Laundry Room Style Guide: Choosing the Best Materials for Durability and Design
The laundry room is the only space in the house where aesthetics must bow to durability and moisture resistance. The combination of high humidity, frequent washing, and heavy cleaning products demands materials that can withstand the environment without sacrificing style.
By ordering custom-cut panels, you have full control over the material selection, ensuring your cabinetry lasts for years while looking exactly how you want it to.
Here is a simple style guide for selecting high-performing materials for your custom laundry renovation:
1. Durability First: Why Moisture-Resistance Matters
Humidity is the enemy of standard cabinetry. When selecting the core material for your cabinet carcasses and drawer fronts, always prioritise stability and protection.
Choose the Right Core: Look for materials like HMR (High Moisture Resistant) MDF or plywood cores. These specialised materials are designed to minimise the swelling and warping that can occur when exposed to high moisture levels, ensuring your doors and drawers maintain a perfect fit.
Opt for Laminates: The surface of your panels should be tough and easy to clean. Melamine and Laminate (HPL) surfaces are excellent choices. They are non-porous and highly resistant to stains, moisture, and common cleaning chemicals.
2. Brightening the Small Space: Colour and Light
Laundry rooms are often small and lack natural light. Your colour choices can visually expand the space and make tasks easier.
Maximise Reflection: Light colours, especially crisp whites, soft greys, or muted pastels, are ideal. They reflect available light, making the room feel larger and brighter, which is essential when sorting clothes or dealing with stains.
Use Woodgrains as Accents: To prevent the room from feeling too clinical, introduce warmth with woodgrain laminates. Use them strategically on open shelving, benchtops, or as the custom kickboard/plinth to ground the design without overwhelming the small space.
3. The Edge Banding Detail
Edge banding (the thin strip applied to the raw edge of your panels) is a small detail that makes a huge difference in both aesthetic quality and durability.
The Durability Factor: Edge banding seals the core material against moisture ingress, which is critical in the laundry room. Ordering professional PVC or ABS edge banding ensures the panels are fully protected from the inevitable splashes and steam.
The Style Factor: You can choose banding that perfectly matches the colour of your laminate for a seamless, modern look, or you can choose a contrasting colour (e.g., black banding on a white door) to provide a modern, structural accent.
4. Benchtops and Backsplashes
The area most exposed to water and cleaners is your folding surface and the wall behind the sink.
Durable Surfaces: Select a durable laminate panel for your benchtop that can handle scrubbing and chemical exposure. By using custom-cut panels, you can create a perfectly fitted benchtop with a matching laminate backsplash that runs up the wall (a cost-effective, easy-to-clean solution that looks integrated and intentional).
Ready to Select Your Custom Laundry Materials?
Designing a durable, beautiful laundry room is easy when you have access to the right materials cut to your exact specifications. If you need HMR cores, durable laminates, and professional edge banding for your next project, the custom approach ensures both quality and style.
Talk to the team at Cutshop® to finalise your materials list.
