Tile For Laundry Area, New Paint Samples & New Foyer Plan
I’ve spent so much time in Lowe’s over the last few days, and on one of my trips over the last weekend, I happened to wander down the tile aisle. I wasn’t necessarily looking for tile, but I like looking at their tile when I’m in there because their selection is much better than the selection at Home Depot. I’ve kind of had it in the back of my mind for quite a while now that I’d love to do something in the laundry area of my closet to set that section apart from the rest of the room, and tiling the walls might be the perfect way to do that.
I didn’t really have high hopes that they would have anything that would work for my closet, but they did! One tile in particular caught my eye, and it was this beautiful, shiny tile, the color of which I would describe as a light grayish blue-green color.
I purchased four pieces and brought them home hoping that they would coordinate with the wallpaper, and while they don’t exactly match any of the colors in the wallpaper, I do think they coordinate beautifully. They wouldn’t be right next to each other. They would be separated by a paint color.
So my plan is to use this tile on the section above the washer and dryer, as well as the whole wall with the window. That will bring a separation to the laundry area while also tying the two sections of the room together.
So the tile would go on these walls…
While I love the tile with the wallpaper, I didn’t like it at all with the previous two paint samples I had tested out for the room. So while at Lowe’s, I also picked up a few Valspar paint samples. As it turns out, they had a much wider selection of colors in the blue-green family as well. I brought home a stack of about ten, and then very quickly narrowed it down to three. I painted them on the wall in such a way that the previous two colors would still show, so it looks a bit confusing right now. But the three new ones are the smaller rectangles, and from left to right, they are Annabelle, Matt on Monday, and Soft Shore.
Here’s what Annabelle looks like with the tile…
And here’s Matt on Monday with the tile…
And here’s Soft Shore with the tile…
From the beginning, I was rooting for Matt on Monday (the middle one), for obvious reasons. 😀 And I think it’s my favorite with the tile!
The lighting in this room is terrible right now, so I did some screenshots of the paint colors from the Valspar website. Here they are in the same order — Annabelle, Matt on Monday, and Soft Shore.
If I choose one of these colors, it will actually get me closer to the final mockup that my mom did for me, which is the one I liked the most.
In the meantime, I’ve also made a final decision about what I’m going to do in the foyer. When I shared the paint samples I had chosen for the bedroom suite foyer, several people suggested that I carry the grasscloth from the bedroom into the foyer. I really pushed against that idea initially because, for some reason, I wanted the foyer to be set apart as a separate space from the bedroom. Plus, I had my heart set on making that little hallway white with trim on the walls and the ceiling.
So in my mind, if I used the grasscloth in the foyer, I would want it to be different from the bedroom. Not that I would use a different grasscloth. That’s not what I mean. But I would want it to be used differently, as in, a full floor-to-ceiling application in the foyer, with the all white (creamy white) hallway with lots of trim, and then the bedroom with the creamy white wainscoting on the bottom and grasscloth on the top.
But two things kept me from going with that idea. First, it had been the plan to eventually close up the bathroom doors and have a solid wall there. I didn’t want to put wallpaper in the foyer now and then have to redo it in the future once those doors are closed up. But just recently, I made the decision to keep the doors there and eventually turn that room into a storage closet for the master bedroom suite. So I no longer have to worry about having to redo wallpaper in the foyer in the future.
Also, we have a cat. And that kitty has claws. I’d be scared to use grasscloth on the lower parts of the walls in the foyer because she would inevitably realize that the grasscloth makes a perfect scratching pad. She already gets very curious every time I unroll the grasscloth, and she comes sniffing and rubbing up against it. So I ruled the idea of a floor-to-ceiling application immediately and decided to go with paint in the foyer.
But then the floors were finished. And ever since then, I’ve realized that I really do love how the foyer flows right into the bedroom without anything separating the two areas. That finished flooring made such a huge difference in how I view these areas now.
So after giving it a lot of thought and consideration, I’ve decided to carry the same wall treatment — creamy white wainscoting on bottom and grasscloth on top — from the bedroom into the foyer and forgo the idea of separating the two areas with a white trimmed out hallway. Over the last few days, I’ve gone from just toying with the idea to being really excited about the idea. That means that I’ll have to purchase more grasscloth, and I was initially concerned about getting grasscloth from a new dye lot. (I haven’t checked yet to see if they have more of the same dye lot yet.) But if I have to use grasscloth from a different dye lot, at least it will all be used in the same area. I already have enough for the whole bedroom, so the new dye lot can all go in the foyer. That way, if there’s a slight difference, I can just chalk it up to different lighting. 😀
And because I’ll no longer be separating the foyer from the bedroom with a creamy white trimmed out hallway, that also means that I’ll be making a change to my plan for the doorway into the closet and laundry area. I still don’t plan to put a door on the closet, but I will be adding a standard-height top door jamb and trimming out this doorway just like I trim out all of the other doorways in the house. That’s no big deal. It’ll just take a 2×4, a couple of pieces of drywall, and some drywall tape and mud to make that happen. And the work I paid the contractor to do on this doorway won’t be lost because the bulk of what he did was reframe it so that it was centered in the room and centered with the window in the room.
