Mudroom Ideas for Winter & Weather
In addition to protecting your floors, smart mudroom design is key to handling all your winter gear.
Winter is challenging, and not just for its harsh outdoor elements—it can also make an impact on your home’s interiors. If you live in a snowy region, you know that the snow, ice, and salt can get tracked into your house on a regular basis and spell trouble for your floors, which is why it’s important to gear up your foyers and mudrooms this season to protect them for the snowy months ahead.
In addition to protecting your floors, smart mudroom design is key to handling all your winter gear—from soggy boots and mittens to stocking caps and scarves. Be it big or small, we’ve got a few key tips and tricks to help you maximize every inch of your space, keeping the rest of your home’s floors as clean and clear as possible.
Waterproof Flooring
No matter how much smart storage you install (or steps you take to prevent this from happening), with children—even adult children—there’s a high probability that water and dirt will get tracked into your house from outdoors. If you have high-quality waterproof vinyl flooring, however, you won’t have to worry about them getting wrecked by the elements.
We love the look of the Meribel Elm Waterproof Rigid Vinyl Plank Flooring, for instance, which embodies a lighter, more natural wood appearance. Options abound, though, and you might prefer the looks of something like Rochester Oak Waterproof Rigid Vinyl Plank Flooring, which you would choose for a richer, more traditional finish to your space.
Stylish Storage
Whether you’re working with an open-plan mudroom or just a bi-fold coat closet, there are ample opportunities to use what you’ve got on-hand to create storage that’s functional and attractive. If you’ve got a small coat closet near the entry with folding doors, for example, you can modernize and maximize the space by removing the doors, installing overhead shelving, adding hooks around the interior walls, and adding a bench with closed storage underneath. Putting more baskets or drawers in the storage units above and below will make the space more visually appealing while keeping your stuff organized and out of sight.
If you have more of an open mudroom floorplan to work with, building a standing storage unit (if you’re on a budget, a large, repurposed bookshelf can do the trick) is a great way to organize your stuff, and there’s more room to customize your storage seasonally (or by family member). Creating divided storage, with room for hanging items and drawers or cubbies below, keeps your stuff organized and, most importantly, off the floor.
With CoreLuxe Sanderling Oak Waterproof Vinyl Plank Flooring 9 in. Wide X 60 in. Long, with attached padding.
Hanging Space
If you or your kids are spending any amount of time outside over the winter (and you should), odds are, people will be coming home with soggy outerwear. If you’re working with a smaller space—say an older home or a unique layout—rather than taking up valuable bathroom sink space or piling your wet items on the floor, you can start to utilize your vertical space.
If you’ve got an open corner near an outside door, consider adding a storage bench for shoes and some hooks for coats. To tie it together with the aesthetic of your house, you can add some overhead floating shelves to display decorative items and use baskets for added storage.
How are you rethinking your mudroom this winter season? Post photos on Facebook or Instagram and tag @LLFlooringOfficial for a chance to be featured on our page!
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