Gone are the days when the laundry room was tucked in a dark, dusty corner of the basement. Today's busy families are creating functional, beautiful utility rooms that make doing chores like folding and ironing clothes enjoyable and even relaxing. But if you're thinking about redoing your space, where do you start? Delta Faucet offers the following tips to help you create a laundry room you'll relish spending time in.

Think colour
Traditional laundry rooms had bland, white walls and no personality. But how much more relaxing would ironing countless shirts be if the space was serene and inspiring? Patterned wallpaper can hide imperfections and add a bundle of personality. Tiles are ideal for a laundry room – think wet, dirty clothes on the floor – but don't be afraid to choose something bright and make the floor a focal point. A mosaic tile floor? Why not?

Function is fabulous
Make the most out of your laundry room by building in a work space. Place a countertop over front-loading appliances to make the perfect folding station. Open shelving to house your detergent keeps them close by. Why not add a touch of elegance by storing your most-used items in glass jars, ceramic canisters or baskets?

The laundry room is a great place to store extra towels, cleaning supplies and paper towels. Built-in cabinets are the ideal solution and can help keep things organized. Affordable open shelves are perfect for a more casual space and keep things at your fingertips. If you are designing your laundry room from scratch, consider building a spot specifically to store a fold-away ironing board when not in use.

No matter what, the laundry room is still a room of utility and a place to get things done. But that doesn't mean you need to have bland appliances and fixtures. Look for coloured washers and dryers that compliment the colour scheme of your room to become a design focal point. Think outside the box when it comes to your sink: consider a stainless steel finish, an undermount sink, a larger white farmer's sink or an all-in-one sink that features built-in cabinets. Look for a faucet that will make the water station more functional. Delta's Linden faucet features a high arc spout as well as pull-out spray head with multi-flow technology allowing you to easily increase the stream to a high flow, so filling large buckets is quick and easy.

More information can be found online at www.deltafaucet.com.

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If you are in the market for a new laundry pair, chances are you've heard a lot of new terms as you walk the floor of your local appliance retailer: high-efficiency, top-load, front-load. Without a lot of information, it can be hard to navigate and even harder to be sure that you're making the right laundry choice for your family.

What is high-efficiency (or HE) laundry and what can my family expect?

• In the past, if you were looking for a high-efficiency laundry pair, a front-loading machine was the only option. A number of Canadians prefer top-loading laundry but have had to choose between high-efficiency or the easy-to-load ergonomic format of a top-load washer- manufacturers have listened. You can now have a high-efficiency laundry pair in the style that suits you best – top-load or front-load.

• A high-efficiency washer uses a lot less water, energy and detergent to clean clothes. With a high efficiency laundry pair like the Maytag Performance Series Front-Load Washer, there is 70% less water to heat, compared to conventional washers, so costs are cut right from the start.

• High-efficiency washers do not have an agitator to move clothes through the washing cycle. Instead of an agitator, clothes are tumbled through a much smaller amount of water. Because of this tumbling motion, the water level doesn't need to cover the entire load, so your clothes get completely clean while using less water.

• High-efficiency washers and their matching dryers have larger capacities, so you can get more clothes into a load. New models from Maytag like the Bravos High Efficiency Top-Load can hold up to 5.0 cubic feet of clothes in the washer and 7.3 cubic feet of clothes in the dryer so you can clean all your laundry in less loads each week, saving you time and money.

HE laundry pairs are the new standard when it comes to laundry choice, whether you're a front-load laundry fan or prefer a more traditional top-load team. Choosing an HE laundry pair, you can be sure you are making the right choice for your family, your wallet, and the environment.

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