November 10, 2014
3 Steps to a Clean and Organized Entryway or Mudroom
This week’s organizing task is the ENTRYWAY (November’s cleaning and organizing calendar is here). Take a little time this week to spiff up your entryway. Before all the winter gear comes out, or use this as the perfect time to start with a few preemptive organizing systems and get that entryway ready for the busy season ahead.
If you have an entryway or a mudroom without designated places to put coats, shoes, purses, and other gear, go into that space and remove everything that you can. Set it aside into 4 specific piles – keep, toss, donate, re-locate. Looking at your space, determine the best way to help your family utilize this space. Do you need to add hooks for coats? A basket for backpacks? A cute dish or hook for keys? Recently I moved all our ‘sometimes’ shoes to our bedroom closet. This was a simple game changer in the clutter department and our mudroom has so much more space. I’d like to encourage you to find a game changing solution in your entryway or mudroom. Once you’ve decided on how you’re going to arrange this space to minimize your clutter, put everything back where it belongs. If you are changing up or adding a system (like a basket or bin), make sure you explain to other family members what your expectations are for the space.
- CLEAN – empty and clean the space. Wipe down any shelves, doors, handles, baseboards, etc. Vacuum and wash the floors.
- ORGANIZE – group like items with like items, keep only what you need and use, and make sure that the clutter is gone.
- NEW SYSTEM – if something isn’t working, change it. Put a new system in place – it can be as simple as a stick-on hook for a backpack. Determine what isn’t working in your entryway or mudroom and change it.
With a little time and effort this week, you can make some big changes in your entryway or mudroom. Short on time? Choose the biggest issue and tackle it. Maybe you need to get the winter gear out of storage and put it in a basket or bin for easy use. Or maybe you’ve been neglecting the floor in your mudroom – vacuum and wash it this week.
What’s your biggest struggle in keeping your entryway or mudroom organized? Have a great tip or solution to share?
Jo Says
My problem with our entryway, is that we don’t really HAVE an entryway! We walk in the house straight into the living room. About the only thing that sort-of works is hooks behind the door to hang our jackets on. I’m trying to clean up that space and think maybe a bench on the wall right there will help. Something with storage, and that you can sit on to take shoes off, or set grocery sacks down. I bought a small trifold screen hoping to section it off and make a bit more of an entry, but haven’t gotten to it yet.
GreenAir Cleaning Systems Says
Thank you for the post! One integral component of our green cleaning program is focusing on the entryways of apartments, houses, and offices. The entryway to a space is where a good portion of the dirt, dust, germs and moisture enters, and it makes sense to not only clean the area well but to create preventative measures to keep dirt out, or capture it before it enters the space.
One good tip is to always have an outer mat or grate (with rough, abrasive, hard bristles) located on the outside of the house, and one mat or rug (with soft plush or fibers) located on the inside of the door. This provides two barriers that can protect your house from dirt that would normally get tracked in on the bottoms of people’s shoes.
Hope this helps, please visit our blog for other news and articles relating to our green industry at http://www.progreencleaningservices.com/blog/
Denise Says
Becky:
I’ve done some cleaning in my small entry room as well its small closet.
My biggest problem is my dear husband who doesn’t want to get rid of a zillion of coats, windbreakers etc because he might need one of them some day.
As I live in Quebec and we have a hars winter, I cannot remove all of the old coats. What I did last spring is: I’ve shown him some of the most worn out or dirty without any chance of being cleaned again… and I got rid of…. tadam…. 3 coats out of 10.
So, next spring, I’ll try to get rid of another one. (Did I mention he wears only 2 or 3 of the 10 fall and winter coats?)
Sigh!!!!
Pollyanna Says
I love the flooring in this picture. Do you have any idea what it is made of or where to buy?