This is what happens when 5 family members use a "basket system" for shoes....totally ridiculous!! We spend 5 minutes each morning searching for our shoes and invariably need to pull EVERY shoe out of the basket, then need to dump them all back in after you have the missing shoe. From Misc photos The photo above is because we are currently living at my mom's while we remodel and I have always had a mudroom with SHELVES or shoe racks for placing shoes in. I will have shelves under the cubbies for each child and not bins, for shoes. Flip flops can be stacked, boots can be placed side-by-side and any stray hats/caps/scarves can be hung on hooks along with jackets. I am not someone that can deal with clutter, so I will have a door on my mudroom so that it is not visible to anyone other than those who walk in through my garage or side door. Phones go in a central charging area so that the kids are not on the phone until all hours of the night--totally just my pet peeve and control issue :) The open locker/cubbies will have three hooks and a shelf above each one. Shelf can hold misc sports junk. Backpack sits on the bottom of the cubby (14" deep) and there's an extra 10" in front of that for sitting. If you are still in the framing stage, have the contractor fill in between the studs with wood at about the height you want the wall of hooks--that way no worries about hitting studs, just screw in anywhere along that line....you can put hooks every 6" or so and have as many as there's space for. Here is my hook wall in my mudroom: From Misc photos The other thing my kids will tell you is that about every other month I will freak out and yell and scream that, "The mud room is a disaster!!!" and make them put at least 1/2 of their stuff back in their rooms....eventually it gets dragged out again, but for a short while it looks fairly well organized :)

Our mudroom plans started out big, but shrank quite a bit because we decided to move the first floor powder room to that space, then decided to add a first floor washer and dryer there too. (The old laundry room is in the basement.) So, we also have a small mudroom, when I had dreamed of a big one. Here are a few pictures: The coat rack/bench: This is the wall that faces the hooks and bench, and the powder room is behind it (sheesh - we actually took a picture with laundry in the dryer! Definitely not a 'magazine' shoot here... let's just call it real life): I have since removed the shelves under the bench and put 2 big baskets there because our puppy sometimes grabs shoes from there. The baskets aren't as handy as I'd like, so I'm thinking of calling the cabinet maker to see if he can make some drawers. Wish I had done that from the get go. Also if I were to do it again: I would sacrifice a bit of the cabinet size by the W/D to add a broom pull out. I've seen pictures of awesome pullouts (on this forum) that use as little as 4" of horizontal space. I'd also offset the plumbing for the laundry sink to one side so that I'd have just one under-sink cabinet and drawers on the other side. Drawers are just SO much handier. I'm still trying to figure out a better place for gloves, hats, etc. I'm thinking of putting one or two these organizers from IKEA on the wall between the window and the laundry sink. I got that idea from someone who posted pictures of her awesome closet-turned-mudroom, I think on this forum. Here is a link that might be useful: IKEA organizers

Our mudroom is also a long and narrow space....5'6" x 16'10". I don't have any definitive inspiration pics to show because I've found I want 'a little bit of this and a little bit of that' in my mind. In my real life with two girls (ages 11 and 13), a messy husband and two large dogs and in reading a ton of information on useful mudrooms I will tell you that I will be designing the following for our family: 1) About 6' worth of hooks and a bench. I'm not saying 'cubbies' because I do NOT want them to be individually divided for each person. My real world experience is that stuff spills over. Not everyone's stuff will fit neatly into 18" of space. I might take up 6" for my small purse, but my sport playing 13 year old will need 24" or more for a school backpack, sports bag, and 4 pairs of shoes. 2) Shoes will rest on the floor. Not on a perfectly painted white shelf that will look disgusting in about 4 days. They will also not be in a basket. We have that system now and shoes are always spilling out of it. Or really never get put in it, but in front of it. A wide open space will at a minimum let my kids and husband simply kick their shoes under the bench to get them out of the walkway. Good enough for me. 3) Individual shelves about the hooks. I'll have baskets here for each person to store their winter hats, gloves, scarves, etc. We live in Texas so this category is small for us. 4) About 24" of a 'drop zone'. - mail sorting section...'To Pay, To Mail, To File, To Sort, School Forms'. - closed cabinet with outlet for a paper shredder and garbage can. - One drawer for frequently used office items....pens, pencils, sharpener, envelopes, tape, scissors, etc.... - upper cabinet for other stuff that I don't want to see. Dog medicine/grooming supplies, key hooks or bowl, flashlights/extra candles and matches, extra batteries, etc. 5) 5-6' feet of 24" deep tall cabinets. I will use this for an overflow pantry. Small and infrequently used appliances, jumbo pack of paper towels, party size drink dispensers, extra step stool, paper plates/cups. All of this will go on one side of the narrow mudroom, leaving 42-48" of walkway. Plenty wide for a pass through assuming things get put where they belong. My mudroom is without a doubt the room I'm most excited about in the whole house. I've never had one with access to the backyard so this will be life changing!

My apologies for the delay in replying; I had typed up a reply but never submitted it somehow. The Cook's Kitchen - you got a lot into that space! Too bad about the legs - but I do like inset as well so can understand. Thank you for posting a picture. I can't tell where the face frames start and end. Christine - I received notifications about 2 posts you made but only found this one, not sure what may have happened. Yes, DH tends to use one hook (in fact, he claims I told him he could only use one and took umbrage at me saying he hogs the hooks). Regarding file cabinets, most things I've filed, I've never gone back to! herbflavor - We're in a four seasons climate as well. I'm not sure I understand the difference between a hook and a peg. Does the peg length allow things to be hung over the peg as well as the end? cluelessincolorado - You make an excellent point. To be honest, far fewer coats, shoes, sneakers, etc. need to live in here than we have currently. We keep most shoes in our closets and do have a front hall closet. Maybe I need a Salvation Army peg and shoe rack :) Well, I went off and brooded for a bit, and then started again. I'm trying to mimic the upper cabinets in this picture. Regarding the cubbies, I'd like somewhere to put my gloves and wool hat when I come in. I'd rather set them down than open a drawer and put them away. Broom, and long coat/s on left. Plenty of cabinet storage up top. Drawer storage. Bench Good deal of real estate for hook/peg and shoe storage. Dog biscuits probably on countertop; leash on side of cabinet. Does this look clean and does anyone have any thoughts on improvements to the lines? I'm showing 1.5" rails. The cabinet is 20" deep and the bench is recessed 5". It probably makes more sense to not do individual cabinets up top; just buy the face frame and doors; then DH can mount the inset doors. More space but then more opportunity for everything to move around. Again, your input appreciated!