So with all of that said, I got the grasscloth out and tacked it to the wall just outside the closet so that I could see it with the new paint samples. I’m still leaning towards Matt on Monday in the middle. It’s definitely a grayer blue-green color than what I had originally chosen, which you can see just below it. The original color I had selected was Behr Clear Vista.
So that’s the direction I’m heading. Grasscloth and wainscoting carried from the bedroom into the foyer, a closet doorway trimmed out with my standard trim, Matt on Monday on the closet cabinets, and a beautiful, shiny, grayish blue-green tile in the laundry area of the room.
All of my supplies should be delivered tomorrow so that I can get started, and the electrician will be here on Friday. I almost wired that outlet myself, but after talking to the electrician about it, and sharing information with him about the dryer I have, he actually suggested that I need new wiring so that I can have a four-prong outlet instead of the three-prong outlet I’ve been using. So I’m not even going to try to DIY that myself. I’ll just wait for him to do it, and then I’ll have a working dryer by this weekend!
We’re off to a very slow start, but things are about to get rolling on this project. Once everything is delivered, and the new wiring and outlet are in place, I can finally get off the starting block and get busy!
The A2D Daily:
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
I’m really surprised you’re leaning into grayish hues.
I love it. And you could call it Matt on Tuesday, and it is still a great color. I liked that one from the start. I can’t wait to see it all come together. Have fun, breathe in and out, stretch, get a walk in and then get ready to rumble.
Cheers to you both!
I love the paint name! Lol However, I find the color to have a bit of a gray undertone. I love the grays but you have always gravitated to a more warm undertone. I think it will look lovely. I just wonder if you will actually like this color when it is on the whole wall. As always I look forward to seeing your vision come to life!
Sheila F.
Hey Kristi- I love getting your posts every day in my email. It definitely is a bright spot to learn from your journey.
I noticed that your washer and dryer are opposite from each other instead of next to each other. I would love to understand your choice in this. Personally, I would find it hard to take wet, laundry out, twist around and get it over to the other wall to dry it. Look forward to your thoughts. Thanks again for sharing your journey with us.
It’s a symmetry thing. Both appliances are much deeper than the cabinets will be (by about a foot), so keeping that back laundry area symmetrical, and placing them on opposite walls, allowed me to have a much larger island in the middle of the closet area. And since my goal is to squeeze as much usable storage into this room as possible, I really wanted that island to be as big as possible. By placing them on opposite walls, that allows me to have a six-foot island in the middle of the closet area. If I had placed the washer and dryer side-by-side, the island would have to be much smaller (about three feet instead of six feet) in order to keep an appropriate walking distance between the island and the dryer. I hope that makes sense. I may live to regret my decision, but time will tell. 😀 I’ll moving both appliances away from the wall and building cubbies around them and countertops on top to give them that built-in look, so I don’t think the distance between the front of the washer and the front of the dryer will be much wider than the window when all is said and done. I think it’ll work out fine. Hopefully, I don’t regret my decision, but only time will tell!
If it is burdensome to move the laundry you could get/build a wheeled cart–a cuter version of what they have at laundromats–to move the heavy wet clothes to the dryer. It could live tucked under the window. I know that I drop socks and underwear all over the floor every time I move laundry and I’m just moving it from the washer bottom to the dryer on top!
I was just thinking that! I think that would be a really cute It could be really adorable. She is so good at coming up with adorable ideas maybe in a pop Color to match the wallpaper. Thanks for your thoughts Kristi !
Either way beats a fire and a washboard down by the river! 😁
You made me laugh. You are so right!
Ha! So true! 😀
I had a very similar colour in my bedroom for ages and I loved it! It is very calming and peaceful and the right amount of colour to make my heart sing but not too intrusive in a closet where you will be choosing outfits in many colours. I cannot wait to see it come to life in your closet!!
Oh, I think incorporating the foyer into the bedroom will look amazing. Much more cohesive than treating them as separate rooms. I think you’ll like it. Acres and acres of wainscotting and grasscloth! It will look so good!
I really love that paint color much better and beautiful tile.
I’m still stuck on the 2nd aqua green mock-up your mother did for the closet/laundry room combo. It really set the wallpaper off and brightened the room up compared to these moody blue/grays. I’m a bit disappointed, but understand it’s what works for you. All the best!
