I’ve always wanted a boot room. A cross between a utility room and a mud room, if you like, with lots of space to store away all the unattractive cleaning products that clutter up the cupboard under the sink and somewhere to hang outdoor coats and to keep muddy boats and wellies.

We’re blessed at The Essex Barn with a laundry room near the bedrooms that came with a washing-machine – perfect as most of the washing comes from the bedrooms – and this left us with the machine we brought from our old house, looking sad and unwanted. Next to the parlour was a small L-shaped utility room and an even smaller loo that hadn’t been quite finished by the previous owners. We decided to knock the two rooms together to make a home for the second washing machine and create the boot room I’d been dreaming of. Here’s a shot of the before…!

Work is underway already with our building and decorating team from RE Butler and I’ll be sharing our before and after shots as soon as it’s finished. In the meantime here’s my thoughts on how to plan a utility room makeover and some of the ideas I’ve been using as inspiration.

Some thoughts on planning…

What do you want to use the room for? A laundry room is going to have different storage needs to a mud room for example. Plan out exactly that you’re likely to use the room for and use that to inform your design. We knew we were going to use our boot room to hang up outside coats and store wellingtons so it was important that we allowed for both full-height storage and a lower rail for the boots.

How much space do you have? A large area could be separated into different uses while a small room might need some clever planning to create multi-purpose storage space.

What’s your budget? I’ve seen some seriously expensive makeovers for boot rooms which are gorgeous but if you’re doing a makeover on a budget then consider which elements to spend most money on – do you want bespoke cabinets or will painted MDF suffice in preference for a stunning stone floor? You can do a lot to change a utility room by simply clearing away the clutter with some clever storage and adding a new colour scheme.

What do you want the room to feel like? Modern, bright and airy would call for a light scheme and good lighting while a traditional rustic boot room could look great with dark wood accents and wicker accessories.

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Let’s get inspired…

Image credits (L-R): Bright Blue: Styleathome.com – room designed by Susan Snow, Grey with stripe: fieldandstream.com

Image credits (L-R): JennaSueDesign.com, Houzz.com

Image credits (L-R): HousetoHome.co.uk, MandarinStone.com

Image credit: Alexa Bailey

Image credit: Joy Interiors, found on Pinterest

Do you have a laundry or utility room you’d like to makeover? What style do you like best? For more inspiration I’ve created a Pinterest board with lots more boot room makeover images to whet your appetite. Or to remember this post for later here’s a pinnable image, just for you x