The holidays are over, and the living room floor is littered with new toys, all needing a home. Just how do you organize toys? Today I’m going to share with you some of our very simple toy storage solutions!
Organizing Stuffed Animals:
Stuffed animals — they are everywhere! And, when it comes to toys, it is never easy to talk the kids into getting rid of stuffed animals.
There are all kinds of storage ideas out there for stuffed animals, from bean bags you can stuff them in to nets that hang on the wall… The problem with those is that if they are hanging in a net, the kids can’t get to them easily. And in a bean bag my kids are likely to dump them all out, and not pick them back up, looking for just the animal they want.
My solution?
A clothes basket in the closet!
At the start of the school year, when they had super deals on brightly colored clothes baskets, the kids each got one for their larger stuffed animals. We made a deal: they could keep as many animals as they could stuff in the basket.
My son has another, smaller basket for his Beanie Baby-sized stuffed animals. My daughter has a stool that opens for her to put hers inside. We have similar deal with these small stuffed animals — they all must fit in the container we bought.
The nice part is that they can find the animal they want, and generally they are pretty good at tossing the rest back in the basket. (I have found the easier it is for kids to put the toys away, the more likely they will use it.)
Organizing Toy Collections:
When it comes to collections of similar toys, like Hot Wheels, construction trucks, animals, and princess dolls, we use clear storage containers.
I love these clear storage drawers for containing several similar collections all in one spot!
We have a set of these drawers in the living room to hold our massive animal collection, dinosaurs, and other shared toys. The clear drawers make it easy for the kids to see what’s in each of them, and because they don’t have lids, it is easy for the kids to toss in the toys once they are finished playing.
My son has a set in his room to hold tractors, construction trucks, and other vehicles. What I really like is that the top is the perfect place for storing larger items, like Hot Wheels mini track sets.
My daughter also has a set of drawers in her room, perfect for containing the miniature princess collection, Polly Pockets, and more! And all those tiny accessories that make those toys fun to play with? We put them in zip-lock baggies, right inside the drawer, making it easy to find when she wants to play.
Storing Larger Toys:
What about those larger toys, like the endless princess castles, Littlest Pet Shop homes, etc.?
I found these great plastic shelf units that fit inside each of their closets.
I love that the castles and other larger toys no longer are sitting on the floor, waiting to be tripped on!
Barbie Doll Storage:
I have tried numerous ideas for keeping the Barbie, and similar-sized dolls, contained. From clear storage containers, to a storage drawer under the dresser, they always seemed to be everywhere!
I have seen this idea, using an over-the-door shoe storage bag all over Pinterest.
I finally decided to give it a try, and I’m so glad we did! Finally, she is no longer dumping every doll out to find the one she wants. With clear pockets she can easily see all the dolls, even the smaller ones. The dolls in the picture aren’t Pinterest-perfect in how they are all lined up, but they are off the floor, and that’s all that matters to me!
Looking for more toy storage ideas?
Follow There’s Just One Mommy’s board Organizing and Cleaning on Pinterest.
And be sure to check out my post on how to get preschoolers to clean up toys!
Have a way to organize toys that works for your house? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
Jamie @ All That Srocks says
Great Ideas! I’ll keep them in mind when I finally get around to getting our playroom in order! One thing at a time, right?! Thanks!!
OneMommy says
One thing at a time, definitely! 🙂
Leslie says
Ack! I’m terrible at storage. I end up just putting everything in boxes and tossing toys into boxes once the day is done. I love that idea about the barbies though. What a neat idea!
OneMommy says
I really didn’t think the Barbie idea would work for us, after all it was “too much work” for her to toss them in a storage container, but for some reason she actually does hang them all back up.
Becca @ The Earthlings Handbook says
These are all good ideas!
We have some of the fabric cubes in different colors that slide into a storage unit; my son likes them because he can decide which kind of toy goes in which color cube, and he can carry the cube to where he’s playing and then take it back afterward.
We also keep some toys in bags that blankets or sheet sets came in. The clear vinyl zippered bags are good because you can see what’s in them. Opaque fabric bags also work if they are unique colors/patterns so the kids can remember that the blocks are in the cloud-print bag, etc.
Oh, and we keep bath toys in a nylon mesh laundry bag with drawstring top. We can hang it on a towel hook (or on the shower head if toys are really dripping wet) and the toys air-dry so they don’t get mildewed!
OneMommy says
Those clear bags from sheet sets are awesome for toys! I used them for quite a while for princess dolls before my daughter’s collection outgrew them. And they are perfect for putting materials in for quiet time bags! 🙂
Jill says
These are great ideas for easy and affordable storage. I saw someone used an empty bean bag chair for stuffed animals, it can be used as a chair and kids can get out the toy whenever they want.
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OneMommy says
I have thought about the beanbag idea, but I’m pretty sure my daughter would dump them all out and never pick them all back up. It does sound like a handy idea, though!