6 Creative ways to Organize Your Kids’ Toys in 2020
If these last ~8 months at home have taught us anything... it’s those creative ways to store your kids’ toys that are paramount when spending time at home.
Many of us have tried seemingly countless methods of organization. Even Marie Kondo can’t help us when the whole family is stuck at home. Whether your kids are old enough to store their toys themselves or you’re still picking up after toddlers and babies, this task is something you’ll be facing on the daily.
But it doesn’t have to be as difficult as “nagging” your kids to clean up after themselves. Developing a system to organize and store kids’ toys can be easier than you think!
Today we’ll explore six (6) creative ways to store kids’ toys… that will make your life easier!
1. Keeping toys neat
Despite what it may seem like at home, kids actually love organization, and keeping toys and the toy area neat doesn’t have to be a chore. It will be easier for you to navigate around your home, and easier for them to find their favorite games and toys, like their Warmies or other stuffed animals!
Through methods of organization and creative storage solutions, keeping the toys neat and involving your kids in the process will create an easier and more accessible system for everyone in the future. Let them know what you are doing (and why - so they can find their things more easily) and they will begin to adopt the system on their own.
2. Pairing down the toys
Pairing down the toys is a super important and often overlooked step. Whether it be for sentimental reasons (you don’t want to give up your babies’ old toys) or kids are just hanging on to their old friends, pairing down is an essential step.
Teaching kids the importance of purging their toys will set them up for a life of good habits. Having more toys does not mean they’ll have a better time playing. Just as they outgrow clothes, kids outgrow their old toys very quickly and while they may have lifelong favorites (it’s fine to hang on to some of their old toys) you’ll be able to get rid of so many toys without them even remembering!
Consider donating old toys that are still in good shape. Friends with younger kids or those in need will certainly appreciate you giving your toy a second life.
Many services for toys for kids in need will even come to your home to pick up your unwanted toys in good condition!
3. Getting rid of duplicate toys
Just as we do in our wardrobes, more often than not, we wind up with duplicate toys for our kids. Since we’re not the ones actually playing with the toys, it’s easy to get the same thing (or similar things) twice, especially if they’ve been received as a gift.
Getting rid of duplicates or toys that do the exact same thing can be a good exercise for your kids (if they’re old enough) in choosing the higher quality toy.
a. Keep similar toys together
Keeping similar toys together or in categories will also help your kids to enjoy their playtime experience and keep their attention span longer. It’s the paradox of choice ─ the more there is to choose from, the more likely they are not to make a decision. Cue “boredom”.
So instead of having a playroom FULL of duplicates, keep a few of each type of toy. Like, a few puzzles, a few games, a few action figures etc. and store or donate what is not needed.
4. Throw out bulky packaging
Keeping toys in their original packaging is really only useful for collectors.
It may seem intuitive to store toys in their original packaging to keep all the pieces together, but really, it takes up way too much space because it is full of advertising, trying to catch the eye of your kids while you’re actually in the store.
I’m not saying completely dump out all your board games into bins (those are the one item I’d recommend actually keeping the packaging for).
But by discarding the packages of other toys like lego, and only keeping the important parts, like instructions, you can free up tons of space for other creative storage solutions. Just make sure to involve your kid so they are aware of the whereabouts of all their favorite toys.
Keep the kids’ toys eye-level
With little ones, it will be easier for them to self-serve AND to help with the cleanup process if their toys are eye-level. Consider using the bottom half of all wall shelving for bins as a creative way to store your kids’ toys.
Lidless bins
Using lid-less bins allows for easy access. Your kid can clearly see what’s inside without opening tons of boxes and making a mess.
Tilted bins
A wall of tilted bins can also be a great option for Warmies Stuffed Animals, or anything else that may take up a bit of space. Getting them off the floor and into these bins will be easy for your kid since they’re easy to reach and organize.
5. Creative storage
We’re not exactly reinventing the wheel with lidless and tilted bins… so here are some more creative ideas for storing your kids’ toys.
Consider these:
-A bar cart for art supplies or other smaller toys like legos or action figures
-Hanging storage (like shoe organizers for the back of the door)
-Repurposed bins and tins for smaller items (tea tins are great for this)
-Under-bed rolling storage
6. Building good habits
And finally, now that we have systems and methods of storing your kids’ toys, there is an opportunity to reinforce everything we’ve learned through the good habit of the Cleanup Game!
Create this game however you’d like, but as an example: announce that the cleanup game is beginning and your child will have five minutes to clean and organize their space before you ring the bell and start the next activity. Soon enough this challenge will be fun and they’ll want to ring the bell themselves ;)
Now that we’ve learned all about creative ways to store your kids’ toys, hopefully, you have a better idea of what methods will work in your home! Storing items like your Warmies shouldn’t be stressful or difficult and we’re here to help!