Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Easy Laundry Room Decor

My laundry room is a small windowless box of a room. It really isn't a place I want to be- because 1- laundry is pretty low on my list of things I enjoy 2-the room was just blah. We are renting our home though, so I was not about to paint walls, cupboards and other things that are so popular now- I needed something simple and transportable and I came up with this.

And now how I did it.

The Sign

For the sign I used my use my silhouette to cut out the vinyl letters; you could use stickers, stencils or just paint it. The sign itself is the real bargain. I found it at Tuesday Morning, it was a sign that already had a different saying and hooks on the back, but it was all scratched up. But because of the scratches it only cost $3. I simply painted it all black, doing a couple of coats and then applied my own words. So check those thrift/discount stores!

The Photo Shoot

For the photo shoot I had to wait for a warm enough day to let my son be in his diaper outside. I do not have a clothesline or even a good place to hang up a line. My husband picked up a rope for me and I tied each end to my photo-stand poles (a swing set could work too). Unfortunately, once I started hanging the clothes on the line (used clothes from dirty laundry), the stands started tipping over- so I enlisted my two helpers.
Tips:
-Sun or Shade: You need to either shoot totally in the sun or totally in the shade- if you notice the area where I am shooting is totally shaded. If you are half and half you will get shadows and bright spots.

-Zoom in- There is obviously a lot of distracting objects all around, I do not want them in my picture, so I am getting in close to shoot, and you can always crop after the fact.

-Keep shooting- with kids they get distracted, don't always cooperate or smile, so just shoot, shoot, shoot
(very distracted)

-Get on their level-- if you are shooting kids you need to bend down and get on their level, sometimes I even lay on my belly-- otherwise you are going to get a lot of shots of the top of their heads, or a shot that makes them look smaller
(was squatting to take this picture)

-Wait for it- sometimes you just have to wait for those moments, it might not be what you were initially thinking, but a great moment in the end-Set it up- and don't be afraid to direct. I kept asking Ryder to bring me the laundry- "run and bring me another" I would say. I also wanted to get some shots of him just sitting, so I literally sat him down, asked him to sit and ran back and started shooting- and lo and behold it actually worked.

And also with setting up-set up your scene (clotheslines, clothes, etc) before you bring the kid in for the shoot- the less time they have to be doing what you want the better.
-Don't get mad- Kids not listening and doing what you ask? Get in line- it happens to all of us. When I am shooting my kids, I try and treat it as if I was shooting some clients. I would never even think of yelling at a client's kids if they weren't doing what I wanted, so why would I yell at my own? I want them to think it is fun when mommy takes their pictures as I am going to do it a lot anyway. So I make it fun, shoot fast and let it be done.

And now my little box of a laundry room
puts a smile on my face every time I go in.Now if only he really could do the laundry for me.


Linking up with IA and Shawn since it's Tuesday


And linking up with these awesome crafting parties.

PhotobucketTodays Creative Blog
It's Overflowing

26 comments:

  1. I'm FIRST!!! Because being first just rocks!! Ha Ha

    ReplyDelete
  2. Emmy I have to tell you that you just have the most darling children! These pictures are adorable and I totally love that what you did in the laundry room. It would definately make me smile to see pictures like this when I was doing a chore like...the dreaded laundry.
    I never have even thought of putting pictures in the laundry room. Great idea!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Very cute! I love the photos, and I'm glad you made this a "tip" post too.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love it! And I don't know if I love the photo shoot or the results better :) Great job momma!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Aww, what a good idea! If I had a real laundry room - and not just a garage - I would totally do this.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Those pictures are precious!

    My laundry room is fairly large but it has a door leading to the garage and a huge closet so my wall space is limited. It's decorated and painted but it needs more. I've seen a lot of things out there recently about laundry rooms, I think it's time for a make over!

    Thanks for sharing your tips of the trade, there are very helpful for people like me who have a great camera but no clue of what they're doing!

    Thanks for linking up Miss Emmy, you know we love ya!

    ReplyDelete
  7. That's what I need to do to livin' up my laundry room!! Ours has no windows and is right there by the garage. I thought about a window with mirrors to help make it feel more open but your idea of the kiddo's with the photo tips is a GREAT idea!!! Looks FAB!!! xoxo!! Your kids are so stinkin' cute!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. This post totally made me smile. It does look like a fun photo shoot though.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I LOVE this...the sign the pictures...everything.

    You're right...I have SO many pictures of the top of Charlie's head :/

    ReplyDelete
  10. that is a super cute Idea!! My laundry room is filled with my hub's tools and deer racks!

    ReplyDelete
  11. That is genius! The perfect way to make a boring laundry room way less boring. :)


    Princess Nagger and the Ruptured Eardrum

    ReplyDelete
  12. I don't even have a laundry room. Guess where my washer and dryer are?
    The garage. BLEH!
    Took me forever to figure out that I needed to get on their level to take good shots of the kids.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh Emmy....that is PRECIOUS! I love this!!! You're so creative! I want your brain. Wanna trade? Mine is horrible. =)

    Thanks for linking up with us. I'm sorry I haven't been by more often. I'm in full on kindle reading mode lately. I'll be back to blog reading soon enough! (I hope!)

    ReplyDelete
  14. It's all super cute, especially the kids!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love how you were so creative and figured out a fun way to do that photo shoot. It all came out SO cute!

    ReplyDelete
  16. So adorable!!! I wish I actually had a room for laundry but it's my nasty basement. Some day...awh yes, some day!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I really enjoyed your photo shoot tips! I would love it if you'd do more of these - maybe shoot tips, or just photography tips in general! I love reading about stuff like that!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Adorable kids and I think I need to decorate my laundry room...just not sure how yet. :)

    So happy to stop by your blog, please stop by and say hello at my blog as well and if you are not already a follower, please take the time to become one as well at http://jessicaslilcorner.blogspot.com

    Have a blessed day!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. I love that you tell us not to yell and to remember they never listen. Because they don't!!! I think what I have to remember is: it does not have to be perfect. And if I think that way, I will probably get some winners.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I love the pull back shots! Such a cute idea, my laundry is decorated with piles of dirty clothes.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I love this post!! It sums up just about everything I love about your blog. Thank you!!! (And your kids are just gorgeous!)

    ReplyDelete
  22. I love that sign and the pictures so much!! It's so adorable. I like your tips. I will keep those in mind when I'm taking pictures of my little Roo.

    ReplyDelete
  23. That is adorable! What a great photo shoot and the pictures turned out so nicely. Thanks for the good tips too.

    ReplyDelete
  24. These are darling! Great tips.

    I couldn't even tell you which shot is my favorite... except that I cannot.get.enough of those curls! :)

    ReplyDelete

ShareThis