How to Nest for Less™

Stenciled Washer and Dryer

in Home Décor, Product Reviews on

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I’m in the process of giving my Laundry Room a makeover and I’d really REALLY love to get a new front load washer & dryer to jazz up the space, but… well, I’m broke.

stenciled-washer-dryer1So instead of stenciling my Laundry Room wall as initially intended, I decided to give my 7 year old washer & dryer a bit of a facelift and breathe some new life into these old friends of mine.

After hours of grazing through all the fabulous stencil options from Royal Design Studio, I finally decided the Donatella Damask. Swoon!

I centered the thick plastic stencil on the front of my dryer and stuck it in place with some painter’s tape. Now it’s time to start painting!

I used a little cabinet and trim roller to apply my paint. I actually chose to use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Country Grey since I knew it would be a fabulous color contrast against the white metal.

The first panel was up and I was extremely happy with the result so time to move onto the next section. The pattern repeats so I just had to line up the edges, tape up again, and continue painting my pattern.

Once I was finished painting the entire washer and dryer, I sealed the Chalk Paint to the surface with some polyurethane so it doesn’t scratch off the slick metal surface.

stenciled-washer-dryer1
And I couldn’t be happier with the final result!

stenciled-dryer-detail

stenciled washer and dryerSee the entire Laundry Room Reveal here.

 

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Comments

  1. Lori Young says

    Erin it looks great!! Fun way to spruce up your old appliances!!~ Lori

      • Leigh-Ann says

        Your washer and dryer look fabulous! Don’t waste you money on those high end front loaders. Worst purchase I ever made. I threw mine out and now have the good “old fashioned” kind and couldn’t be happier. Although, painting mine might make me happier…

      • howtonestforless says

        Haha, thanks for the advice Leigh-Ann. I’ve been hearing a lot of bad things about the front loaders recently. Luckily mine are still working great!

  2. Megan Brooke says

    What a cute idea!! Now your washer and dryer look brand spanking new 🙂

  3. katie says

    WOW! I would have never thought to stencil a washer and dryer! These turned out fab!!!

  4. Shirley says

    WOW! I would never have thought in a million years to do something like this! I guess I’m the type who has always just accepted how dingy laundry rooms can be! And I’m with you on the broke part, so no new washer/dryer set for me either! But this is a fantastic idea. Especially for someone like me whose laundry room is actually part of the mud room and visitors DO have to walk through it. Thank you for sharing this! (you did a fantastic job by the way!)

    Shirley
    http://www.etsy.com/shop/ABowForMama

    • howtonestforless says

      Thanks Shirley! Yes, we are always walking through our mud room/laundry room. It’s our main door! So of course I wanted to make a grand entrance 🙂

  5. Tina says

    LOVE LOVE LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE!!!!!!! Never crossed my mind— I salute you for the coolest idea ever!!!!!

  8. Chelsea @ two twenty one says

    Awesome job, lady! Such a great way to jazz up a boring washer and dryer. Can’t wait to see the full laundry room makeover!

    • howtonestforless says

      Thanks girlie! Can’t wait to show you next Monday… although the washer & dryer are the best part 🙂

  9. Jordan says

    Oh my gosh!
    That is seriously the most clever thing I’ve seen! I have actually thought about what it might look like if you could paint your washer a dryer a different color. But I didn’t think it was actually possible.
    What kind of polyurethane do you use?
    Thanks for sharing!
    -Jordan 🙂

  11. Sandra says

    Beautiful, and not something I would have thought of, I love it.

  12. Shona says

    Erin, that is so stinkin’ cute! I feel your pain about not having a new set, but who needs it with this idea!! I love how you did the door on the washer and left the door on the dryer plain – really cute! Thanks so much for sharing!

    • howtonestforless says

      Thanks so much Shona! I had actually painted the dryer door at first but thought it was too busy. I like it so much better now! Thanks so much for visiting 🙂

  13. Lisa Conforto says

    What a marvelous idea! It looks wonderful, and the color is very suitable. Out of all the painting projects iv’e seen this is the winner. I’m going to have to be a copy cat on this one, thanks for the inspiration. You have brought a lot of style to your appliances!

  14. Karen R says

    Wow! I would never have thought of stenciling my washer and dryer, but they look great! What a fun idea.

  15. Jillian says

    Love it! Can’t wait to try it on my old washer and dryer! I was wondering if you need to put a primer on the metal first?

    • howtonestforless says

      Nope! No primer needed, but you definitely need a protective top coat to seal in the paint and to protect it from chipping.

  16. Stacye Hixson says

    Erin, I have to say you are ingenious. I would have never thought of stenciling my w/d. Kudos! It is beautiful.

  18. Taunnie says

    Wowza! How clever are you? I am in the same boat-old W&D but not money. I just hide mine behind a curtain because I have never thought to paint them. Now you got my head spinning with ideas. Thanks so much for the inspiration!

