Gabberts Design Studio If at all possible, I would highly recommend building "lockers" for each child, versus an open bench that will end up as a dumping ground. Put several hooks inside of each locker, one for coat, backpack, etc. That will help with the clutter. And kids will take ownership in keeping their locker clean. And be held responsible for where their property should go. Good luck!

feeny What do your kids' rooms look like? The rest of your house? If your house tends to be tidy (because its inhabitants tend to be tidy) then your nooks will be tidy too. If you are in an endless battle against household chaos, the nooks will become participants in that battle. In our household the compulsively tidy people happen to outnumber the messy ones, so tidiness wins out. (For some of us, tidiness is like breathing. We just pick up things without thinking about it) But the more kids you have the more likely your mudroom will tend toward chaos. But really, aren't cluttered mudroom nooks still an improvement over clutter without the nooks?