Entry #380,  January 9, 2011

Even though your mudroom or front entry is supposed to house coats, shoes, and storage, doesn’t mean it should turn into a catchall of all the family’s possessions when you come through the door. In fact, mudroom organization will help your family get in and out the house quicker, and solve the “where’s my other glove’ syndrome!

Your front entry should be organized too!

There has been a huge trend for more poeple turning their front entry, laundry room, or side garage area into mudroom-type areas. In fact, Stagetecture’s mudroom post – Best of 2010 – #2: Mudrooms: A Place for Storage, Sitting and Slickers was the second most viewed post of 2010.

Today we continue organization month, with helpful tips from Martha Stewart on mudroom organization.

Mats and Benches

Place one inside and one outside the mudroom door to keep dirt at bay. You may also want to place a boot scraper at the mats’ sides. For all the changing of footwear that occurs in a mudroom, some form of seating is essential. Outfit your mudroom with a bench that has cubbyholes for storing useful items — towels to dry toes and mop up puddles, socks and slippers to change into — as well as sports gear and gardening tools that need to live close to the outdoors

Shelving

Even a narrow closet can pack a lot in. The L-shaped shelves in this closet (above, right) leave room for long items like vacuums and broom handles.

Mudroom organization is essential in shared areas

Wall Pegs and Boot Drain

Screw a line of pegs into chair rails (and upper rails, if you have them) to hold the family’s gear: umbrellas, leashes, gloves, jackets, scarves, hats, and bags. Cake pans and cooling racks from a bakery-supply house make perfect portable drying racks for wet shoes and boots. Boots may also be hung upside down to dry — just slip the heels between pairs of pegs installed close together.

Mudroom pet and boot areas can be concealed below seating

Mudroom Sink

A sink in a mudroom can handle jobs too messy or inconvenient for the kitchen sink: washing the dog, storing houseplants while you’re on vacation, soaking linens. A stainless-steel sink and counter will be easy to keep clean. A high shelf provides storage for seldom-used or seasonal objects; a ball of string and a chalkboard marked with frequently called numbers hang from pegs.

Under the sink, place metal bins for storing recyclables and vegetables that don’t require refrigeration, such as potatoes and onions; curtains of cotton shirting material will help hide them from view. If the area stays cool, this is also a good place for a wine cellar.

Simple triangular brackets and horizontal boards can support shelves that organize a jumble of boxes, books, pots, and favorite postcards.

A drop-leaf shelf is just the spot for unloading arms laden with groceries and mail. The shelf can be folded down when not in use.