    • howtonestforless says

      You’re welcome Taunnie! Good luck with yours. Send me a pic if you decide to do something!

  19. Beth says

    What an excellent idea. Thanks for the great idea! I have very similar equipment in my laundry room. I went and bought the same stencil.

    • howtonestforless says

      Awesome Beth! Good luck with your project. Send me a pic when you’re done 🙂

  20. Ansley @ VivaciouslyVintage.com says

    OMG I love this! I’ve seen people do the polka dots, but you took it up like 100 levels! Sometimes I wish I had old stuff so I could do fun things with them! My hubby is one where if he bought it, then I had better not touch it!!! lol.

  23. Suzan says

    Would never have thought of this in a million years!
    Fabulous idea – and makeover!

  24. cassie says

    those are SO fun! what a neat idea! i would love to hear how it holds up over time, too. if it does well, there may be hope for my washer and dryer, too. cuz i’m kinda broke, too.

  25. Michelle@Faith, Trust & Pixie Dust says

    Wow, I love your ingenuity! Your project turned out fantastic. Popping over to your great blog from Home Stories A2Z.

    Warmly, Michelle
    PS – If it makes you feel better, my friends who have those “front load” appliances don’t like them!

  26. Rose Wilde says

    Erin! I nust have missed your post on this. I just saw it shared by Melanie Royals on the Chalk Paint(TM) private message bosrd! What a great ideas. You Rock!
    Rose Wilde
    Wood Icing

    • howtonestforless says

      Thanks so much Rose! You’re too sweet. I need some more paint so I’ll be seeing you next week!

  28. SJ@Sweeter Still says

    What a great idea! I would never have thought of this but it looks so cool. The whole laundry room redo is awesome.

  30. Tammy @ P K Glitz says

    This is such a fantastic idea! Thanks so much for sharing it. I too would LOVE a set of front loading machines but alas, we just haven’t been able to swing it either. I am definitely going to keep this idea in mind and start looking for the perfect stencil pattern for my machines as well 🙂

  31. Linda @ it all started with paint says

    Okay, that is such a clever idea to hide my hideous and old washer and dryer! They still work so they’re staying put … but maybe I can make them look better too!

    Thanks for the inspiration!

    🙂

    Linda

  32. KC says

    I did not even know this was possible. It’s something I never thought of! I LOVE this idea! 🙂

  33. Brandy says

    I love the stencil you used, looks so good!

  35. jessica kick says

    COULD YOU JUST USE CONTACT PAPER?

  36. Jenna Simpson says

    I absolutely love this pattern and the final results! I had a question, hopefully its not to silly. Obviously i am a very inexperienced painter, I worry about the paint chipping or scratching off with wear and tear? Is there a clear cot or anything needed that wasn’t mentioned in the tutorial? Or a clean coat is not necessary with the right paint?

    • howtonestforless says

      It will scratch a little bit, but mine actually withheld normal wear and tear wonderfully! I wouldn’t suggest the Annie Sloan wax since it will melt with warmer temps on your dryer. If you’re worried maybe try a wearable latex enamel paint, like Sherwin Williams ProClassic brand. Hope that helps!

  37. Abby says

    Love this! Definitely including this idea in my laundry room makeover. You have the EXACT same layout as our laundry room/mudroom. A couple questions – did you have trouble with the paint leaking under the stencil and smudging when you moved the stencil to a different spot? Did you have to wait for the painted area to dry before moving on to a different spot?

    • howtonestforless says

      Thanks Abby! No, I didn’t really have much trouble with bleeding paint. I used a thicker paint (Annie Sloan Chalk Paint) which doesn’t tend to run. Also, it dries very quickly since you’re doing light coats when stenciling. I was able to move the stencil pretty much immediately and place in the next row. Hope that helps!

  39. Stephanie says

    Love! Do you think spray paint would’ve worked with the stencils?

    • howtonestforless says

      Yes I do! The only thing I would worry about is the paint build up on the stencil and it staying tacky.

  40. teri says

    How did this technique hold up over time???

    • howtonestforless says

      Held up pretty wonderfully. Can’t go scratching it because it is paint on metal, but overall wear and tear was not noticeable.

  41. Stacy says

    OMG! Thats The most fabulous washer and dryer I’ve ever seen I am in fact going to go do it tomorrow mine right this second. And you said you didn’t have the money to get cabinets but honestly I think it looks much better with the shelves and I’m thinking about pulling out my cabinets and just hang the shelves that is the most beautiful wonder my oversaw wonderful job thank you for sharing

  42. Janice says

    Why did you not stencil the dryer door? I am just wondering if there is a functional reason.

    • howtonestforless says

      I figured with all of the opening and closing of the door, it would be the first area to get scratched and dinged up. Plus I liked the contrast 😉

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