and in a seperate area there will be eight 21x24x14 bins that will accomodate baskets.
I'm trying to envision this. Do you maybe mean cubbyholes that will have baskets in them?

besides a landing zone for everything and a few coats.
I think I would maybe keep at least a few hooks outside of the closets for a coat or two that is grabbed often...like daily or numerous times a day. I'd not like having to put it on a hanger everytime I took it off. Maybe even a few 'hooks' inside of a closet for the 'most often' grabbed coats/caps.

Your new storage/organization area sounds wonderful.

Sue

sounds like you'd be incorporating a mudroom type scenario here? Would this be the entry/egress to the yard? Places for hats/coats/gloves and/or gardening supplies?

will this be where you bring grocery through to the kitchen?

I might have the extra fridge or storage freezer in this area to pack before hitting the kitchen.

What is the rationale for having the tools organized in this area, rather than the garage which is adjoining the area? If DH does a lot of remodel, I'm thinking a very extensive tool collection.

Thanks for your responses!

Sue/chemocurl. I call the cubbyholes bins but yes you are right. Closets on one side, countertop/cubbyholes on the other side. Just my DH and I so we plan on keeping 2 coats each on a hook. We'll have an 8' closet rod above the washer/dryer for hanging clothes and overflow.

T-Bird. Yes this will be called a mudroom too. No entry to the outside, just the garage. One of the cubbies will have a place for hats, gloves, umbrellas etc. I tend to not clean up my garden tools as much as I should, so it's best if I keep them in the garage (even if I had an egress).

We'll stop by for pantry items that need to be put away. Don't really need a secondary frig/freezer since we have plentry of room in our kitchen one.

DH does a lot of remodeling for us but doesn't have as many "toys" as many others have. Most can be put on the shelves. We want them to be handy, in one place, in a warm environment (we're not in Hawaii). Any messy things like sawing can be done in the garage and then tools can be put away. Should be very convenient.

I've gone through our home, looking for what doesn't get put away (at least soon enough for our comfort) and we've narrowed it down. Looking for additional idea though from other prospectives.

Mine is not quite the same as yours, but similar in some ways. In my drawers/your bins, I have things like light bulbs, batteries, small house/hand/tools, flashlight. This is also the area where I store my purse, and my husband his briefcase so it has a home. Another storage area is nearby that is a free-standing shelf in my attic stairwell. There I store extra paper towels, toilet paper, laundry supplies, etc.

Household stuff stored in these areas makes more sense to me than my husband's tools which are too many; those live in the garage. I also store things in a smaller drawer-stack, like my knife sharpener, scissors sharpener, clamshell opener (exacto knife), etc. Some items I may need to use for travel, like reusable bags, my knife case, lunch bags, trash bags, and some plastic ware, etc. also goes well there.

If you change your shoes when you come in from outside, the bins would be a good place for those, if you have a place to sit down.

One thing I use daily when I come in is my Receipts file. It is in this area which makes it easy to unload everything I don't need to carry around with me. That file has saved us many times, simply because we know where everything is! I also keep coupons I may need here, so I can pick them up on my way out.

Sounds like a fun project. Enjoy picking your spots, and what goes there!

pegboard!!

That will let you move hooks and pouches and even small shelves around on the wall. So you can change your mind.

(3M's "Command" hooks are also easy to move around, but they don't hold as much.

I'd put this on the wall right next tot he door, or the wall around the door.)

i would keep the "messy and used in the garage" tools in the garage, and the "used mostly in the house" tools in the house (drill, hammer, etc.). I wouldn't want to carry the circular saw back and forth, personally. I don't think most cold winters would hurt them.

I'd also personally plan on room for 4 coats each, even if I didn't use them all the time (then company can use them when I'm not).

Claire, I kept thinking about what I might store and you presented several ideas. I'm embarressed to say I don't know where the spare light bulbs are (lived here for 2 years). I too thought I'd need a place for my purse, thanks for the confirmation. We had a "dead zone" with 9' ceilings...sounds perfect for paper goods.

Most of what will go in my DH's closet are for things that we need for the interior of the house. He's got boxes for wiring, screws/nails, small tools like screwdrivers, hammers, pliers etc. It's surprising how much space all of it can take up. His workbench was in the basement in a previous house, and we (especially me) hated going down to pick out the right tool and then back to put it away. My organizing philosphy is to make things conveniently located, much more likelyhood the tools will get put away. Depending on what else we use the bins for, shoes may be a viable usage.

Great idea for reciepts. Though most documents will likely be in the basement for longer term storage, the daily things like receipts can get me in trouble. I'll be so glad when all stores use your credit card to track purchases, so much eaiser. This project is fun especially knowing how much better organized the house will be.

Talley_Sue, I wasn't planning on small stuff going in the closets, but inevitably it seems like they will be needed. I'll keep that in mind trying to find areas to collect small things. I had to LOL about the tools being OK in the cold, it was me that would be too cold.

Company RARELY goes into this room. We plan to have the vacuum in this room instead of where we have always stored it before - in the front hall closet.

So far my 8 bin allocations are for
1. Donations
2. Laundry
3. Returns
4. Grandchild toys
5. Things that our kids need to take when they come over
6. Purse, gloves, umbrellas
7. Things to be put away (basement)
8. Gift boxes/bags, tape etc.

Thinking back to what's sitting around not put away, this accounts for most of it.

I've never had a room so functional. I told my DH, I feel like this room will really change how well we can stay organized (and it wasn't too bad before).

Oh Good, I'm glad there was something there you could use. As far as receipts go, here is how I manage them now. It's the easiest system I could come up with, which works well for both of us. That was important, since we both hate to File!

Here is a link that might be useful: Receipts Management

Claire, I love your receipt management! Reading your post brought back why I hate receipts. Though I had a place for receipts, it wasn't convenient enough so both my DH and I forgot about it. We'd spend so much time looking all over the house for some receipt. Moving into a "new" house and doing so much decorating and remodeling, we have receipts it seems everywhere.

As I read the responses, I thought the car might be a fair option too but when I think of the countless times we'd have plastic grocery bags to bring in to recycle only to forget them in the car...it's hell getting old.