If you are designing a mudroom you may be tempted to make it beautiful by putting cupboards up because you can shut the cupboards and then the room looks nice. But, remember, to work with your families’ habits. If all the cupboards are shut maybe your family won’t open the cupboards to put things away. Shelves with labeled containers are better for large families because everyone can see where things go.
Often cupboards are placed a foot under the ceiling thus they waste space. Shelves can be adjusted to use up the whole space.
Mudrooms don’t have to be a showpiece, so make it easy for the family to put their things away by putting shelves, labeled containers, a step stool in the room, and then train everyone to put things away.
Be patient! It took my family 2 years of training before they would put things away correctly.
We made our shelves 16 ½ inches deep to fit 25 cardboard apple boxes which we eventually upgraded to plastic containers from Ikea. Some people love clear containers because they can see things from the outside, but I like opaque containers because they are more peaceful looking. And if it’s labeled you don’t need to see what’s in the container anyway.
One of the hardest parts of creating good mudroom and garage solutions is figuring what to inscribe on your containers. Here’s some labels that work for us.
- Tool box
- Mop rags
- Toilet paper & Paper Towels
- Jackets
- Sports Equipment
- Upstairs Put Away Pan
- Downstairs Put Away Pan
- Garage Put Away Pan
- Bathroom Cleaners
- Bathroom Cleaning Tote
- Electronic Devices
- Bicycle Supplies
- Tape & Glue
- Honeydo Projects
- Tools
- Tool Box
- Vacuum Supplies (bags & misc. parts)
- Flashlights & Batteries
- First Aid
- Kitchen & Dusting Cleaners
- Poison (Put this container up high)
- Lightbulbs
- Screws/ Nails
- Fix it Box (books to repair)
- Misc. Holiday Décor
- Shoe Supplies (polish, shoe laces, arch supports)
- Vases
- Donations
- Hair Cutting Supplies
- Gloves
- Paper Goods- Paper dishes, napkins, & cutlery
- Plastic Ware
- Candles
- Here are some containers for the mudroom or garage:
- Paint Supplies
- Wood & Shims
- Drywall
- Stakes
- Sprinkler Supplies
- Garden Supplies
- Winter Clothes
- Swimming Gear
- Camping Supplies
- Canning Supplies
- I also like to decorate monthly so I allow myself 12 Monthly Décor totes labeled January, February, etc. One tote per holiday is nice because it keeps the decorations from getting too overwhelming – except Christmas gets more totes.
Have you made it easy for people to hang up their coats? Hooks are great because you can put things away and grab it and go in one swift move.