liked at a lower price, this style bin was even more expensive at one discount store.  We decided that our current laundry system was driving us absolutely nuts and investing in something we liked was worth it - and it definitely has been.  This space is also an open space in our house and the main way to exit to the backyard so having our laundry hanging out all over the place was a little awkward.  At least with these bins everything is tucked away and hidden much better.

Laundry is no longer piled up, scattered and taking up valuable space in our little home.

So now I'm on to deciding on something for the actual shelves.  Everything is organized and labeled but the mismatched bins are driving me crazy.  For now it's all good but I'm definitely on the look out for something a little more streamlined and pleasing to the eye for this open storage.  So stay tuned, I'll be sharing what we do soon!

Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend!  Don't forget to go and enter the giveaway at Sew Gloried!  

Laundry Room Progress

We have been so busy this week working on our little laundry area.  I can't wait for all of this painting to be finished - One, because this is the last part of our house interior that needs painting!  Two, having your laundry room inoperable for a week is not fun and all of that stuff has to go somewhere - it's driving me crazy.  Three, I can't wait to see it all come together.

So here are some quick pics of our laundry room before:

Obviously, we have done absolutely nothing in this space since moving in.  We didn't even take down that old yucky curtain. Oh look, the old rug from our half bath somehow made a new home here.  I think that this was it's last hoorah.  That rug will never see the light of day again, it's ok you can be sad.

Yikes, do you remember this tower of terror?  This little area is getting a major clean out and reorganization - right now all of this stuff is in our bedroom, hence the reason it's driving me crazy.  

Oh look, we got everything cleaned out and ready for a fresh start.

And the priming is completed - hands down one of my least favorite tasks ever.

So this time I ended up using a different primer.  Previously, when painting the paneling in our bedroom I used an oil based heavy duty primer.  Then, when painting our paneling in the closet I used a water based primer - both seemed to work just as well as the other.  The big issue though was the smell.   The smell was so atrocious when we painted our closet that we had to sleep out in the living room for several nights.  We didn't want a repeat of that insanity so I found this option - KILZ Clean Start Extremely Low Odor Primer.  It's water based, but honestly I will say it worked really great and the smell was considerably less than the others we have used.  It took two coats to get good coverage on the paneling - but so did the oil based primer - so to me this is the best option.  The drying time to apply a second coat was just an hour and by the time it was all dry you could hardly smell anything.  If I ever have to paint paneling ever again, I will no doubt choose this primer.

Looking a lot better right?

It's crazy the difference a little primer and paint can make.  We have finally gotten the paint completed as of last night and today I will be working on sealing the floor.  More updates tomorrow!  Thanks for stopping by!