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ruffian829

Mudroom design and functionality help

6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago

Can anyone help me out with some design ideas for my small mudroom? I’m debating on what to put where to make it functional. Shelves, cubbies, hooks, drawers, etc.



Key facts- two kids, one school age and one in daycare so room for backpacks and gear is needed.



We have a lot of coats. I don’t know if just having hooks will do it. For just myself I have work coats, casual coats, and barn/horseback riding coats. Same with shoes. So many shoes and boots. For all of us. I suppose some can be stored in the garage but I worry about mice.



We get snow so winter has a lot of hats, gloves and mittens.



Whatever is on the (bottom) long solid wall will be directly visible from the kitchen. Garage door opens towards the bottom wall. No door to the kitchen.



Help! Pictures in comments because they won’t attach to the post for some reason.

Comments (9)

  • 6 years ago

    Do you have pictures and measurements for the space? It might be worthwhile to have a coat closet idea with a hanging rod on one wall. On another wall, have hooks for the back packs, drawers or pull out baskets underneath seating where each person would separately store their hats, scarfs, and gloves.

  • 6 years ago

    Tqtq yes I do, I had them attached but it doesn’t seem to have posted unfortunately. Here they are.

  • 6 years ago

    I am loving these cubbies and this shoe storage, but I’m not sure if I have the space.

  • 6 years ago

    It seems that what you really need is a coat closet for storing most of your coats year round.


    Next priority would be a place to hang WET coats and hats and mittens/gloves while they dry.


    You need a place for shoes in your mudroom


    -- perhaps eight pair with four suitable for tall shoes/boots for each of you -- perhaps kept beneath a bench to sit on to remove the shoes and on which books and backpacks could be set until outdoor shoes are changed for indoor shoes or slippers.


    You could hang a shoe storage bag for indoor shoes or bedroom slippers on the inside of the closet door.


    You could keep most of your shoes in your bedroom closets. Ditto that with hats and gloves and mittens. Expensive dress coats that might need to be protected from soil on children's play coats that might make it into the closet should be kept in the bedroom closet or in a coat bag if they're to be put in the common coat closet. The mudroom would be for a convenient place for those coats and accessories just used or just about to be used.


    Focus on the coat closet and storing other accessories to meet immediate need. Then teach your children to take their backpacks and books to their rooms once they've shed their coats and changed their outdoor shoes for indoor shoes or slippers or flip flops.


    You could use the 57" wall as the back wall of your coat closet. Find the heaviest coat with the widest for the largest person that lives in the home. Put that on a very sturdy hanger and measure how deep your closet needs to be -- how much of the 38.5" wall will be needed for the side of your closet.


    If you need 24" for your coats and 4" for the wall (with closet door facing garage), then you will have 10" in width and 12" in depth to build in shelving (at least 4 -- one for each of you) for hats and mittens and gloves just used or soon to be used and 2" for hanging your door. You could have a top door behind which you'd have the adult shelves and a bottom door behind which you'd have the children's shelves. You could hang hoods for umbrellas on those two doors.


    The 36.5" x 27" corner could be for a hall tree or a three foot wide bench with at least one shelf below for the children's shoes and/or dirtiest shoes. The adults could return their cleaner shoes to a fabric hanging shoe shelf in the coat closet.


    https://www.google.com/search?q=fabric+hanging+shoe+shelves+for+closet&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwilg5r_-Y3lAhVuU98KHSFXBUIQ_AUIEigC&biw=1328&bih=617#spf=1570582032538


    There could be a mirror and/or hat rack above that bench.


    Also, along the middle of that 75" wall on the left as you come in from the garage could be hooks for temporarily hanging wet or dirtier coats and accessories. You'll need to leave a couple of feet clear near the kitchen and garage doors but in between that still leaves room for several boards/w/shelves/above on the wall with a few hooks on each -- at least one for each member of the family.


    In front of the left side of the closet -- left of the closet door, you might add a hat rack for guests to hang their coats and accessories.



  • 6 years ago

    Suezbell‘s idea of situating the coat rack on the long wall would be a good use of that extra space. The basket and shoe storage options from the ikea system really helped us with our many pairs of shoes and hockey gear and wet winter things.

  • 6 years ago

    In terms of the kids, make an area for each child so they know it is theirs. Use low hooks for their backpacks and coats and jackets, and a basket under their space for their shoes/boots. Include a shelf or two in each area which is useful for school projects, or hats/gloves. If they have their own space they will know where to find and put away their own things. It will also be useful later when the kids are older and have a bunch of sports equipment. Kids won't use floor to ceiling shoe storage, and do you really need that many in a mudroom? You should use a coat closet for your own main coat storage, and just keep items used daily or wet items in the mudroom.


  • 6 years ago

    Thank you all for the input so far! Unfortunately we don’t have another coat closet, this is it. While winter coats get packed away during the summer, in the winter this is the space we have. While keeping things in bedroom closets is a nice concept, it’s something we’ve struggled with and I’m trying to redesign to assist with that issue- it’s easy to say but tough to manage when your trying to get out of the door to get to school and work but kid A or B or even the adult forgot the shoes or jacket they need that’s upstairs. Sending a kid back to their room to get their stuff easily puts us behind schedule (it’s amazing how SLOW they can move when you are in a hurry!). I want to be able to cram as much as we can in this space. I know it’s not ideal, but this is what we have to work with. I think I may try and build some more storage space in the garage for the super muddy or wet stuff.

  • 6 years ago

    Something with closed cabinets seems like a must if you'll be storing lots of coats. You can also get a bench with a lift top to stash extras without the space looking cluttered.


    Of course this is a really high-end sort of mudroom, but if you could get a (non-built-in) cabinet with doors that might be good!


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