Gain control of your toy clutter! Here are some tips for keeping your children’s toys organized, as well as some of our favorite products to organize them.
1. Start by sorting like items together. Put blocks with blocks, dolls with dolls, etc. This makes it easy to locate certain toys. Label things in a way for your children to read it. For younger children, use block letters and pictures of what goes where. Be as creative as possible with your labeling system.

2. Purge! Trash lost pieces to puzzles, games, broken items, or items that your child no longer uses or has grown too old for.

3. Store toys in a covenant place. If you don’t have a playroom area in your home, designate a specific spot to store the toys make sure it’s easy for your kids to access—not too high off the ground or too low and in their way. When finished playing, be sure to return the toys to that specific area. Also, get kids involved in the shopping for the organizational tools you want them to accept as fun. Let them pick their favorite colors and styles they like. Doing so encourages a feeling of ownership that self motivates your child to help maintain the system that is being implemented.

4. Rotate toys quarterly. Sometimes children can get bored seeing all the same toys in the same place all the time. Take their toys and rotate them around in their different play stations throughout the home. Example, Closet Toy Zone, Living Room Toy Zone and Playroom Toy Zone. Rotating toys will keep their interest fresh and more inviting.

5. Re-evaluate toys before birthdays and holidays. Since those are the two primary toy-buying occasions, be sure to take inventory of your child’s current toys to avoid buying duplicate items or items that your child doesn’t need.

6. Set up a re-gift section for overflow. If there are unused toys or duplicate toys that your child doesn’t need, either re-gift them to another child, or donate them to your favorite charity!

Items we recommend:

Storage chest

 

 

 

 

 

Storage combination with boxes and pine. Several grooves allow you to place boxes/shelves where you want them!

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S09871292/

Lazy Susan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The perfect tabletop storage for arts and crafts, our Lazy Susan keeps pens and pencils easily accessible.

http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/mini-lazy-susan/?pkey=dbaskets-boxes-buckets

Toy Chest

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Encourage good habits from an early age by making toy cleanup easy. Kids from toddlers on up can manage the job with this large open chest. Bonus: This chest can also be personalized!

http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/turner-toy-chest/?pkey=dbaskets-boxes-buckets

Tubtrugs

 

 

 

 

 

 

Super flexible and with reinforced ribbing for extra strength, these colorful tubs hold kids’ toys, books and more. They’re phthalate-free, so they’re safe for pets and kids. Online/catalog only.

http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/rubber-tubs/?pkey=dbaskets-boxes-buckets

Chalkboard Labels

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Durable storage that’s easy for kids to access is essential to creating an organized environment.

http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/sabrina-basket-and-chalkboard-labels/?pkey=dbaskets-boxes-buckets

How do you control the toy chaos in your home?

Tonia Tomlin is a professional organizer and founder of Sorted Out organizing service in Plano, Texas. Sorted Out offers a wide range of organizing and consulting services to help clients regain control of time and the disorganization in their lives.