Toy Organization Help

[sandgrace]

I have a 6 year old daughter, and I can't find a way to organize all of her toys neatly. Help toys are taking over our house, and Christmas is just around the corner! Toyboxes are pretty expensive too. All input is greatly appreciated.

 

[poohfriend77]

If she's anything like my DDs (7 and 5), she probably has lots of "collection" type toys. We have tons of LPS, Ponyville, Polly, Barbies, etc. We do have a toybox, but you can't just dump those things in a big box, or they have to empty it to find the one thing they're looking for.

DD 7 has one of those large 9-cube shelving units in her room, with fabric bins to organize smaller toys. Larger pieces go on top, and she has a big laundry hamper for all her stuffed animals. We just put shelves along the side wall of DD5's closet. I bought the sterlite "showoff" boxes that have latching lids with handles. She can see what's inside, there are different sizes, and the handles make them easy to carry to a different room. The boxes were in the $1.50-4 range at Wal-Mart, so much cheaper than fancy baskets. It's still not a perfect system, but it seems to be helping a little around here!

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

Well, good luck lol. When my dd was younger I used clear plastic boxes and labeled the front with what was inside ie: polly pocket, bratz etc.. I stored the boxes on the shelves of my linen closet. The towels and linens were folded and put in a dresser in the guest. DD will be 14 soon and I am now reclaiming my linen closet lol.

PS. The dog biscuits I used to buy at Sams club came in these great platic containers with flip top lids, sadly they come in big plastic bags now. But I'm sure you can find something that will work.

I also used to make my DD go through her stuff and donate some to charit before the holidays. Then one day I read this great idea on the disboards and I've done it ever since. For Christmas DD gets- Some thing you want, Some thing you need, Some Thing to wear, and Some Thing to read from her father and I, and then usually one big gift from Santa.

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

In the basement I have shelving and we use these clear containers from the Container Store. We also use the Sterilite containers that have a top that latches shut (like a oval or regtanglular hat box).

http://www.containerstore.com/shop/office/paperStorage/boxes?productId=10004054&N=74541&Nao=16

In the family room, we have this shelving unit from Ikea. We got baskets with liners that match the family room from TJMaxx Home Goods. The picture shows it vertical, we have it horizontal. They also make a much larger one, I actually remember on Jon and Kate they had it in their basement.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70103085

 

[crusoe2]

I have the same problem. My DD loves LPS, Barbies, AG stuff, Polly Pockets - you name it. If it has lots of tiny pieces, she probably loves it. And by the looks of my den, has most of it. I've tried the plastic storage bins with lids. Thought it was a great idea cause we could stack them and put lots of toys in a small space. Didn't work as well as I'd hoped cause inevitably DD wants what's in the bottom box. Since we had to use larger boxes, she couldn't move them alone so it wound up being kind of a pain. I just came up with a new idea - the plastic drawer units that you can get at places like Walmart. I have a few of them that I'm no longer using so I plan to transfer the most loved collections into those and see how that works. I'm hoping to cull some toys in the process and try to limit DD to just what will fit in the drawers. She's also getting a daybed and I'm hoping that I'll be able to fit some storage boxes underneath it. We don't plan to put a bed ruffle on it and she'll have plenty of floor space right next to it. So hopefully it will be easy for her to pull out what she wants and get it back in place when she's finished.

 

[solfan68]

We have a mix of the fabric boxes and the larger Sterilite containers for our sons Transformers, Lego Bionicles, and GI Joe figures.

 

[hambirg]

I have a 6 year old daughter, and I can't find a way to organize all of her toys neatly. Help toys are taking over our house, and Christmas is just around the corner! Toyboxes are pretty expensive too. All input is greatly appreciated.

Sorry, I don't have any advice. But if you ever get it figured out let me know.

 

[StephMK]

We use one of those 9 bin shelves that you see everywhere. The colorful plastic bins that sit on the wooden dowel shelves help hold all the LPS, etc. They are open so it's easy to dump stuff in them. No lids and they're not stacked so it's easy to pull out 1 bin at a time.

For bigger stuff, we use the wire squares that you make into cubes - we have a network of them for larger stuff & more bins for smaller stuff that can sit on the shelves. It's not perfect but it has helped.

