Setting up an organized mudroom in your home is a great way to increase your storage space and create a more welcoming entryway. Regardless of the size of your space, there are plenty of ways that you can get the most out of it. To help you get started, here are 14 tips on how to organize a mudroom.
1. Incorporate Plenty of Hooks
Vertical storage is one of the best ways to make the most out of small spaces, especially in a mudroom. To make sure that there’s a place for everything, incorporate plenty of hooks. This gives you ample room to hang coats, purses, backpacks, and hats. Since hooks take up virtually no room, they’re perfect for those looking to add efficiency to every inch of space. Plus, your family will be more likely to hang their things up since it’s easy, available, and doesn’t require any extra effort.
2. Build Mudroom Lockers
If you want to take your mudroom organization to the next level, and you have the space for it, consider building individual mudroom “lockers” or cubbies. This creates a closed storage area that will make your entryway feel less cluttered and chaotic. By adding doors to individual cubbies, you’ll keep unsightly things neatly tucked away, which tends to help increase organizational efforts throughout the day.
3. Leave an Open Bench Space
A mudroom is meant to be a convenient place to transition from home to outside and vice versa. Make this
transition as smooth as possible by including an open bench or sitting area in your mudroom organizational system. This allows children to sit down and take off their shoes right upon entering the house and will come in handy when winter starts, and outdoor gear gets harder to put on and take off. Bench seating doesn’t have to sacrifice space when installed strategically.
4. Create Efficient Shoe Storage
The last thing you want is to create an organized mudroom with no place for messy shoes. If you don’t have somewhere that your family can dedicate to shoe storage, chances are they’re just going to leaved them strewn about. While tripping over shoes throughout the house is frustrating, keeping them in a pile near the door creates a feeling of chaotic clutter. Include efficient shoe storage for each member of the family so that no one is tempted to leave them behind in a pile.
5. Add a Charging Station
Leaving the house with uncharged electronics can ruin your day. Make sure that all the essential electronics are kept out of the bedroom and easily accessible for your day by adding a charging station to your mudroom. You can incorporate a small shelf to charge school laptops or tablets, phones, and watches without taking up too much space by using a metal mail sorter or other electronic charging organization stand.
6. Leave a Place for Keys
Chances are you’ve spent more than a few cumulative hours looking for your keys. Rather than continue with
this habit, incorporate a space for keys in your mudroom. Every time you enter your home, put them in the designated key area so that when you’re leaving, you’ll never waste time looking under couch cushions again.
7. Include a Designated Mail Spot
One of the best ways to guarantee a cluttered mudroom or kitchen is to let paperwork accumulate. With never ending junk mail, newspapers, and bills, the stack of envelopes adds up quickly. Include a designated mail spot in your mudroom to take your home’s organization to the next level.
8. Isolate a Space for Sports
While we recommend storing any sports equipment in the garage to reduce the amount of dirt that’s tracked into the house, there are some things that should come inside. Expedite game day preparations by storing sports shoes, socks, and any smaller gear in the mudroom’s organizational system. You can utilize a pull-out shoe rack, bins, or individual lockers/baskets to organize sports equipment by family members.
9. Hang a Mirror
When you’re in a hurry, it’s not uncommon to run out of the house without looking in the mirror. Hanging a mirror in your mudroom allows you to quickly check your hair, makeup, or teeth before facing the world. It’s also a great idea to help create a more open feel to the space as mirrors tend to make a room look larger.
10. Create Individualized Baskets or Bins
Another way to keep your mudroom organized efficiently is to create individualized baskets or bins for each family member or for specific items. If you have the room, consider adding two bins for each family member. The bottom bin will be used for shoes and footwear and can go underneath their individual locker area or hook and the top bin will be used for hats, mittens, or winter accessories. Label bins with names and pictures to make grabbing the essentials easy for children of all ages.
11. Keep Paperwork in Order
Add organizers for each of your children so they can keep their schoolwork and papers sorted and at arm’s reach when it’s time to leave. Rather than coming home and unloading homework into the kitchen, or losing important documents, a designated area in the mudroom can help keep things in order. Create a separate folder for your children to put any paper that needs to be signed or permission slips so that you’ll see them and have a dedicated system for making sure things are taken care of on time.
12. Add a Calendar or Bulletin Board
Families tend to have busy schedules that overlap, especially when there’s multiple children. If you want an
easier way to keep track of everyone, add a calendar or bulletin board to your mudroom. As the epicenter of the house, especially for coming and going, mudrooms are the perfect place to remind your family where everyone’s at or planning to be. Use the calendar to keep track of sporting events, vacations, field trips, and more. Add a bulletin board or dry erase board to add inspirational messages or special reminders—especially if no one in your family seems to be home at the same time.
13. Stick to What You Need
Only use your mudroom for what you need on a regular basis. This tends to change throughout the year and the season, but rotating items out will help keep the space you have clean, organized, and clutter free. For example, during the summer, keep your winter accessories and coats out of the mudroom and safely tucked away in a self storage unit. During winter, keep your summer sports equipment elsewhere. Everyone’s mudroom will look different, but taking the time to only keep what you need is a great way to stay organized
14. Get Rid of Clutter/Excess
Over time, it’s likely that your family’s things will start to accumulate in the mudroom. To fix the issue before it gets too bad, regularly get rid of clutter or excess. If your house doesn’t have adequate storage to put things, rent a self storage unit from The Lock Up Self Storage. Doing so will make sure that you have plenty of space to enjoy family time, an organized mudroom, and a safe place to store your unneeded things.
As you begin to set up your organized mudroom, consider the effectiveness of your home’s storage as a whole. Your goal should be to create zones in your home that aren’t shadowed by clutter. This gives you the chance to actually enjoy what you have without feeling like you’re wasting the days constantly cleaning up or putting things away. We don’t need the excess clutter in our daily routine; all it does is create chaos. Instead, consider storing your infrequently used and seasonal items in a self storage unit. This gets it out of the house and out of your hair, but still allows you to access it when you need. Using a self storage unit will help you declutter and organize your life, making space for things to be properly stored, used, and put back away in your home. For a self storage company you can trust, head over to The Lock Up Self Storage today. All of our self storage units are temperature controlled and 100% secured so you can be assured that your things are safe and well taken care of. To learn more about our available units near you, or to talk to a representative about procuring a self storage unit, give us a call at (866) 327-LOCK today.
