6 Fresh Design Ideas for Utility Rooms

Flooring can have a big impact on the overall ambience of a room. From quirky tiles, rustic bricks or parquet wooden panels, you can create a distinct look and feel in any space. If your utility room is connected or is part of another space (like your kitchen), use the same type of flooring throughout to create a seamless flow between the two areas.

On the other hand, if you have a separate utility room, you could use visually high-impact tiles to make a statement. Or use brick flooring to give the space a unique and more subtle appearance that will only get better with time as it ages.

Flooring can add a new dimension to a room. And it doesn’t have to mean a costly installation. Use DIY skills to put down flooring yourself or paint existing floor tiles for a simpler refresh.

The utility room is a space that is usually less ventured for visitors, which means that you can be a bit more daring with your design choices here. It could even serve as a testing ground for trying out bold colours or unusual combinations before applying them to other areas of your home.

You could paint the walls or add cabinets in a distinctive colour or try combining hues and patterns in clashing combinations.

A tucked-away utility room can be a fantastic testing grounds for designs, from two-toned Wall Shelving all the way to bright, wall colours.

Adding extra shelving in the form of Adjustable Shelving or Freestanding Shelving can be both useful for organisation and design.

Using open and closed can provide both functionality and style to your utility room. Open shelving is a great way to show-off organised baskets and folded laundry, while closed shelving is perfect for hiding and storing away bulky cleaning supplies and other items out of sight.

If you prefer, you could choose to use only one type of shelving, such as wall-mounted shelves for smaller utility room spaces or freestanding shelves for rooms with more floor space. Using open shelving for either option is a great way to create a larger sense of space.

If you feel like patterns can be overwhelming in other rooms, try experimenting with wallpapers in a utility room space. You could do this as a feature wall; a half-and-half design with wallpaper from the ground up or ceiling down, or you could go all in and wallpaper all the walls.

However, if you want a patterned feature that is less commitment, why not use curtains? This could be curtains for your windows or for your cabinets. This look has come back recently, perfect for adding a cosy cottage feel! Cabinet curtains can be easily added to the front of open units and appliances using just a tension rod and fabric of your choice. And if you’re skilled with a needle and thread, you could even create the curtains yourself!

If wallpaper isn’t your thing, you could always mix patterns using different materials. The floor tiles, cabinets and walls each have a unique pattern that still work cohesively by using a neutral palette.

Don’t worry about creating a room with fully coordinating pieces. Mixing products in different colours can add character as well as versatility, like combining Wall Shelving and a Clothes Rail.

While a lot of inspiration pics can be all about creating a perfectly matching and coordinating space, the utility room is instead a great space to mix and match styles and items. Since utility rooms often mix and match different functions, such as a pet-friendly zone or boot room, it makes sense to add varied pieces to add character and purpose to the space.

You can use a contrasting materials and items, like wicker baskets for laundry organisation and wire shelving for storing cleaning supplies and Storage Boxes.

Washing machines and dryers are essential household appliances but they’re usually not something we want to show off. If you have your laundry space as part of another room, or even if you want to hide them in a dedicated laundry room, you can cleverly conceal them way by building them into your cabinets.

Alternatively, you could add cabinet curtains, as suggested in our earlier point or simply paint the wall and cabinets around the white to match, to make them seem as though they disappear. Light colours are also a great option for smaller rooms, creating a light airy space.

A crisp, white aesthetic never goes out of style and means that laundry appliances fit in smartly with the look.