We moved into our 1920s farmhouse in the cold November 2022. We had too many things on our plate (including no heat!) to be worrying about all the mud we would track into our walk in basement. But after our first winter here, it became apparent the muddy boots weren't going away so I started planning!
The "boot room" is just an English term for a mudroom, but I love the romanticized notion that boots deserve their own room, not mud. And it wouldn't be a proper boot room without useful boot storage in the form of wall pegs.
After I looked through and collected inspiration on Pinterest, I took measurements of my space and started drawing out my design ideas in my favorite graph paper composition notebooks. I've been using these same notebooks since I was a teen dreaming up next my bedroom rearrangement.
During the holiday break (I'm a PE teacher) I started the building process! There are a few things still to do, so a full update and reveal will happen soon, but let me walk you through the build process:
Step 1: Clean slate surface, drywall.
Step 2: Plank board panels to give the wall more detail and dimension. Install it with liquid nails and a brad nail gun.
Step 3: Place the two side boards. Then place the board for your top row of hooks by using a laser level! Our laser level has been a game changer for quick perfect leveling, it's a must have in this type of project.
Step 4: Next measure out your boot rack boards, create a jig (see mine below in the bottom right corner of the picture) to make the holes perfectly even. Use a 1 inch drill bit to make all the holes.
Step 5: Cut 1 inch dowels into 9 or 10 inch lengths. I just tested a few boots against the length to see how far I wanted them to stick out.
Step 6: Use wood glue to set the pegs into their holes.
Tip: Place two boards on either side and clamp them together so the pegs will dry perfectly straight!
Step 7: Install boot boards onto wall with brad nailer and a couple wood screws in the studs, use that laser level!
Step 8: Install the wood shelf brackets. I added two extra screws to reinforce the brackets better.
Step 9: Cut to length then use wood screws to secure your shelf. I repurposed an old shelf I had taken out of another place in our house. But as you can see by the paint chips, everything will be getting a solid coat of paint so you wont be able to tell!
Step 10: Utilize that laser level again to perfectly align the hooks and screw them in!
Optional: Start using it immediately even if you haven't painted yet. Homes are meant to be lived in, perfectly imperfect!
I have yet to have the time to build the bench seat or paint the whole wall, but I love that we can use it for the function we need before those things are finished.
If you haven't done any woodworking projects before, I promise it is fun and therapeutic! I am absolutely hooked. I listened to an 9 hour audiobook and then I was done with our mudroom storage... with both the project and the book!
What storage solutions are you dreaming up for your own house? What woodworking projects have you tackled?