Designers

Best Mudroom or Laundry Room 2021 Winner

The homeowners needed a multipurpose space that could handle laundry, crafts and a family work space. The room needed to be durable without sacrificing style to keep it connected to the rest of the family’s home.

by Colin Shea Denniston

Sep 2021

Photo by Jeremy Mason McGraw, Global Image Creations

WINNING DESIGNER: Interior Designer Nathan Taylor, Owner & Principal Designer of Obelisk Home

Project Goal Summary

In this new construction, the focus for designer Nathan Taylor of Obelisk Home was on creating a multipurpose live, work and play space for a family of four. The room features a generous laundry area, desk to house the family computer and enough space for a pop-up crafting station. There is also a broom closet so that, according to Taylor, “everything that you would need for cleaning and laundry was all in one room.”

Flexibility was a key element in Taylor’s design. “I think one of the most important things if you’re creating a space, maximize its usability. There’s definitely so much usable space. That’s the thing that’s so great about it,” says Taylor. The room serves many functions for the family and can be reconfigured based on their needs. One of the suggestions Taylor made was to make the layout of the room a bit wider to avoid any human traffic jams. That extra space allows the room to be multifunctioning. The family can set up a table in the center of the room during the holiday to create a gift-wrapping station. Additional storage above the family’s computer holds wrapping paper and craft supplies.

Taylor’s thoughtful design turned what could be a utilitarian space into an inviting extension of the family’s home. Patterned floor tiles and blue cabinets add warmth, and the wide central space keeps the room from ever feeling too crowded. Open shelving gives the room a feeling of lightness and provides the homeowners a place to display their children’s art. “There’s no door on the laundry room either and we did that intentionally because we wanted it to feel like it was just part of the space,” says Taylor.

Photo by Jeremy Mason McGraw, Global Image CreationsBy creating a space to tuck the laundry carts under the counter, the center of the room remains flexible and open.