I’m probably not the most organized person you’ll ever meet. Actually, I come by “neatness” more naturally than I do “organization”; but in my striving for order, I have met with some success—particularly in the toy department.
Some women are gifted in organization in a way that enables them to not only recognize the problem but also to envision the solution. That’s not me. While I can certainly see—and be bothered by—disorganization, I’m not always so fortunate to have the solution come to me naturally—which is where Pinterest, online shopping browsing, and other mommas come in handy. Just give me the ideas, and I can handle the implementation and the upkeep!
One of the ideas I implemented a couple years ago—after first having done much brainstorming and product research—has worked so well to solve the biggest organization nightmare in any mom’s home that I just have to share it with you today. But first a word of advice: start preparing your husband now, because a trip to IKEA may be in your near future. (And by the way, who thinks Des Moines could TOTALLY support an IKEA of our own?! You suppose the power of the “moms blog” can get that ball rolling?…)
With help from IKEA’s Trofast storage systems, I have successfully tackled and obliterated the toy organization monster. Barbies, babies, ponies, LEGOs… you name the problem, Trofast has the solution.
Girl Toys
For the girls’ room, I purchased this Trofast frame because its shape and dimensions perfectly accommodate their dollhouse, getting it up off the floor and putting it at a perfect height for playtime. For the separately-purchased bins below, I chose the sizes that would efficiently house the types of toys we would be organizing.
- The large bins have worked great for baby dolls, doll clothing/accessories, and Barbies.
- The medium bins have been perfect for doll house pieces, Barbie clothing/accessories, and Melissa & Doug puzzles/activities.
- The small bins are just right for little toys like Polly Pocket, My Little Pony, Squinkie, and Littlest Pet Shop.
The best part about this system is that everything has a place, which means anyone (3-year-olds included) can independently (and correctly!) put the toys away. For someone like me who likes needs to be neat and organized, this product has been the perfect solution.
LEGOs
For Abel’s room, which houses what must be one of the largest LEGO collections in the metro, I purchased this Trofast frame because its stair step design seemed best suited for Abel’s LEGO-building needs. With three separate surface areas for his current creations to sit and plenty of bin space below for housing and sorting the thousands of loose pieces, this system works so well that I am convinced Trofast and LEGO ought to be sister companies.
Living Areas
In case you aren’t yet convinced that a trip to IKEA (or better yet, a consumer-driven push to get one in Des Moines! 🙂 ) may be warranted, let me appeal to your need for kid-friendly yet adult-looking living areas. If you’re like me, you want the living areas of your home to be places where your kids enjoy hanging out, but you don’t want these shared spaces to look like an oversized toy box. This Expedit shelving unit complemented by these Knipsa baskets, all from IKEA, are just the ticket for the type of hidden toy storage that will keep your living room looking neat and organized while still feeling friendly and functional.
Oh, Huuuuubby!… 😉
Thanks so much for the heads up on the Lego organizational system! Can you believe I’ve never been to Ikea!
@CharisF I only learned of it a few years ago! The naivety must be a Nebraska thing (Ha!). What’s your current system for LEGO organization?
[…] has shared How to Tame the Toy Beast (specifically, girl toys and LEGOs) and How To Organize the Paper Trail. Sarah has even shared a […]
[…] without? Our solution to too many toys is to buy more storage containers, to come up with a better organization system, or to put them into a “toy rotation.” And while I bought into the toy rotation idea […]