Room of the Day: A Laundry So Cheery, Wash Day Is Wonderful

Who designs an entire house around a laundry room?

Michael Imber, that’s who. When the San Antonio, Texas, architect was hired to design Southern Living magazine’s Texas Idea House, he made the utility room the starting point for his design. Too often, Imber says, this space is treated like an afterthought, tucked in a corner with little light and uninspiring finishes. “As much time as people spend in their laundry room,” Imber asks, “why can’t it be as wonderful as the rest of their house?”

Photography by Tria Giovan for Southern Living

“I didn’t want it to feel like a laundry room,” says Imber, who incorporated a rough, beamed ceiling and ample windows to give the space the indoor-outdoor character of a potting shed. The cutout doorway adds a playful note. “I wanted to have fun with it,” Imber says.

The architect bathed the room in Sherwin-Williams’ Waterscape, a cool, calming shade that extends across the rough-sawn pine walls, ceiling and cabinets, enveloping the homeowners in its tranquil embrace. “Don’t be afraid to use the ceiling to evoke a feeling,” Imber says.

The same flat paint was used on all the surfaces, so that the cabinets would look more integrated into the room. (With today’s scrubbable flat paints, Imber notes, cleanup is not an issue.)


The counters are covered with soapstone, a material common to potting sheds. A cutout backsplash is a fanciful footnote and helps protect the wall from splashing.

Imber covered the floors with Texas Lueders limestone laid in a Versailles pattern. “Don’t get shoehorned into typical materials,” advises Imber. “Think of what you want the feeling of the room to be and choose the materials accordingly.”

Flooring: Lueders limestone in Buff with brush finish, Champion Stone


The laundry room is situated to take advantage of natural light, with casement windows and a Dutch door inviting the outside in. “Don’t think of it as utility space,” Imber suggests. “Think of it in proportion to the amount of time you spend in it.”

There’s not much you can do to make laundry fun. But with a room like this, the task would be a lot more pleasant — maybe even something you’d look forward to.

More: Previous Room of the Day

8 Ways to Make the Most of Your Laundry Room

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