 

[Ephany]

We use these big 20 gallon pink latching totes from Target. They generally run from $5-9, I try to get them on sale. Each tote is labeled and stored in DD's closet. One holds barbies, one polly pocket, one LPS, etc. That being said she has a very strange shaped closet, it's supposed to be the vaulted ceiling in the living room, but the people before us floored off the vault and made it into a room/closet. It's only about 3-4 feet high in most spots, so it's a good place to store the totes at her level, and keep them out of the way. The toys that get played with the most tend to migrate to the front, so it also helps me to know when she's outgrown something.

 

[lovebuzz]

I use sterlite containers too and a shelf that I purchased at Home depot for about $40. Each selfing unit will hold 10 containers. Now it is not pretty, but everything is organized.

After she outgrows the toys I plan on moving it to the garage and using it for storage there.

 

[thebeesknees]

I lined one wall of our basement play room with short bookcases (think the ones that go on sale for $15 all the time). We have used the empty animal cracker clear containers from Sam's. They are the perfect size to fit on our bookcases, and the kids can easily see what is supposed to go where. Every time we finish the crackers from one, I wash it out, then label it with whatever toy we are going to keep in it. Over the past year, I have amassed quite a collection of them (DH eats about 1 tub full a month), so now we have storage for the MLP, LPS, Transformers, Hotwheels, Thomas train set, etc., and the basement is starting to look a bit more tidy. I also have one of those open bin stands that Target sells. Stuff that wouldn't fit into the animal cracker boxes goes into the bins. We have 3 large open bins that we use for dress-up stuff, as well.

I would appreciate any hints you might have on how to store and organize Legos, though!

 

[lovebuzz]

Lego help...

Here is what I do. As soon as we open the box I put everything in a ziplock bag lego pieces, the manual and then I cut up the box and put that in there with it.

 

[jacksmomma]

We have some of those storage bin/play mat bins. They have zippered sides. It is a storage box with a lid, but the zippered sides allow it to be pushed flat and played on. DS loves them! We have a lego bin and a dinosaur bin.

 

[shellyfive]

We have the barbies sitting on the edges of pictures shelves (we got at ikea)
they have sooooo many and it just works better if they can see what they have and are able to put it back away. We have a huge finished basement ...so they are essentiallly wall art .....i find once you get past 10 or so, they don't fit into bins well/take up too much space.
Its ok as long as you don't mind all the barbies staring at you as you come down the stairs

 

[mom2val]

We are blessed with lots of space for dd's toys. We have a toy closet 8 x10 in our playroom that has wire shelves on 2 walls floor to ceiling. Some toys sit directly on the shelves and other are in bins. We have plastic bins and fabric bins. There is also a small closet that has shelves and all the board games go in here along with vhs tapes and dvd's. DD also has 2 book case in her room- one has all her LPS stuff and the other has all her build a bears.
Before we lived in this house and did not have so much space - we had more bookcases. I am not a fan of huge toy boxes - DD is a dumper! It has always worked better for us to have lots of smaller bins and shelves for toys to sit on.

 

[SCHBR'smom]

I would appreciate any hints you might have on how to store and organize Legos, though!

We've tried many things with legos. Once DH sorted them by type, but that took too many boxes. Right now, we have them sorted by color, each color in a different clear box with a lid. We don't sort by sets because the kids like to be creative and build from their imagination, not just build and rebuild the same thing. It's worked out well this way.

 

[ilovejack02]

Lego help...

Here is what I do. As soon as we open the box I put everything in a ziplock bag lego pieces, the manual and then I cut up the box and put that in there with it.

LOL I tried that for awhile, I had to give up . Now we build the set , its last a month or so and then slowly it is torn apart by DS and all is thrown in with the million other legos. I then throw away manual. Thank goodness DS just free builds. I do keep together the holiday small kits, we have a few pumpkins, bats, ghosts. He knows he better not put those with the other legos. ; ) I put them up with the halloween decorations and pull out every year .

I am getting ready to order turkey and a few christmas kits, really want to order the big holiday sets, it is so not necessary lol.

I don't really keep the legos organized, but I do keep the mini figures and accessories in a separate bin, well we try to lol. Lazy sunday mornings, I will sit with him while watching a movie and we sort out the people, it is a little game. The rest of the legos are in a cute little brown leather like cube stool that way they can be out in living room at all times, but hidden too .

 

[maddiesmom0116]

My DD6 has tons of stuffed animals and I bought the shoe organizers for under the bed (they hold 12 pairs of shoes). Most of her animals will fit in a section for a shoe, this way they are all put away and organized and she thinks they each have their own bed this way.