Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Family Launch Pad

I've dreamed about having a place to organize all of the things to help us get out the door on time in the morning. A place to corral homework, shoes, backpacks, instruments, and mittens. While I don't have a big, beautiful mudroom to store all of this stuff, I blogged about turning a small space into a functional "mudroom" here.

 
 
I recently made a trip to Ikea and was able to put some of my mudroom plans into action.  I have a very unusable, nonfunctional hallway in my house that has been sitting empty.
 
 
A few hours of assembly and no we've got this nice little family launch pad.
 



I put an Expedit on the floor and added black bins.  Each child gets an area to store their shoes and other stuff.


That black door heads out into the garage.

I also hung two Expedit units on the wall.  I thought they were fine "as is," but my daughter was lured by the shiny mirror doors and requested that we add them.  I'm so glad that we did, because now everybody can shove their stuff inside and it still looks neat and organized.



I also hung some filing pockets, also from Ikea.  It's called the "Kvissel," in case you're curious.  Now, when the kids are looking for important school papers, I just have to say, "Check the Kvissel."


Next up is creating a family calendar.  A few weeks ago, I stuck some tape on a white board...just so we could have something!

Soooo embarrassing, I know...but it's working!

I would love to have something like Carmel's:

My walls are super-textured, so I'm not sure this would work very well.  I'm thinking I might be able to do something with Washi tape or vinyl.

Does anyone else have an ideas for a cute family calendar?

9 comments:

Crazy Wonderful said...

Love the new drop zone! I desperately need and want one. Maybe you could paint a thin piece of plywood with chalkboard paint and hang it up to look like the painted wall version??

Cassie Bustamante said...

such a great idea! i would love to be able to move all of our coat closet stuff into the basement one day and make that a little launch pad.... or add on to the house and make a mudroom. ;)

Maury @ Life on Mars said...

That chalkboard wall is awesome. it would look great on the wall opposite the bench. Looks great!

Holly Gruszka said...

Cool! It looks like it's exactly what you needed for that hallway. Good job Suzy! You must be so happy with the functionality of it now - how do the girls like it?

Lisa @ Lisa Moves said...

yay for functionality! Looks good too :-)

we have crappy textured walls too, but I think as long as its not the stucco type (ours is orange peel) that you could do Carmel's calendar on that blank wall opposite the expedit.

Lisa @ Shine Your Light said...

Suzy - I LOVE all your organization!! The hallway is so functional now!!! Love all the cubbies and the storage.
How about you keep your calendar as is but get that fun tape…..washi, I think it's called? I've seen it on Etsy but I'm sure you could find it at a craft store. They come in lots of different patterns and colors and you could go right over your masking tape and make it all sorts of pretty :)

A room with a view said...

Great organized space. It is all coming together so well, Suzy. Its perfect having their papers accessible to them as well so they can grab them. Vinyl decal calendars - dry-erase - are convenient and decorative. I have used those in my kids' rooms.

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