This is the second post in a series I’m devoting to all things closets. {You can see the first here.} Since downsizing and adding another person to our family, the majority of questions I receive have to do with how we edit / where we keep our belongings. Today, I’m sharing one of two wardrobes in our mudroom / dining room.

Our mudroom doubles as a dining room and triples as a laundry room. It is directly accessed from the garage and backyard so it is a natural dumping zone for outerwear, shoes, backpacks, mail, deliveries, etc. Having a designated place for everything is essential.

We added a pair of freestanding wardrobes to the closet-less room. One acts as an everyday coat closet while the other holds less frequently used items. {To avoid a too lengthy post, I’m discussing them in separate posts.} Most mudrooms utilize open cubbies or shelves but I wanted ample closed storage so that when we we’re eating meals in here it doesn’t feel like we’re eating in a mudroom. Which, in reality, we are. The PAX wardrobes are from IKEA and the great thing about them is that they can be customized with a range of organizational add-ons. From the outside, a pair or trio look identical but open them up and the possibilities are endless.

We added hanging rods at adult and kid heights. Not only does the lower rod make it easier for the kids to hang up their coats, but it also utilizes what is normally wasted space under a single rod. The kids’ rod doesn’t extend the full width of the wardrobe to allow for tall cleaning tools. The higher rod holds mine and HH’s coats, reusable shopping bags and my apron.

We upgraded to matching wooding hangers. The hangers are sturdy enough for heavy coats and keep hanging items from becoming one huge tangled mess.

We utilize baskets for bulky and loose items. Hats, gloves, scarves and ear warmers are kept in baskets on the top shelf. A woven basket at the bottom of the wardrobe holds the broom, Bona mop, and umbrellas. This helps to keep the bottom of the wardrobe from becoming dirty. A plastic laundry basket corrals swim gear, athletic bags and the kids’ bulky cold weather vests.

We rotate seasonal items. In an effort to make the most of limited closet space in the bedrooms, we keep all seasonal wear in this wardrobe and out of the bedrooms. Winter wear, swimsuits and swim gear is all in here, all the time. {The exception is snow suits. They hang on a rod in the garage.} I bring whatever we’re using at the moment to the forefront and slip the out-of-season garb to the back.

We have a designated spot elsewhere in the room for items currently in use. There is a trio of double hooks and a floor basket next to the back door for backpacks, outerwear, shoes and bags that we use on a daily basis. These items may change day to day depending on what we have going on. In the summer, you will find our swim bag and flip flops here. During the school year, this space is loaded with backpacks, jackets and shoes. I have a rule that each person gets to keep one item from each genre out in the open. One bag, one coat, one pair of shoes, etc. This keeps clutter from getting out of control and taking over the dining table.

We keep shoes out of the wardrobes. Something that has really helped us make the most of our closet space is keeping shoes out of closets. The same goes for this wardrobe. We have a shoe rack in the garage, a shoe basket next to the back door and a shoe cabinet in the master bedroom. This frees up space in our closets and keeps the house cleaner, too.

Implementing all of these things helps us get the most out of this multipurpose space while keeping clutter at bay. You probably noticed a few ideas repeated from our master bedroom closet – customizable organization, matching hangers, keeping shoes elsewhere. Those are the things that really work for us so don’t be surprised if you see them popping up again throughout this series. Next time, I’ll share the other mudroom wardrobe. Currently, it’s in disarray so I have some work to do!

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

Remember the as-is living room?

Yeah, it’s not done.

But I did remove the shoe cabinet and octagon mirror. And put down a clean beach towel along the bottom of the front door. AND I think my photography skills are improving. Yay for shooting towards a large window! Sometimes, it’s the little things people. Oh, and for those of you on Team Original Door…we’re gonna do it. We’re going to try to salvage it.

About the shoe cabinet and mirror…the shoe cabinet is from IKEA. It has a slim profile and holds a minimum of eight pairs of shoes. It’s great but I think it was a little wide for the space between the front door and picture window. The octagon mirror was a Ballard Designs outlet find a few years back and it used to live in our previous master bedroom. I love the mirror but the octagonal shape next to the rectangular door with square windows was throwing me into a shape-induced tizzy.

So where did the shoe cabinet and mirror end up? Not on Craigslist. Not in the attic with all the other “I like this but I don’t know exactly where to put it right now so let’s just throw it in the attic” stuff.

I moved the cabinet and mirror to our bedroom. I feel good about them there. The slim profile of the cabinet makes it easy to slip by on the way to the closet or bed and the mirror helps reflect at least a little light around the north-facing room. I’m glad I hung the curtains before relocating the cabinet and mirror. I think I would have been inclined to center the cabinet on the wall between the closet and door but with the curtains in place, it looks better centered between the curtain edge and the door. That’s a difference of several inches. {The curtain rod and curtains extend ~10″ past the closet opening.} Otherwise, the cabinet would have sat too far left.

I had been waiting for HH to move the cabinet and mirror but today I was motivated to DIM {do it myself}. It wasn’t that difficult but I did run into a problem when I remembered the wall was one of the few remaining original plaster walls. The shoe cabinet was easy. It has a support spanning the width of the cabinet behind the doors and I drilled through it into two studs. The mirror was a different story. I was able to hit a stud for one of the wall hangers on the back of the mirror. For the other one, I had to pre-drill a hole, insert a wall anchor and fasten a screw. Not awful but it did take longer than expected {mostly because I had to scavenge the messy garage for wall anchors}… which means the kids got antsy and I got flustered. But I got ‘er done.

I’m hoping to make time for a little bedroom styling within the next week or so. This room is getting so close! I need something on top of the cabinet to connect it to the mirror {think overlap the mirror} and I have an urge to paint the knobs gold.

I haven’t quite figured out what to do with the now empty space next to the front door. Simple picture frames with a large basket on the floor to catch guests’ shoes {someday when the door is fixed}? A small entry cabinet/console on the wall? I like the idea of less versus more. While I was organizing the attic last week, I rediscovered some decor items that I want to incorporate in the house. Maybe I can make something we already own work. There’s nothing like shopping your attic for free decor!

Have you ever transplanted stuff from one room to another? For me, this was like killing two birds with one stone. I freed up visual space near the front door and added shoe storage and a light reflecting mirror to our bedroom in one fell swoop. Wait, is that three birds?

FYI – I’m sharing what HH wants for father’s day here. Maybe it will give you some ideas for your baby daddy.

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking