Containing Kid Clutter AKA TOYS

I am not a professional organizer. I want to make that perfectly clear. Organizing is a hobby of mine not a career. I feel a need to say this because there seem to be a lot of people out there who assume I am a professional. I'm not. Call it a talent if you will. It's just something I enjoy doing in my free time in my own home. Someday it might turn into a career but for now I am content sharing my ideas with those who are interested. If you are in need of ideas on how to keep your kids' toys neat and organized then read on because today I am sharing the love on that exact subject! :)

How to get started:
I like to view toy organization in the same way I view my wardrobe. If I haven't worn an item of clothing in a year then I get rid of it. I try to do the same with my kids' toys. We keep what they play with and donate what they don't. It's a little more tricky with kids' toys due to the various ages and like hand-me-down clothes there's always a toy hanging around waiting for someone to "grow into it".

However, in order to make your toy organization be as successful as possible you have to purge what your kids don't need. You can include your kids in this process if they're willing to be objective but if your kids are anything like mine they'll probably insist that every toy you hold up is their "favorite" and they "play with it all the time". If that's the case it's probably best to purge when they're not around. I guarantee you they won't miss what they don't play with. Mine never do. :)

What to keep and what not:
Ultimately you have to be the judge of what stays in your house and what doesn't but if you have so many things that the playroom gets trashed every time your kids play or they haven't a clue where to put things when they're done then it's time to downsize! When I go through my kids' things I start with the "junk" first. My definition of junk is anything that's worth nothing ie Happy Meal toys or just the cheapo "where on earth did we get this thing anyway?!?" toys. I don't donate them because I doubt anyone else wants them anyway. Instead I just toss them in the trash.

Then I look at the toys that are left. Try not to keep toys out that no one is developmentally ready for. For example, if you have a lot of baby toys laying around but don't currently have a baby then either box them up and put them in a closet until you have a child ready for them again or donate them. That goes for all rarely played with toys. Keep them up and out of the way; Only pull them out when they're asked for. If you bought a toy that no one likes, swallow your pride and get rid of it. The way I figure, it's better to give a toy away to a child who'll appreciate it then to have it gathering dust in my kids' room.

The fun part... Storage!
Now comes the best part. If you've successfully cleaned out your play space of anything unneeded or unwanted then you're now ready for some awesome ways of keeping all the toys contained! Most of my kids' toys are kept in a playroom in the basement. However, these ides would work for any child's room or closet. How do I know that? Because I have never had a playroom before I moved to this house so I am experienced in storing toys in smaller spaces as well. :) The key to any successful organization project is to utilize the space you have in the best way possible. This may take several attempts until you get the right flow in the room but that's okay. I have reorganized my playroom several times myself. It's working for now and when I see it's stopped working I'll do it again!

The best place I have found for inexpensive effective toy organization has got to be IKEA. I love that store! These metal shelves are $14.99 a piece with the bins running for about $1.50 each. I love bins. You can store so much in them and they look neat and tidy. See how I pushed the baby strollers under the shelves? Make every space count my friends!

These shelves are also good for free standing things as well. Just look at how many Littlest Petshop play sets fit on there! Also these shelves can be bolted to the wall which makes them safe. I had just enough room in between the shelving for the cute teatime table my sister made for my girls. Underneath it I slid the bin full of Little People stuff. My baby is the only one who plays with it so I wanted it to be at her level and I made good use of otherwise wasted space.

In the center of the playroom closet I made the boy zone. I put everything my one and only son plays with here so he has all his beloved cars in one spot for him and his friends. I love these open bins as well. I used to have one of these in each of my kids' closets back before we moved into this house. They don't take up much space and you can fit lots into them. Just make sure you label them so your child knows where to return their stuff. I got this particular storage unit at Target several years ago for about $70.00 I think. Looks like it's a little more expensive now but then again everything is these days isn't it? Back when I bought them there weren't a lot of options for kid storage but I still love them. They work very well for small people. :)

Here's another 3 tiered storage unit that houses the girl stuff. Next to it is an inexpensive set of plastic drawers where my girls keep their dress-up stuff, most of it anyway.

Tucked behind the playroom door is a simple set of hooks for my girls to hang their play dresses on. Another ingenious use of space if I do say so myself. :)

In each corner of the closet I have these wonderful shelving units. It was such a waste of space before but now look how awesome it is! Nothing drives me crazier than clutter. There's no clutter in the closet anymore now, thanks to IKEA.

The toys that my kids still play with, but only rarely, are tucked away neatly in the top shelf of the closet where only I can reach them. I'm happy to pull them down when they ask for them and happier that they are out of the way!

Phew! I think I've overloaded you enough so for now I'll leave how I store my youngest's toys for another day. :) I guarantee you these ideas will work for your child's toys. Heck, they'll work for your toys too! Comment on this post with any questions. I am always happy to offer up advice. :) Good luck!