Four Ways You Can Create a High Octane Mudroom

First of all, where is your mudroom?  If you don’t have space designed as a mudroom, where can you carve out some space to create one?   There are as a many mudroom designs as there are families.   The goal is to create a mudroom that works for you.

Ideally, your mudroom should be your entryway to your home – the door you use most often.  That could be from the garage, back door or front door.    What’s important is that it’s the entryway most often used by the family.

Keep in mind – your goal is to have a mudroom that makes it easy for you to come home – and easy to leave again.

Key to a successful mudroom is having the space it takes to store your outerwear efficiently when everyone is home.

1.      Mudroom closet or custom mudroom cabinets.  If you space can accommodate a mudroom closet or custom mudroom cabinets, great.  Mudroom closets or cabinets create opportunities for your family to help keep the mudroom neat.  Other mudroom organizers include:

2.      Hooks on the wall. Simple, powerful and functional!   You can put mudroom hooks across the wall in multiple rows to accommodate lots of coats, parkas and snow pants.    If you’ve got drywall, put your mudroom hooks on a horizontal “band board” so it’s anchored to studs to carry the weight.  Hooks spaced from 6”- 8” apart work fine.   Put some up higher for the adults and some lower for younger members of the family.  Allot some space to kids to hang up their backpacks.

3.      Mudroom Lockers.   If you’ve got the space, use mudroom lockers.  No, they don’t have to be the metal lockers of your school days.  Mudroom lockers can be wall space divided into “slots” using vertical dividers or you can use tall cabinets. Typically mudroom locker depth is one to two feet.  The width can vary. Put hooks on the back and sidewalls of the lockers to make more hanging space.  Use the upper spaces for hats, mittens and gloves and lower shelves for shoes and boots.  If you like the industrial look, then check resale shops to find old metal lockers that have been rescued from schools or gyms.  Some things to think about:

·         Does every family member get a mudroom locker?  If not, who shares?

·         Do you need extra lockers for baskets of hats, mitts or out of season shoes?

·         Do you want doors or no doors?  Open lockers are easier to use but don’t look as neat.  

4.      A Bench or Other Seating Area.   To be a high octane mudroom you need seating.  Benches, especially storage benches, are perfect.  Be sure your seating accommodates at minimum one person.

Quiz: Is Your Mudroom a High Octane Space?

Mudrooms are a place to make the final preparations to get out the door each morning.   They’re also the entryway that welcomes you and your family home at night.  Mudrooms of all types exist in homes today, but not all of them work.

A mudroom that doesn’t work for your family is almost worse than no mudroom at all.  By contrast a high octane mudroom can make your life simpler, easier and more organized.

Check Your Mudroom Style.   Choose the answer that best describes your family’s situation.

Coats:

1. My coats and all our family’s coats are hung in the mudroom.
2. I can find my coat but it’s folded over the sofa, my kids’ coats are on the floor of the mudroom and I have no clue where my spouse’s coat is.
3. Our coats never make it in the house.  They’re in the garage.

 Mittens, gloves, hats and scarves:

1. Mittens, gloves, hats and scarves are all stored in bins inside the storage bench in our mudroom.
2. I keep my kids mittens on strings through their coat sleeves so they don’t lose them.  Of course the teenagers don’t like it, but....  My gloves are with my purse and my husband’s are in his pocket but I haven’t seen any of our scarves lately and everyone’s wearing baseball caps again.
3. Mittens?  Gloves?  I just went shopping last week for more.  Scarves and Hats?   They won’t be on sale until next week.

 Keys:

1. They’re on the key rack right next to the door.
2. They’re in my purse, I think.  My husband’s – hey it’s his job to keep them where he can find them.
3. Keys?  I have several extra sets… if only I could remember where.

 Cell Phones:

A.    I put it on the charger as soon as I come in the door at night.   There’s a nice shelf by the door where I can plug it in and leave it.

B.     It’s always in my pocket.  Sometimes I even remember to charge it.

C.     Cellphone?  One of the kids dropped it in the fish tank.

Sunglasses:

1. I keep my sunglasses on the shelf by the door.
2. In a basket somewhere.
3. I’ll buy a new pair next summer.

Scoring:

If you answered with mostly A congratulations.  You have a high-octane mudroom and you’re using it the way it was meant to be used – to bring you joy, peace and harmony.

If you answered mostly B your mudroom could use some updating. 

If you answered mostly Cs it’s time for a total mudroom redo. 

If You Have Only One Home Improvement Goal This Year

Make it a well-organized, well-appointed mudroom that is you family’s entryway into the home.  A well designed and well organized mudroom can change your life and make getting out of the house in the morning so much simpler.

In my next blog I’ll talk about some of the things you can do to make your mudroom into a high octane space that functions for your family.

A Bench Adds to Mudroom Function, Bench Storage Adds Organization

A bench, especially one that offers bench storage, can make coming in out of the cold to your mudroom a distinct pleasure.   Benches offer a place to sit and remove boots.  Benches with storage provide a place to store hats, scarves, mittens and gloves – all the paraphernalia of a Northern Michigan winter.

Bench storage also makes it easier to get out of the house in the morning, minimizing the chaos and tears that go with lost scarves, hats and mittens.  Just open the bench storage lid, pull out what you need and you’re dressed and out the door.

I’m predicting that this decade’s prized home luxury will be a high octane mudroom.  The trend among families looking for homes today is to be very value conscious and to look for homes that offer only the space the family actually needs and make that space work spectacularly for their needs. 

Who is part of this trend?   Almost everyone.  The first baby boomers will turn 65 this year and with retirement comes a need for a smaller space.   Younger families who a few years ago may have wanted a McMansion – but who have seen friends lose their homes to foreclosure – are considering more modest properties.  

So why does this make mudrooms the prized luxury?  Because for busy people, the most precious luxury is time – and organized space is key to saving time.  Mudrooms can help your family be more organized and efficient.   Adding a mudroom or enhancing an existing one can make your travel in and out of the house each day easier and more enjoyable.  In future blogs we’ll talk about the elements that will make your mudroom high octane – a space that works effectively for you and your family.