This is the first in an occasional series featuring rooms in my parents’ charming Midwestern country house.

I’m excited to start this Country House series starring my family’s beautiful home set in the Indiana farmland! Every so often I’ll post another room of my mom’s creation. Today I’m starting with the laundry room. I’m having issues deciding what to do in my own laundry room (and when I say room I actually mean small area), so selfishly I wanted to begin here.

My mom has never been afraid to go bold. She loves color and uses it expertly in each room of her house. She says that when they moved in, the painters thought she was crazy because she had them paint one room red, one blue, one purple (my lilac bathroom I’m still in love with!), one yellow. She promised them she wasn’t actually starting a circus.

And I can tell you she knew what she was doing. Her house is tastefully colorful, layered, and cozy — the kind of cheerful place you feel that makes you feel right at home. You’ll see what I mean as the series continues.

She uses the green shelves above the washer and dryer for extra pitchers and vases. The open shelving is great for storing pretty things.

These are fresh-picked flowers from her own garden that can be seen right outside the window.

Not too many laundry rooms boast this kind of view!

Stay tuned for the next room in the series, the master bedroom!