Westside Remodeling’s designer, Alana Busse, once again is sharing with you a great post from the DuraSupreme Cabinetry blog. Here are some timely tips by Karen Wistrom for designing an attractive and functional mudroom. Enjoy!

For those living in the upper Midwest, a “mudroom” is considered a necessity and is an important part of a home’s floor plan.  For families with kids, a mudroom is a critical consideration in building, buying or remodeling a home.

Regardless of where you live or how much snow and mud (or beach sand) is being tracked into your house, a mudroom serves as a buffer between the interior and exterior of the home and is usually located just off the garage.  A mudroom is a high traffic area that is used daily and is designed to handle dirt, wear and tear and ideally, it’s a room that helps keep a family organized!

At a bare minimum, a mud room should have closet/storage space, lots of hooks for hanging coats and jackets, and a bench to provide seating while putting on or taking off shoes.  Although this room’s main purpose is functional, there is no reason it can’t be attractive and inviting, and make organization easy.

For families with children, a mudroom is essential in keeping things organized.  Especially during the work week (or school week) when children are heading out the door to school and the adults are heading to work.  Having backpacks, shoes, sports equipment, soccer gear, keys and phones in one organized area saves a lot of frustration in the mornings.  It also keeps dirt and snow from being tracked through the house and it gives each child a place to organize and store their personal belongings.

Top 5 tips for organizing a mudroom:

Tip #1   Dura Supreme boot-bench and locker cabinetry:  Dura Supreme has designed an excellent mudroom system with deep drawers to hold shoes along with open cubbies or lockers for hanging coats and organizing backpacks and sports equipment.    Dura Supreme also makes a boot bench with a short drawer and an open area below.  Shoes can be conveniently tucked under the drawer, and the drawer organizes keys, cell phones, ipods, mittens, hats, etc.

Tip #2   A cubby or locker for each child:  For our family, each child has their own drawer and locker and they are expected to keep their stuff off the floor and in their locker.  Having their own designated storage space makes this much easier.

Tip #3   Label it:  If you are using baskets or plastic bins, clearly label them so you know what is inside at a glance.  Label locker compartments and hooks too.  There are so many great “labeling” ideas online to help make this space personal and give your child ownership.

Tip #4   Lots of hooks:  Can you ever have enough hooks?

Tip #5   Make it convenient:  If everything is labeled and organized, the space becomes more convenient and almost helps to organize itself.  If it’s easy to put away or hang up, it gets done.

Dura Supreme cabinetry has endless ideas and cabinetry for organizing a mudroom and personalizing it for your home.  Below are examples of Dura Supreme cabinetry creating organized spaces!