Laundry

How this family have re-built a beautiful laundry after an arson attack

Article by Your Home and Garden

After an extensive arson attack left their house damaged, this resilient family have completely re-built. Take a look at their new, stylish laundry below

Meet + greet

Donna Grigor, 45 (approx!), owner of Grigor Construction, which works with Golden Homes building new homes in Franklin, Manukau, Pukekohe, Waiuku, Papakura and Beachlands.

Why have you installed a new laundry? Our Golden Homes Show Home in Drury, southern Auckland, fell victim to an extensive arson attack last year (it was one of 14 houses and a school that were damaged or destroyed). We have completely rebuilt the show home including, of course, the laundry.

What was your brief? Good bench space, cupboards for detergents etc, pull-out laundry bins, a clothes rail to hang ironed shirts and clothing on, and a tall cupboard to store an ironing board, brooms and mops but with shelving too. We also wanted to get the washing machine and dryer off the floor so you don’t have to bend down to use them.

Were consents required? We needed a building consent for a new dwelling.

How long did it take? The whole house took nearly eight months to rebuild.

Where did you go for design inspiration? We wanted the laundry to be as practical as possible and to look good as well. We sourced our tiles from MC Tiles and the owner, John Ryan, and his staff gave us great advice, suggestions and service. They have a fabulous range of the latest colours and tile trends.

How did you decide on your colour palette, tiles and finishes? We wanted the flooring and surfaces to be hard-wearing and they needed to blend in with the rest of the house.

Why did you choose a tiled floor? Tiles are durable and can cope with muddy shoes or water spillages.

You raised the appliances off the floor. What did you do with the space underneath? We put in two big drawers where I keep all the cleaning cloths.

Honesty box

What do you love most about the new laundry? There’s lots of workable space, and I love the clothes rail and the pull-out bins for the laundry baskets.

Any tips on designing a good laundry layout? It needs to be designed around how you like to operate in that room. For instance, do you prefer cupboards, pull-out drawers or shelves?