Do you have a mudroom?

[sunshineafterrain]

I do not... but I would really like one.

I do have a three-season sunporch off the kitchen, it is about 11'x13'.
I am thinking of partitioning off about 1/3 of that to make an entry area and large closet and insulating and heating just that area~ just over 4 feet by 11 feet. The closet would be at least 3 feet deep. There would be three doorways:
the entrance from the outside, the entrance to the kitchen and the entrance to the sunporch~ I am thinking of lining up the sunporch door with the kitchen door"


______________ sunroom ____

.......closet..................................... ....outside
.......area....................................... ....door

_____________kitchen door ____

So essentially it would look like above, with the outside door on the right perpendicular wall , the closet door on the left perpendicular wall; and the kitchen and sunroom doors almost in the middle, facing each other.
When you enter, you would see the closet doors straight ahead, the sunroom door to the right and the kitchen door to the left.


There would be enough space leftover in the sunroom for a small seating area with wicker furniture set;
I would gain wall space for coat hooks and I would use the closet for storing 2 out-of-season air conditioners, the recycling bin, pet supplies, vacuum, mop and bucket and wall shelves One air conditioner is already just sitting out there in the corner as is the recycling bin~ so I guess I know they'll fit floorspace-wise. I am thinking L-shaped shelving and bifold door(s).

How does this sound to you?

Any advice/ideas?
What do you have as far as space and what you store?
What works (and doesn't)?

Share your wish list!

Thanks for any thoughts!

[mamadelbosque]

Sort of... its actually the laundry room and you have to walk through it to get to the bathroom, or from the kitchen to the family room/our bedrooms.. but thats where shoes/boots & muddy dogs stay But, tis nice to have one room that I don't really worry about keeping super clean.

[HollyBearsMom]

We have one and I love it. It practically sold me on the whole house.

It is pretty narrow but has 2 big closets on one side with large cut in space between them. One closet is coats, dog food, the vacuum cleaner and things like light bulbs, etc. The other is shelved and has all my bigger appliances that I don’t use daily (like my kitchen aid) plus all my baking stuff-muffin pans, cookie cutters, big roasting pans, extra pitchers, etc. the bottom has all our cleaning supplies.

In between is a wooden cubby system for all my sons stuff. each cubby has a basket. There is one for mittens/gloves, another for hats, another for sports stuff etc. On either side are 2 big hooks for his coats and in front is boot tray for shoes.

Opposite is a big wooden built in hutch with shelves. On the shelves I store/display all my Le Crueset pots and pans. Down below in the cupboard is wine, seltzer, mixers etc.

next to the hutch is window that has a nice bench below. perfect for putting on boots, skates, dropping groceries etc.

Finally on the other side of the window are lots of shelves for my huge cookbook collection and narrow, kind of hidden storage closet where I keep all my canned goods.

the only bummer is that it is NOT heated. We keep a space heater there for really cold mornings or when we get in from being outside and are really cold. keeps us all from trekking into the house with our coats and boots still on!

[sunshineafterrain]

Originally Posted by HollyBearsMom

We have one and I love it. It practically sold me on the whole house.

It is pretty narrow but has 2 big closets on one side with large cut in space between them. One closet is coats, dog food, the vacuum cleaner and things like light bulbs, etc. The other is shelved and has all my bigger appliances that I don’t use daily (like my kitchen aid) plus all my baking stuff-muffin pans, cookie cutters, big roasting pans, extra pitchers, etc. the bottom has all our cleaning supplies.

In between is a wooden cubby system for all my sons stuff. each cubby has a basket. There is one for mittens/gloves, another for hats, another for sports stuff etc. On either side are 2 big hooks for his coats and in front is boot tray for shoes.

Opposite is a big wooden built in hutch with shelves. On the shelves I store/display all my Le Crueset pots and pans. Down below in the cupboard is wine, seltzer, mixers etc.

next to the hutch is window that has a nice bench below. perfect for putting on boots, skates, dropping groceries etc.

Finally on the other side of the window are lots of shelves for my huge cookbook collection and narrow, kind of hidden storage closet where I keep all my canned goods.

the only bummer is that it is NOT heated. We keep a space heater there for really cold mornings or when we get in from being outside and are really cold. keeps us all from trekking into the house with our coats and boots still on!

That sounds so great!
I like the idea of the large kitchen stuff out there, I had not thought of that~ and this would be right off my kitchen too

Mine would be a small space since the closet would take up a good chunk of it, we might get by just keeping the kitchen door open, but we could use a space heater if needed.

Just the thought of leaving all that gear out of the house is heavenly to me right now, thanks to winter

[bigteamug]

I would add that the heating is important - we have a mudroom that isn't as winter friendly as I'd like since it stays too damp to be useful with all the snow trekked in and no warm air circ to deal with it.(we are in a high-desert climate, so snow, but dry air...). I'm bummed.

[karne]

I have one-it's really big, and I absolutely love it. We designed what we needed out of avail. space in. We chose slate flooring for durability and easy cleaning. We have a great old bench w/storage, pine shelves for shoes, hooks for all of the cold weather gear (snowshoes, ice skates, etc) and in the summer they hand beach bags w/all the stuff ready to go. I have specific space for muddy boots (we are very rural). I have long, long old barnboards w/industrial hooks for all of our coats (easy to grab on the way out the door), and shelving w/baskets above for spare hats, etc.

My only item (s) on the wish list are a compact washer/dryer and laundry tub for all of our outdoor stuff, but that's a later project!

[Pepper44]

I want a mud room so badly! Our back door is right in the kitchen, you can barely squeeze in past the kitchen table. We constantly have mud, boots, dog prints, bits of leaves and dirt, etc. all over the white kitchen floor. It's beyond frustrating but there's nothing I can do about it.

When (if) we move a mud room will be one of the number one things on my list. A mud room, a pantry closet, and a real laundry room instead of a laundry closet. *sigh*

[jtsmom]

Originally Posted by karne

I have one-it's really big, and I absolutely love it. We designed what we needed out of avail. space in. We chose slate flooring for durability and easy cleaning. We have a great old bench w/storage, pine shelves for shoes, hooks for all of the cold weather gear (snowshoes, ice skates, etc) and in the summer they hand beach bags w/all the stuff ready to go. I have specific space for muddy boots (we are very rural). I have long, long old barnboards w/industrial hooks for all of our coats (easy to grab on the way out the door), and shelving w/baskets above for spare hats, etc.

My only item (s) on the wish list are a compact washer/dryer and laundry tub for all of our outdoor stuff, but that's a later project!

This sounds heavenly. I would love to see pictures.

[sunshineafterrain]

I'd love to see pictures too

Even if it's not an actual mudroom but solutions you've come up with

Because -of course- dh doesn't like my idea...and it is hard enough to get him to accomplish the ideas he does like

[mata]

I finally do, and absolutely love it. It's off the garage and has the washer/dryer, a slop sink, builtin cabinets and desk area. It has freed up so much space in other parts of the house.