One of the things our house was missing when we moved in was a place to store coats and backpacks in the entry way. There was no coat closet, and no built-in storage of any kind (poor design by the builder in my opinion). So what this led to was me having to use a basket near the stairs that quickly overflowed and just looked messy all the time. Plus, I had one child in particular who no matter how much I told him not to, would still throw his bag right in the middle of the floor when you walk in (I have since squashed that one).
Anyway, I told my husband that I wanted to have a small bench and cubby area with hooks using a small corner in our laundry room that was otherwise not being utilized. It was behind the laundry room door, so we just removed the door (so far that isn’t bothering us at all). I looked up some ideas on Pinterest of course to be able to show him what I was thinking. I am so happy with how it turned out!
The laundry is right off the kitchen, and enters into the garage, so it’s not right by the front door, but it has been working very well nonetheless! The kids know to walk all the way in and put their bags on their hooks and hang their coats. (You can see he added some hooks on the other wall for coats.)
I added a calendar which used to be by our fridge, and it looks so much better to not have it there anymore. This is sort of our command center now.
I also added the hanging file baskets for their paperwork that seemingly comes home daily. I had this in the front of the house as well before. The idea is that they empty their folders each day with papers I need to see or sign so I can get to them when I have a free minute in the evenings. I also let some of their artwork and report cards, etc. sit here until I am ready to file them in their schoolwork storage boxes that I keep throughout the years. Those are stored in our upstairs hall closet. I try to file everything into those once a month to keep the file baskets from getting too full.
The storage bins at the bottom are plastic (sturdy) ones from Target. Right now one is holding their wellies (rain boots) and I haven’t yet decided what the other will hold. It will probably be seasonal (hats, random sports needs, etc.)
The little cave you see under the calendar is under stairs storage, but we use it as our dog den. His crate fits perfectly in there, as well as his food and water bowls. So that is why the door is off!
Anyway, I would love a larger mudroom storage area, but this is working really well and helps keep us organized as well as uncluttered in the main part of the house. I was getting so tired of walking into my house and not feeling that it was clean. This has made such a difference!
I would love to know what you think! Do you have mudroom storage? Is this something that would help you? If you don’t have a husband that is into carpentry and don’t want to spend money on a contractor, there are many DIY options for creating a space that functions for you – hooks, a small bench, cubbies, etc.
