Monday, September 21, 2015

Mudroom/Rear Porch Makeover

Papered House_mudroom makeover organization

For several months, I've wanted to spruce up our mudroom/rear porch. This space has always had a lot of potential: there are large windows on three sides and ample storage on the fourth side. The mudroom connects to our kitchen, and it lets in lovely light. This space is also the primary access to our home, so we see this space several times a day.

But for far too long, our mudroom was a cluttered, disorganized mess. There was so much extra stuff taking up floorspace that we barely had room to maneuver. I'm almost embarrassed to show you these pictures, but it's necessary for the full before and after impact. So here is our dirty laundry. This is the sight that "greeted" us every time we left for work in the morning or returned home:

Papered House_Mudroom_Before

Papered House_Mudroom_Before2 

Yikes! Some welcome, right?

And after a weekend of decluttering, organizing, and scrubbing, our mudroom is now a much more functional space.


There is a utility cart for things we like to keep easily accessible: reusable bags, barbeque tools, an extra vase, a citronella candle, etc. I love the cerulean color, the shelves, and the fact that it folds up for storage. The cart is metal, so it will be easy to clean. It also has wheels, which has turned out to be a handy feature.

Papered House_mudroom makeover utility cart

The utility cart was from HomeGoods, and it was a great price. This gray caddy was another HomeGoods find. It has six compartments, which makes it perfect for organizing other outdoor items, like sunscreen, bug spray, gardening gloves, and small gardening tools. 

Papered House_mudroom makeover gray caddy

Papered House_mudroom makeover caddy

This pine bench was on the porch previously, acting as a catch-all for many of the things that are now in the gray caddy. I painted the bench a cheerful shade of yellow using a combination of Annie Sloan Arles and Annie Sloan English Yellow. 

 We usually keep our shoes on inside the house, with the exception of things like hiking boots and dirty "work" sneakers. Those stay out on the porch so we don't track mud and grime through our house.  (By the way, isn't that a great little doormat? It was on clearance at Lowe's!)
Papered House_Mudroom makeover bench Annie Sloan Arles English Yellow

 Next to our shoes, we keep a couple of umbrellas so that they are easy to grab on our way out the door.

Papered House_Mudroom makeover bench Annie Sloan Arles English Yellow

We are fortunate to have several different kinds of songbirds in our yard. Before, their birdseed was just kept in large bags on the porch floor. But the bags were cumbersome to move and once they were open, it was difficult to keep the seed from spilling. Now we have a much better way to store birdseed. This plastic container holds 40 pounds of seed, and it came with a matching scoop.The slim profile saves floor space, and the wheels are a great feature. Birdseed is heavy, so I like being able to roll this around on our porch. This was also from HomeGoods.
Papered House_Mudroom makeover birdseed storage
By the way, I swear that I mopped this floor...twice. It just never looks clean!


We hung a couple of quirky pictures to add some visual interest. These were things we already had on hand, but hadn't yet found a place for. I think the bright, cheerful colors work well out here. That horseshoe is a family heirloom. Fingers crossed that it will bring us some good luck (we need it, with all the work to be done in this house).

Papered House_mudroom makeover artwork


Our mudroom already had some built-in storage, and we're now taking better advantage of it.

Papered House_mudroom makeover storage

In our general storage area, we have extra automotive supplies as well as most of our gardening supplies (fertilizer, soil acidifier, seeds, leaf bags, etc). 

Papered House_mudroom makeover storage



One of my favorite features about this mudroom is that there is nicely-sized cleaning closet. This closet has plenty of space to hang brooms and mops. Plus, we added a shelving unit to maximize storage for cleaning sprays, sponges, brushes, microfiber cloths, etc. I don't particularly love to clean (does anyone?), but having a nicely organized and colorful way to store my cleaning supplies certainly makes the process more enjoyable.


Papered House_Mudroom makeover cleaning closet

The woven blue baskets were from Lowe's, and they are a great size for holding our various cleaning products. 

Papered House_Mudroom Makeover_Cleaning Supplies


Last but not least...aren't these guys adorable? They're microfiber cleaning cloths from Daiso (it's a Japanese dollar store, popular near my parents' home in California). They're a great deal at $1.50 each and the quality is superb. Plus, dusting is a lot more fun with a lime green frog or a fuchsia hedgehog. Trust me.

 Papered House_Mudroom makeover Daiso microfiber cloths


Thanks for reading about our mudroom makeover, folks!
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18 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. Such a fun, cheerful improvement, and so many creatures!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! The Daiso cloths are really great. Glad they come in so many colors!

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  3. Jamie, I can't believe how much space is in your mudroom! That is so cool. I'm in love with all those windows, the signs, the lucky horseshoe and that gray floor - oh my word be still my heart. I'm super excited about all of your organized cleaning supplies. Those cleaning cloths are rocking! Love! Hugs, CoCo

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    1. Thank you, Coco! When our porch was covered in clutter, it was easy for us to overlook how much space was available. But we had really good bones to work with! Having everything this organized is such an improvement; I'm kicking myself for waiting as long as I did!

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  4. I love it! What a big difference. The windows are wonderful, and the way you organized the space looks like it will really work well.

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    1. Thank you, Stacy! This is now one of my favorite spots in the house...not oy because it's so functional and cheerful, but also because I can stand by those windows and watch all the birds hanging out in our yard : )

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  5. Looks great, Jamie! Such fun finds at Home Goods and Lowe's :) Those Daiso dusters are always so cute and I particularly love the rolling storage tub you used for bird seed - Chris and I looked at it and simultaneously thought 'ooo! that could also work for rice storage!' haha.

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    1. Haha...omg. Your comment about rice storage gave me a good chuckle. Here's the thing: I forgot to mention that this bird seed tub also came with a smaller tub that's meant to nest on top of it. The smaller tub doesn't have wheels, but it's still pretty large and has a good snap-lock mechanism. We're using it for rice...great minds think alike.

      Aren't the Daiso dusters great? I guess it's a good thing I don't live closer -- I'd have a accumulated a whole zoo of creatures by now : )

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