Colder temps and shorter days remind us that NOW is the time to edit & organize our home’s transitional spaces to make them as functional as possible. Chicago winters are tough, and there is a lot of stuff the average Chicago family will need to keep up daily routines during the snowy, slushy, salty months to come.

By definition, the entryways, mudrooms and back hallways of our homes are transitional spaces.  Family members come and go, putting on layers, taking off layers, dropping whatever they carried in, and storing things here they mean to take somewhere else. It’s no wonder these spaces begin to resemble storage units. All that stuff only adds to the frustration we feel when searching for snow boots while running 5 minutes late in the morning. 

To make these spaces work better, get rid of these 4 categories of things that don’t belong near your backdoor this fall:

Anything summer related Sadly, summer is a long way away so why would we spend the next 6 months moving sunscreen to get to our winter gloves? Store the pool floaties, sandals and sunscreen up on a high shelf or somewhere else until spring. Use a versatile container labeled ‘SEASONAL’ and next spring take delight in pulling out the flip-flops and storing the mittens. 

Anything that doesn’t belong in your house Amazon returns, the dish that belongs to a friend, library books, gifts. We put these things by the back door with the very best of intentions of taking them with us. But if an activity is not scheduled, it will never be done.  The solution is to make a ‘RETURNS’ appointment for yourself. Gather those items together (with the receipts!), look at your calendar, and determine the most convenient time to drop those things where they belong. Block that time on your calendar and enjoy that feeling of accomplishment when those items are not longer by your back door. 

Anything that belongs somewhere else in the house Crafts, power tools, things that need repair, important paperwork...it all seems to land here. It’s okay to stage things here, but not as okay for these things to stay here all winter.  Define the staging area for these random things by reserving a specific container or shelf (not a spot on the floor).  When the staging area is close to full, take 10 minutes to deliver these items to the areas they belong. 

Anything that is extra Sometimes, too many choices create their own kind of clutter.  How many hats does each member of your family really, really need? If you have duplicates of needed items, consider having ‘one and a spare’ of the essentials close at hand and storing the extras in a separate or less accessible space.  If you or your child loses their gloves, you’ll know where to go to restock without being overwhelmed every other day.

A little bit of work put into clearing the unnecessary items from your mudroom or family entry will make each winter day just a bit easier and calmer for your family!