One of the biggest challenges in being a parent of young children is trying to find a way to keep the toys off the floor. I once read that the goal in picking up toys is a “five minute cleanup”. Basically, if you can get your children to clean up everything within five minutes, then it’s more likely to get done every day. Having baskets, jars, hooks, and chests that can contain categorized items will help the kids know exactly where everything belongs.

TOY CHESTS

Toy chests are great for large toys that need to stay hidden. My sons large trucks and planes are often hidden in our chest. I have also found that ALL the dress up stuff can be hidden inside them. I used to try and hang everything, but the kids couldn’t do it and with the tiaras, mask, hats, etc there were a lot of pieces, so the trunk become a much quicker way of containing everything. They love to dig through to find their favorite costume, then just throw it all back in for a quick cleanup.

FLOOR BASKETS

Baskets add texture and a decorative touch to a space, and are great for all the random toys. My kids have them for stuffed animals and a lidded basket for dirty laundry. There is a great variety so you can coordinate with the look of the room.

BOOK SHELF DISPLAYS

I will do anything to get my kids interested in books. I also like to have a little fun in their spaces. These book shelf displays attached to the wall and can be used for books or art. I love to coordinate this shelf by the season; all of our favorite fall books in the fall, etc. It keeps the books we are reading fresh and exciting. Plus, the illustrations on the children’s books are so good they double as art!

HIDDEN HANGING BASKETS

No matter how much storage I create, there is always a need for extra hidden storage. These hanging baskets attach to the closet rod and hang in the corner of the closet. We keep the small animals, legos, blocks, etc in them. The kids love that they can reach most of it.

ARTWORK DISPLAYS

Once your kids start childcare, the amount of artwork that comes home every week can be daunting. Where do you put it all!? I do a mix of everything…I sneak some of it in the trash, some in long-term storage for future memories, and the stuff I love or that they are really proud of gets put on display. Their eyes light up when something gets hung on the wall. Creating an area of wall for art display makes a colorful impact and a place where they can proudly show friends and family their creations. I either do that with frames or clips. These clips can be hung wherever there is space.

WALL HOOKS

Another type of wall storage are wall hooks. These are perfect for jackets and backpacks. They can also work for their favorite dress up clothes and purses. I’ve even used them to decorate children’s rooms with a cape hainging from it or decorative hanger with a keepsake baby dress.

JARS WITH LIDS

Crafting can quickly become dis-functional without a way to organize everything. I love the glass jars for children that are a little more responsible with glass. They can be displayed on the craft table or on a shelf with crayons, markers, pom poms, scissors, bubbles, you name it. They also come in a range of sizes.

SHELF UNITS WITH BASKETS

Every playroom needs some sort of shelf with areas for books, toys, and baskets for collections. The Kallax shelf, from Ikea, never gets old. Pair it with Knipsa baskets on the bottom row for a textured hiding spot. There are also great units from others stores, just look for a mix of shelving and basket or drawer hidden storage.

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