Familiar rituals

If there is any room that can lay claim to the title of work horse, it's the laundry. Here the familiar domestic rituals of washing, ironing, sorting and folding are carried out, week after week so creating a space that's easy and enjoyable to work in is imperative.

Jan Nienaber, the owner of this laundry, wanted the room to complement her new Provene§al-style kitchen, while accommodating numerous appliances and generous storage space for her laundry and wet weather gear.

The result is a room that looks and feels as old as the rest of the Victorian house. The laundry's hand-painted ash cabinetry and heavy marble benchtops also feature in the kitchen, as do the white tiles behind the butler's sink. With their varying shapes and sizes they evoke pre-industrial craftsmanship as do the walls, which are hand-painted in a French wash to give a subtle texture to the surfaces.

Aesthetics aside, designer Jos van Bree set out to create a practical laundry that makes best use of the available space.

"I started by putting the main work area, with the sink, ironing board and ice maker, near the sash window," he says. "This gives good task lighting, while giving the owner views of her fernery. Pale surfaces throughout the room also give enough reflected light in the storage areas for finding and sorting items easily."

Large storage cupboards run alongside one wall to the stacked washing machine and dryer. The cupboards reach almost to the ceiling, with a small gap to accommodate the deep coving. Two cupboards next to the washing machine allow the owner to sort clothes into whites and colours before washing. Ventilation keeps the room dry throughout the year, while underfloor and central heating keeps the room cosy in winter.

Story by: Alison Wall