I bought some Ikea containers that don't have lids on them - let me say, that is CRUCIAL for organizing kids' stuff. Before, you can see I bought some Ikea storage boxes but they had lids on them:
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| Rachel's closet about four years ago - right after putting in her closet organizer. |
They were cheap, and looked great. But, having the lids on them made it hard to get in and out. You can see that having the lids off makes it easy just to toss an item right back in without much effort!
I put simple labels on each bin. She's old enough now to read so I didn't do pictures for these. Her baskets were already labeled and working well, so we just scaled down the amount in each of them, but kept the labels.
Simply making her line up her shoes, neatly, helps her to realize what looks organized and neat - versus being lazy and throwing stuff in her closet.
On the other side of the closet, we've edited down some of her things from before and we've even got her Barbie Townhouse in there! We've also given away many dresses - which she does cheerfully when she knows her younger friends will be getting them.
I made little clothes dividers from the left-over ones from the Ladies Boutique I organized last year in our home.
We have these great hooks on the shelf for her to pick out her outfit and set it out the night before.
We went through her tops and folded them in halves - remember how I showed you that?
Here are a couple of other ideas that we did in her closet to make it more efficient, including her {green} hamper next to the drawers, labeled drawers, and open containers for her things.
Here are the drawers UNDER the closet {these are fantastic, but you could do something similar under a bed}. I took pictures of where each Barbie accessory needs to go, not only for her, but for her friends who come over to help them put things away.
We cleaned up her bookshelves:
And, last, here is Adam's small bit of clean up in his room!
Here are a few things to think about when working with your kids on cleaning out their toys:
- Get them involved, don't be sneaky about it even if it's tempting to keep them from having a temper tantrum. You are teaching them to GIVE to others and not be selfish and greedy.
- Even if they are YOUNG - I'm talking about 2+ - they can learn to get involved and help sort things by color or type.
- Stick to just 2-3 KINDS of toys. For instance, my daughter has Barbies, American Girls, and costumes - that's it! Anything else outside these kinds/categories of toys is not welcome {exception is trinkets, which we get rid of constantly}. If they have Legos, Barbies, Little People, Knex, American Girl, trains, matchbox cars, and 15 others that's too much. When you limit them, trust me, they get MORE creative with the smaller amount of toys they have!
- Be firm, but understanding. When I tell my kids they can keep only 4 out of 10 trinkets, that seems pretty strict. But, in the end, they choose the ones they really love and really play with those.
- Don't have a huge birthday party! If your kids get WAY too much at Christmas or birthday parties, consider figuring out an alternative. Perhaps, asking for ONLY gift cards. Have a party with just two of their closest friends. Or, tell them to all bring a toy to give to charity. Or, have a gift exchange where they each bring a toy from their closet they don't need anymore and wrap up and have a game of exchanging toys. Your child doesn't have to always have SO much.
- Don't buy your kids toys. My rule is I do NOT buy them toys - only for Christmas and birthdays and that's it! If they want something really badly, they have to use their own money {and they do}.
- Grandparents....I love them, I do. But, I know they want to buy the biggest and the best! Try and find something special in their "category" that they can take the kids to the store and get. My kids aren't even allowed to have ANY more stuffed animals from grandparents {and tell them now}, but they can keep three special ones and get a new one if they give another away {some we give to the dog cause he loves those for toys}. Or ask the Grandparents to take them shopping for clothes for their birthday...think of an alternative that can satisfy you and them. My MIL took my daughter to American Girl for lunch with one friend and bought her a few AG items. THAT is what she remembers and is special to her more than a big party!
- For more ideas, see the post I did last year about organizing toys, too.
