Porch for coats & shoes!

[ellieboolou]

AIBU to want to use our porch for coats, shoes, umbrellas etc? Is that not what they are for?
It's not huge but has an alcove that could have an inbuilt shoe rack and rail or pegs for coats. It also has a small radiator in.

Husband thinks we should have our coats in the hallway but I've never had a proper hallway before and want to make it as nice as possible as it's quite long and spacious.

i see where your coming from although coat and shoes kept in the porch can be very cold to put on.

We use our porch for all our outdoor stuff and have a nice tidy hallway. But we have a narrow-ish hall so shoes or coats would just be a pain.

I live in a terraced house with a vestibule. That’s where the coats and shoes go!

@Hesma this is what my husband said, but we have a working radiator in our porch.

Wikipedia says you’re right

@TheSausageKingofChicago 🤣 I had to google what that was

Of course they go out there, that's what it is for

My husband wants a porch for coats and shoes. I hate the idea. The first thing you see when you walk in is a mess. I would rather a tidy porch and coats and shoes elsewhere.

If you can hide them, fine. I'd not want pile of shoes and coats to be the first thing I saw when opening my door.

We have a back door porch with a radiator. I'm so glad we built it it's extremely handy especially with muddy kids/dogs.
We had to make our downstairs loo a bit smaller to use the space but it's been brilliant.

A wall of hooks for coats with shelves above that I have storage baskets on for hats, scarves and gloves, wooden shoe racks with a mat underneath to collect all the muddy drips and an umbrella pot. Also a key hangy thing on the wall.
We never use the front door now, every one just comes round the back, shoes off out the way before they tramp all over the house, shut the door and you can't see any mess.
It's a cosy little room which is great in the winter for warm shoes and coats. The kids can strip off all their muddy kit in there and make a run for the shower without covering the house in mud! Best thing we've built in our house by far!

I thought that’s what porches were for?
We have shoes, coats, umbrellas and recycling bag in there.
Our neighbours have an empty porch - well, nearly empty - there is a plant in there.
I’m starting to wonder now. Are we sloppy making visitors walk past our shoes?

We do wellies in the porch to stop mud getting through the house but I do have to do a thorough spider check before putting them on.

I don't think our coats would dry in the porch which might be a bit grim when youre putting on a damp soggy coat every day.

My answer depends on if all of your stuff would fit comfortably in the space without risk of it being overflowing.

My friend who has a tiny space leaves it empty for guests things. If she tried to put her whole family's stuff in the space it would be overstuffed and things would end up on the floor, if not draped elsewhere in the house, so it was more logical to have a bigger dedicated space in the hallway for her family's stuff (they have a custom built piece of furniture with hooks for each family member to hang their coats/bags, a bench and baskets for each family members shoes tucked underneath) and leave the porch empty with just a few hooks for guests to hang coats and a small shoe tray for any wet/muddy boots (they live rurally)

My parents on the other hand have a large porch that extends about 4ft either side of the door. They use the area behind the door for their own stuff, with loads of hooks and inbuilt cubby unit for shoes/bags/stuff, so that it's accessible but not the first thing you see when you walk in, and in the space the door opens on to they have a freestanding coat "tree", an umbrella stand and a small table with a lovely fake plant, so it is both functional but also looks clean and tidy immediately when you walk in as long as you don't look at the chaos behind the door

A work colleague kept all their family shoes in their porch. They had them all stolen one evening. She has to come to work in her slippers.

This is the epitome of sabotaging your own wellbeing for the perceived positive impression of others. If you care what others think more than your own convenience then go ahead.

I am sure on your death bed your will remark upon how glad you are that you prioritised how your porch looked to visitors than enjoying your family home

Our porch is small - about 1 x 1.5m so too small to really keep coats etc in without it looking like a mess. We do have one of those ikea shoe racks to keep shoes in which has been great! I love coming home to my porch nice and tidy rather than 50 coats staring at me from a coat hook. Nicer to open the door to other people too.

@TinySaltLick did that poster mention other people? How do you know it’s not a preference for a clear and tidy porch for their own selves? That’s exactly what I said before I’d even read their/your post. I mentioned other people too but they didn’t. How weird you’ve just assumed that.

You will end up with spiders in your shoes. You have been warned!

In our very first house, we kept shoes and coats in the porch. There was no hallway. I once ended up with a slug in my shoe

Or maybe they have anxiety and don't want the first thing they see when walking into their house is chaos and clutter?

My personal wellbeing means I keep all of my clutter "behind closed doors" - a cupboard/drawer/storage box etc can be as messy as you like, but as long as I don't have to look at it then I'm fine. If that mess is on display then it sets off my anxiety and I both simultaneously feel the need to tidy it away whilst also feeling massively overwhelmed with no idea where to start.

So a porch full of coats/bags/shoes would just have me feeling anxious as it would be the last thing I see when I leave, setting up a battle with my anxiety through the day, and the first time I see when I get home, setting up a battle with my anxiety regarding needing to tidy it all up. Having a clear porch would be much better as it sets up a feeling of calm organisation and I feel much more relaxed.

The fact it also gives visitors a good first impression of my home is a fortuitous side effect, but not the primary motivation.

I do have mess anxiety if that's a thing? I was raised in a very messy house and hate disorganisation, my idea was to have inbuilt storage in the alcove to hide coats / shoes. Then a small shelf on the left with a picture/ plant.

I have a porch where we have hooks for coats and a shoe rack etc but it has proper walls, a solid door and two small windows that you can't see through from outside (and we keep it tidy!) I visited another house last week which had a glass porch with a glass door. It was FULL of coats and shoes - all over the place - and looked a real mess. So - it depends on what kind of porch and how tidy you keep it!

This is my porch, was going to put shelves for shoes and a rail for coats and have a door to close it off

It’s the perfect place. Dead space otherwise.

As long as that space is enough for what you need to house there then I don't see why you wouldn't use it.

The issue would only arise if, for example, you had 5 family members who all have 2/3 different coats that are used regularly as well as 3-4 pairs of shoes each and the space is only big enough for you to put one coat and two pairs of shoes each. In that case you are going to need another space elsewhere for the overflow so I would say just allocate one space elsewhere for the coats/shoes and leave the porch clear.

I am very jealous of you "porch owners" I have wanted a porch forever, Someone near us has a porch and they have a little wicker armchair in it and a lamp on the window sill to light it up on a night it always looks so cosy as I drive past.