We don’t have a lot of extra space in our house for toy storage. I swear we need an entire room for all the toys we have for Mason, it’s a little insane. Over the last 20 months I’ve come up with a few strategies to containing the toy area and I’ve come across quite a few ways that I would love to try out one day!
1. Get a Toy Chest if you have room for one! We got our Toy Chest from Hayneedle and it did a world of wonders for our play area, we went from this:

to this after we got our toy chest

That’s a pretty big difference and almost a year later I’m still so happy that we made the decision to get a toy chest!
2. Another thing I like to do is go through Mason’s Toys every 2-3 months, I get rid of the stuff he hasn’t played with and bring toys that have been at the bottom of his toy chest to the top so that he gets interested in those again!
3. We also have a plastic container where we store some toys in our attic. Every month or so we bring the toys down and switch it out with toys he hasn’t been playing with as much but still likes, this keeps him excited about his toys, he often forgets about the toys we put in the attic so when we bring them out he has a renewed interest in them!
4. Limit the amount of toys he gets as Christmas/Birthday presents. I was not as successful with this last year but I plan to really stick to my guns this year about it, make a list of all the toys that you/your child wants distribute that to family members and let them know those are the only toys you have space for and then give them a list of other things that your child really needs, socks, art supplies, clothes etc.
5. Teaching the “Clean Up” song early. Ever since Mason was a baby I’ve been teaching him the clean up song, you know “Clean Up, Clean Up, Everybody Everywhere, clean up, clean up everybody do your share”. Or at least that’s how my version goes. Either way now when I start to sing it he knows it’s time to pick up his toys. He’s still not the best at it, he is after all only 20 months but he’s getting there!
The next 5 ways to de-clutter and organize are ways that I’ve found while browsing the web that I either already do or am working towards! As always click the image to find the source!
6. I love this book storage idea and it’s easy to do it yourself! It’s just Ikea Spice Racks attached to the sides.
7. I love this idea for storing stuffed animals books and toys, putting it on the wall but still within reach for little hands is great too!
8. Blackboard paint is the perfect way to allow your kids to stay creative and I love that it has a space for painting/coloring paper as well. It also saves space because there’s no need to get one of those stands!
9. I love this idea. When the table is up and off the wall it’s a picture, but when you put it down it’s a table perfect for coloring or crafting!
10. I love this idea too, We have a lego table and with this we wouldn’t need one anymore BUT I wouldn’t do a whole wall probably just a small section, maybe on the blackboard wall?
I can’t wait until we can devote and entire area for a playroom!
Disclosure: I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Hot Wheels® blogging program, for a gift card worth $40. For more information on how you can participate, click here.



