What is the name Of the tile please?
Here it is: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Boutique-Ceramic-Stone-Hearth-3×12-Sky-Blue/5005414957
I love that you are adding videos to your blogs. It really helps bring everything to 3D and it’s so friendly too. I love the grasscloth flowing from the hallway/vestibule into your bedroom! I also think that tile is going to beautiful in your closet!
I love all of these developments! Matt on Monday is just too good! ☺️
I was rooting for Matt on Monday as soon as you said the names in the other post – I’m sure you have no bias at all 😉 I would love for one of my paint colors to include a loved one’s name! And I’m a teal girly myself – so shifting to a slightly greener blue, instead of bluer, I was all for! I can’t wait to see how this progresses. (the floors look AMAZING)
Love that tile! Funny that in CA, our HD has more tile samples than Lowes
I would love in our bathroom. Off to Lowes!
I like the idea of the whole space being unified over chopped into foyer/hall/bedroom. Really love the pic with the cat ready to pounce on the grasscloth in the foyer. LOL.
I love that the foyer walls will be the same as the master bedroom walls. I think it will make the master bedroom look so much bigger! Just about any of those colors would probably work with the wallpaper, but the name Matt on Monday is just toooo good to pass up, lol. Question: will Matt be able to navigate his wheelchair in the closet with the island in the center?
Shes said before, he won’t need to be in the closet. I think his clothes are mostly folded.
Matt won’t ever need to get into this closet.
Have you considered how it will work having the washer door and dryer door open at the same time across from each other? Which way will they each open and will they bump each other?
Love your idea of grass cloth in the foyer and the cohesive look for your main bedroom suite!
Yes, I’ve done all the measurements and have considered all of that. They won’t be so close that the doors will touch when they’re both open.
“So after giving it a lot of thought and consideration, I’ve decided to carry the same wall treatment — creamy white wainscoting on bottom and grasscloth on top — from the bedroom into the foyer” YAY!!! I’m so excited to see you go this direction! It will be GORGEOUS!
I wanted Mat on Monday to win, but I found I liked Soft Shore with the tile better. Will you tile before moving g the W/D in?
Looks like a beautiful plan
I’ll be building the cubbies first, and then tiling since there’s no need to have tile below countertop level. I’m not sure yet when I’ll move the washer and dryer into the room, but I’m hoping it will be within the next few days!
Hi Kristi, Maybe it’s the colour in my computer, but when I look at your tile and wallpaper, the tile matches the background…beyond the flowers and leaves. It is so pretty! God bless.
Linda D.
Do you ever wonder who names paint colors?
I wonder that all the time! And are there people for whom naming paint colors is their sole job? That would be a fun job to have! 😀
LOVE LOVE this! Especially the new Matt color it will all be so beautiful, as per your usual. I don’t like to say “I can’t wait” but I really can’t. It is so pleasurable to me now that I can no longer do anything such as painting etc at 73yo that I can live vicariously through you. I am so excited
Love the idea for the foyer, and also the paint color. I was waffling between Annabelle and Matt on Monday ( odd name, but not for you!) So excited for the progress, I can imagine how excited YOU are!
Hey Kristi, I have found that paint colors I have selected look different, moodier, grayer if there is gray in the color to start with. Paint the Matt color sample on one wall and paint the facing wall with Annabelle and see how the color acts using a very large swatch. Since all your closet systems with be this color please make sure the color stays brighter. Ask your mother for help, she is great with this type of decision.
I think installing the wainscoting and grass cloth throughout the bedroom, hallway and foyer will make the spaces look larger and flow nicely. I’m wondering why you would spend the time and money on installing tile in the laundry area when there will not be a sink to splash on the walls. The photos of the tile installed on walls on the Lowe’s website appear very splotchy. That may not be how it looks in person. Have you tacked the grass cloth and the floral wallpaper on the wall next to the Matt on Monday painted on your wall and stood back to look at them? I have found that viewing larger samples from a distance will give you a better idea of what they will actually look like in an entire room. I’d consider hanging the happy floral wallpaper you have for the closet area in the laundry area. I would like door on the closet so I wouldn’t be looking into it from the foyer area.
Would you please share the name of the tile?
It’s this one: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Boutique-Ceramic-Stone-Hearth-3×12-Sky-Blue/5005414957
I love how this is coming together! You are too hard on yourself sometimes. Don’t get discouraged about taking your time to make decisions on details. It seems to me that you do have a clear idea about the overall look you are going for, and are being consistant with it. You aren’t paralyzed into being unable to make decisions, so just enjoy the process. Sometimes it is better to take your time and let ideas develop as you look at options, and I don’t think you have strayed far afield of your vision at all. It is better to do that now than to rush into something and then have regrets about something you have spent so much time and effort to bring about.