Behold the variations on mudroom sinks for gardeners.

Mud- or utility rooms can be designed as landing places and work centers for arranging flowers and indoor potting pursuits — not just for family storage or laundry. Unlike laundry rooms, the focus tends to be on mudroom sinks, which should be large and include a tall faucet and sprayer. One of the most elegant and well-appointed “floral muds” I’ve seen has cabinets fitted into an old-house space with windows high above the work nook and an Oriental rug on the floor. A large farm sink – pulled forward (or bumped out) to make it more comfortable to work with shelving above — is definitely the focal point thanks to a stone backsplash and counters which are fancy enough for a main kitchen. But the seriousness of purpose is best expressed in two elements – an antique swiveling towel rack (left side) which also can be used to hang -dry flowers or herbs, and the wall-mounted faucet with a serious sprayer hose anchored separately nearby.

A more austere English mudroom, with a lovely stone floor, has a smaller but still very interesting sink set up along with a combination pot and plate rack. While I question the wisdom of butcher block  in this location there are coating products to help with maintenance.

What interests me here are the traditional English natural brass pillar taps — separate hot and cold spigots. I love the spoke handles and the way the risers elevate them above the sink, making it easy to fill vases or bottles. There is no sprayer but the high taps offset that. Despite contemporary paint colors, the taps add a Victorian touch as does the straight-sided Belfast utility sink with an “integrated weir overflow,” a fancy term for a side drain. I do like this unusual drain style with a lip specifically designed to skim things off the surface – handy for suds and floating debris — when the sink is filled, plus guaranteed never to have an overflow. I’ve not seen a Belfast sink sold in the U.S. but Google search quickly turns it up on UK websites.

A skylight is a lovely feature for a mudroom in Nashville designed by Jeanette Whitson. The free-standing soapstone sink on legs sports  a bathtub filler and hand spray on the left side — this is a Cadillac as mudroom sinks go. Train rack shelving above the window is both picturesque and practical for storage.

Tucked behind the back door at the end of a kitchen is another big white farm sink (this one porcelain) set under dark granite. Building shelves around the window is a logical way to add open storage without making this area look too kitchen-y. A vintage-look faucet helps underscore the beach-house cottage style.

The corner of a garage was transformed by a Connecticut contractor to look like a mudroom – though this arrangement could easily be done in a porch. Tall beadboard is the backsplash and backdrop for brackets fitted with painted wood shelves shelving above the sink – much like the others – is centered in a trio of cabinets. (I could even see repurposed cabinets used to create a cabinet run like this one which need not be more than nine to ten feet long).

(Source: southernaccents, lightlocations via remodelista, House Beautiful, Country Living)

Copy and paste link to quick-share this post:  http://bit.ly/15yKLNS