Jennifer Laing

Laundry's hard enough to do in a city deprived of apartments equipped with their own washers and dryers. Harder still when the number of Laundromats are shrinking. Adding kids to the equation seriously complicates the task: The weekly load allotment jumps to three or more, the job no longer easily accomplished on the fly. (Who watches the kids while you race down to the laundry room or out to the laundromat?) Here, how New York families deal with their dirty duds, and why you shouldn't necessarily be envious of those who seem to have a better laundry set-up  than you:

We recently wrote about Fountain, an app that helps solve home- and garden-related problems by instantly connecting users to a live expert via smart phone. The idea is you get access to an architect, general contractor, plumber, appliance specialist, master gardener or interior designer for a 15-minute chat that, at $7 a consult, costs a fraction of an actual house call. (The first call is free.)

Most New York City bathrooms are cramped, functional spaces containing near-identical fixtures—the requisite sink, toilet, shower (or tub, if you're lucky)—so we really appreciate a home that devotes space and style to its loo. Here, we’ve rounded up apartments with some seriously impressive WCs. And while the size and style of the room won’t affect the business performed within, it will make getting the job done a bit more pleasant.