Mudrooms 101
Mudrooms 101
Even if you love the outdoors, you probably don’t want to bring dirt, leaves and other debris inside your home. One of the best ways to keep outdoor elements, wet coats and muddy boots contained in one area is by adding a mudroom to your house!
A mudroom isn’t just an old coat hook or shoe rack stuck in a corner to hold your dirty outerwear. With the right mudroom design, you can either use your existing space or embark on a multi-room remodel project to add luxury and value to your home. In fact, you can incorporate valuable storage space, a decorative mudroom bench and even a custom closet to create the mudroom of your dreams.
What Is a Mudroom?
As its name suggests, a mudroom is considered an area near a main entrance to your home where you and your family can stash muddy shoes, snowy boots and dirty clothing that you don’t want to make a mess of the rest of your home. Depending on your house’s layout and your ideal mudroom design, you might designate part of your laundry room or foyer to this purpose—or build an entirely new room altogether.
Do You Need a Mudroom?
Although a mudroom isn’t as essential to a home as elements like the kitchen or bedrooms, it can really help keep your home clean and organized. You can place your wet, muddy boots on a shoe rack to dry and hang your rain jackets on coat hooks or inside a coat closet so you don’t track outdoor mess throughout the entire house.
A mudroom is a wonderful place to display home decor like wall hangings, family pictures and colorful storage cubbies. In other words, the perfect mudroom isn’t just additional storage space for wet or dirty clothes. It’s a way to express your creativity as a homeowner—and add value to your home in the process. Some families designate a section for each family member. Tasking kids (and spouses) with keeping their sections tidy can go a long way in keeping the space neat and organized.
How a Mudroom Can Add Value to Your Home
In addition to adding convenience and luxury to your home, a mudroom can add value in two main ways.
First, it adds personal value by helping you love your home even more than you already do. A custom mudroom design created for your personal preferences helps put your unique mark on your house. Your choices of elements like cabinet style, flooring and paint colors all make your home your own personal, luxurious sanctuary.
Second, a mudroom can increase the monetary home value in case you ever choose to sell your house. The additional storage and custom elements might entice potential buyers down the road. Additionally, mudrooms can actually help preserve your house. Over the years, outdoor dirt and debris can damage hardwood floors, carpets and other home components. Your mudroom will help prevent this dirt and debris from invading the rest of the house, thus protecting your entire home while keeping it in great condition.
Elements to Include in your mudroom
Building a mudroom can really help you maximize your living space — and keep the rest of your home clean. Here are a few elements you might want to include in your mudroom design to make sure that you use every square foot in your available space:
· Bench seating. A mudroom bench over a washable mat is the perfect place to take off and store snowy or muddy boots so they can dry.
· Floors for all weather. Even if you don’t live in a climate with cold, snowy winters and warm summers, your floors should be able to stand up to a wide variety of weather that your family will track inside. Some ideas: solid hardwood floors, engineered hardwood floors and ceramic or vinyl tile.
· Coat storage. Decorative coat hooks can hold the current season’s jackets. A mudroom coat closet (or two or three) will keep winter coats hidden but organized during the warmer months.
· Additional storage space. Consider what you want to keep in your mudroom storage space and then choose what works best for you! This might be shelving with cubbies or custom cabinets to hold cleaning supplies that match your style.
As you dive into mudroom renovation ideas and options, keep in mind that a mudroom isn’t just a drop zone for dirty shoes and boots. It’s a great way to keep yourself organized too!
HOW TO ORGANIZE YOUR MUDROOM
Your organization style is as unique as you are—and your mudroom design should reflect that. Maybe you want to organize your mudroom space by season so that coats and boots have one dedicated area and warm weather items like running shoes and sun hats have another. Or perhaps you’d like to organize the mudroom storage by person so that each of your kids has their own custom closet to store their outerwear or sports gear.
The perfect mudroom for your family will be customized to your wants, needs and design preferences. Remember: it’s your house and your upgrade! And you can create the perfect mudroom even if you don’t have a ton of extra space in your home.
HOW TO CREATE A MUDROOM IN A SMALL SPACE
Not all homes have the square footage or layout for a large mudroom. Fortunately, you can easily create a small mudroom using your existing space.
A well-chosen mudroom bench lets you store muddy boots and shoes either underneath or inside the bench itself. You can maximize every inch of your mudroom space by adding floor-to-ceiling cabinets to store seasonal items that you don’t need everyday access to. Just remember to have some fun with your mudroom design. After all, building a mudroom is more than a home remodeling project. It’s a creative expression and a way to add more luxury to your home! Remember – the mudroom is often the space that imprints a first (interior) impression on your guests.
If your home doesn’t currently have a mudroom, don’t worry – there are several ways to carve out this functional space during a remodel. Here are a few ideas:
Repurpose an existing area: Often, a mudroom can be created by repurposing an underused space such as a large closet, a section of the laundry room, or part of the garage. The below mudroom transitions nicely into the beverage station portion of the kitchen.
Rethink your entryway: If your main entrance opens directly into your living space, consider creating a small partition to differentiate the areas.
Build an addition: If space and budget permit, a small addition to your home can provide the perfect spot for a mudroom.
Remember, the key to a great mudroom design is customizing the space to fit your family’s lifestyle. Whether it’s extra storage for sporting equipment, a dedicated spot for pet supplies, or a bench to sit and remove shoes, a well-designed mudroom can help simplify your daily routines.
ideas for a mudroom renovation
As you consider your mudroom design, try to visualize a space that you and your family can grow in and use for years to come. Here are a few design ideas to get your creative juices flowing:
· Consider how much additional storage you want in your mudroom and base the quantity of cabinets, coat hooks and bench seating on that. Remember to plan ahead for growing kids!
· Incorporate a built-in cabinet so your mudroom space is well-crafted and professionally finished.
· Select flooring that’s both aesthetically pleasing and easy to clean.
· Don’t be afraid to go bold with paint colors! Your mudroom should reflect your personal style. Try out an accent wall or cabinet colors that highlight and accentuate the space.
How to Get Started on the Perfect Mudroom
You deserve the perfect mudroom. Building this designated space into your home provides convenience, luxury and cleanliness. What’s more, adding a mudroom to your home allows you to bring your unique design ideas and style into your living space.
Drury Design wants to help you love the home you live in. Request a design consultation to find out how our client-focused design process can help you create the perfect mudroom for your home.