New Hope mudroom and laundry room
If you loved the kitchen and pantry, wait until you see our New Hope mudroom and laundry room! We wanted this space to be functional without feeling utilitarian, as well as elevated and tailored to suit the needs of a family with young children and a sweet dog.
New Hope mudroom and laundry room
When we first saw the existing mudroom and laundry room, they were two separate spaces. The mudroom was spacious, but was essentially a blank slate. With no storage or seating, it was simply a box.
It’s important to note that this is where the family enters their home from the garage breezeway. That means that anything coming in from outside goes through here; kids, dog, baby gear, outerwear, and shoes. Our concept began with one main priority: storage and functional surfaces that felt polished but practical.
For the mudroom side of the space, we designed a combination of custom open and closed cabinetry along the right hand wall pictured above. The size of the room was generous enough that the built-ins add a sense of coziness without being confining. A center bench seat makes the perfect seat for littles to take off or put on their shoes. Touch-open panel doors behind the bench keep things tucked out of sight but easy to grab.
We included closed cabinets at the top for seldom-used items that still needed a home, and made sure to ventilate the closed cabinetry designated for jackets and coats to prevent mustiness or dampness.
Replacing the existing tile with a more refined slate and adding elegant lighting and hardware gave the space a more polished feeling. We brought these elements into the new laundry area on the opposite side of the space for cohesion. The original laundry room was essentially a small closet located behind the mudroom. We broke through the wall to open it up and bring it together to create one functional zone.
Like the mudroom, the laundry room was tailored to the family’s needs. (We always say that no two clients use the same space in the same way!) Here, the cabinetry mirrors the mudroom built-ins directly opposite, but with some more individualized features. A drying rack is a must for most people, but taking it out, setting it up, and then putting it away can be annoying. Our solution? An integrated drying rack that pulls out to the left of the washer and dryer.
Generous cabinets offer storage for all laundry and cleaning needs right at hand. The honed quartzite countertops allow for sorting, folding, and stain treating with ease. Patterned cement tiles pick up on the countertops and floor while still feeling light and airy. The essential laundry room sink features two faucets, including a pull-down faucet that makes rinsing a snap.
Of course, we’ve been saving our favorite feature for now. The family’s beloved dog needed her own space, so they asked if we could add a custom dog crate for her in the laundry room. We designed one fit for the queen that she is; this is no ordinary crate!
More drawers here hold everything that she needs, along with extra soap and towels. The new bench seat next to the sink is just inside the door from the breezeway, offering an easy place to sit and remove wet or dirty shoes, or just put down bags to free up a hand.
We never thought it was possible to fall in love with a mudroom and laundry room, but this will always be one of our favorite designs. The combination of creative thinking, problem solving, and out-of-the-box design was so fun, and most importantly, we know that our clients love it too!
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Glenna Stone Interior Design is an award-winning Philadelphia interior design firm serving Philadelphia, the Main Line, and surrounding cities. Utilizing her background and training in interior design, architecture, and engineering, Glenna specializes in creating interiors for residential and commercial design settings. We invite you to visit our website, view our portfolio, and catch up on the latest interior design concepts on our blog!