The Mud Room Revealed

The mudroom is done...well, for the most part.  I would still like to get a bench, a new runner, some hooks and maybe new lighting, but the hard part of the project is complete.

Here's a reminder of how it looked before:

It took quite a bit of effort to remove the stubborn wallpaper and repair the walls, but the end result was so worth it.  The board and batten treatment came out great - and the supplies for the board and batten along with the paint for the room was under $100.  I think that's a great bang for your buck. You can check out here how I did it.

I was able to re-use the mirror by painting it with one of the sample paints that didn't make the cut for the room.  I loved the color, but it was too blue/green for the whole room.  On the mirror it was perfect.

The color on the mirror is called Light French Gray by Behr.  The wall color is Silver Screen also by Behr.

The fact that the mirror was black before was perfect.  That way when I distressed it, the black showed through.

I have to say one of my favorite things in the room are the new frames I bought at Ikea.  They are deeper frames and I added all black and white photos.  I printed these photos right from my computer.  The largest square I could print was 8.25 x 8.25.  For now I added a second mat, but I may have the two largest photos enlarged to the 11.25 x 11.25 opening.

I also bought a couple of the smaller frames.

Even though this was only a small gallery, it was still a grouping of pictures/frames that needed some calculations to make it all look even.  The easiest way for me is to hang the paper inserts inside of the frame to help plan out where I want the photos.

The next key to success for me in hanging any pictures is this tool.  I bought it several years ago on QVC.  The black pieces in the middle slide to any dimension so that measure the distance of the hangers on the back of the picture frame, then use this tool which is also a level.  No more making ten holes for each picture.

I also made this piece of artwork for the room.

 I had an unfinished shadow box that I had bought probably ten years ago.  I found it in the linen closet when I recently re-organized that closet.

Again, using the Light French Gray color (I got full use out of that sample jar), I painted the shadow box on the outside.

For the inside of the box, I used ribbon I found on clearance at Michaels.  It was the perfect color.  I glued it at each corner using my hot glue gun.

I also found these keys at Michaels.  I loved all the words on the keys.  I hot glued each one on a piece of scrapbook paper.

Put it all together to get this unique piece.

I also already had some Rose Art cork boards and a white board.

Image from Pottery Barn

I love the organization boards from Pottery Barn.  I decided to paint the frames of the Rose Art boards I already had.

Under the cabinets they fit perfectly.

Our mudroom seems to be the hub of our home.  It needed to be better organized.

I added pretty magazine holders, one for each child, to stash text books, CCD books and whatever else seems to pile up for each of them in the mud room.

The entire mudroom makeover, including accessories, was under $200!!  I really can't wait to hear what you think of the mudroom.  I always love and appreciate your comments. I am thrilled with how it came out.  I think I am actually looking forward to doing laundry!

Don't forget the Winter Blues Wednesday party is still going on.  You can join in the fun here.

-Judy