Our New Mud Room!

Jon's parents gave us the best Christmas gift ever this year....they finished out our mudroom! Jon's dad has been a general contractor for over 30 years, so he is basically a whiz at projects like this. We told him what we were looking for and he drew up gorgeous renderings before starting construction. 

When we were house hunting, part of what drew us to our floor plan was the mud room. I joke that it is my favorite room in the house because it is just so incredibly functional. With two kids and a dog, an official drop zone really helps cut down on clutter throughout the lower level of our home. 

This room is very difficult to photograph (tight corners and fluorescent lighting are not my favorite photo conditions), but I just had to share! It's hard to tell here, but we painted the walls a light grey. In person, you would see more contrast between the walls and the white wood work. 

I think my favorite part is the gorgeous stained bench with shoe storage underneath. It provides the perfect place for the kids to sit and put their shoes on. Frank actually found a HUGE, old door at a lumberyard that they were getting ready to throw away. He salvaged it and made the bench out of it! 

While I love the look of baskets underneath to hold shoes, I felt like it would be an extra step to pull out the baskets and dig through them to find shoe mates. These shelves are easy to keep organized and wipe clean with a damp cloth. We also decided to add lower hooks so that the kids can have a designated and accessible place for their back packs and coats. 

One day we would love to add tile flooring and a lantern-style light, but for now we consider the room complete! 

Life is hard...putting on shoes can be tricky...

At least Anna is happy about the new mud room! 

So now instead of coming home to a pile of junk and a half-broken shoe rack, I get to see my gorgeous mud room and this sweet face! Sure makes coming home that much sweeter. 

So this is super embarrassing, but for the sake of a great before and after, here is the space BEFORE Frank did his magic: 

Ahhhh....so much better. 

If you are looking for an incredible general contractor, I highly recommend you give Frank a call! He's not just a contractor; I consider him a craftsman. Whether it's a mud room or full kitchen remodel, he's your man! You can check out his website here. 

And if you are interested, here's a source list:

Reclaimed Wood Chalkboard: Urban Outfitters

Galvanized Mail Holder: Target

Yellow Pillow: Ikea

Floral Pillow: Target

Storage Baskets: Target