The Mud Stops Here: 6 Storage Rooms for Stowing Springtime Messes

Just off an internal courtyard, a mudroom provides a prime place to keep sneakers. Each family member has their own shelf, backlit by windows that illuminate every pair.

Big Branch Woodworking and Lackey Construction fabricated the cabinetry throughout the home, including the birch built-ins in the mudroom, designed by Jessica Helgerson Interior Design. Each family member has his or her own cubby with storage for coats, shoes, hats and gloves, with built-in outlets for charging iPhones.

Between the kitchen and main entrance is a large mudroom where Andy keeps "a bike for every season, including two one-speeds." The slate floor, with a drain and a hose in the wall, facilitates mud removal.

Entering the home through the garage, the rest of the house is accessed through the mudroom, which leads up the stairs to the public level or straight through to the bedrooms and backyard beyond. The third stair from the bottom extends into a bench for putting on and taking off shoes. "It was a nice opportunity to make the stairs sculptural and integrated into the space," Willmer says. Photo by Ken Gutmaker

In this Seattle home, a sunny little mudroom—a porch that the homeowners enclosed—proves that smart storage doesn't require a lot of space.