Vibrant & Bright: Laundry Closet Reveal

I cannot believe how much time I spend doing laundry! This little hall closet needed some TLC and the wallpaper was love at first sight!

I had been on the hunt for a soft and subtle wallpaper, but Andrew and I didn’t agree on some of the florals I was picturing for the space. One day I was scrolling away on Instagram and saw Rifle Paper Co’s peacock wallpaper and that was it! Andrew said “yes” and I clicked “buy now”.

A few years ago Andrew removed the white wire shelf and installed a cabinet and hanging rod. Since then we moved the laundry room back to the top of the to-do list. Once our wallpaper installer confirmed a date, we started right away on finishing out the rest of the laundry closet. Typically, I would jump right into a DIY, but I have never wallpapered before and this laundry room is tiny—tons of things to work around, plus I really wanted the ceiling done too!! Someday, I would love to wallpaper the guest room closet and maybe since it’s a nice easy, straight wall, it would be a good learning experience. But not this time!

The Process

Andrew cut down a butcher block countertop to use as a folding station above the washer and dryer—we lose laundry beside and behind the machines too often
He built a little shelf using a primed 1x4 and a 1x6 to hide the gap and water valves for the washing machine
Andrew installed cleats along the walls to support the countertop and back shelfcabinet

I had paint matched to the darkest green in the wallpaper and painted the walls and cleats
We used gel stain on the butcher block and then applied a satin topcoat
After the finish cured, Andrew installed the countertop with screws to keep it securely in place

I caulked the edges of the countertop and painted the caulk the same color as the wall
The back shelf got a nice coat of white paint to match the wall shelf—it sits in a nice little grove and is removable in case we need to access the electrical and plumbing behind the machines
Lastly, the wallpaper installer came—she even covered the switch and outlet plates *swoon*