Toy Storage

Allycat11 · September 2012

DH and I were just talking about our living room organization for when LO arrives. I realized that sooner or later we will need something to store her toys in for when we are on the main level of our house. We have an okay sized living room but not endless space.

Any suggestions on what works well for storing toys in a living room? What are you planning on using?

kristisnod · September 2012

We don't use it for toys, but we could totally use our ottoman that has a flip top with storage inside. right now we just have his toys in a little bin in the living room and the rest are in his room. my friend gave me a storage system with 3 shelves and colored bins that we might use once this next baby adds to the chaos

Allycat11 · September 2012

kristisnod:
We don't use it for toys, but we could totally use our ottoman that has a flip top with storage inside. right now we just have his toys in a little bin in the living room and the rest are in his room. my friend gave me a storage system with 3 shelves and colored bins that we might use once this next baby adds to the chaos

Both sound like good options but I am torn on which one I would prefer. I feel like she will be able to get into one of the colored bin style things easier but an ottoman or more adult basket may look better. Although, eventually we will move out of this house and a child's toy box or bin system will end up in a toy room.

Ktande22 · September 2012

We recently got some huge bookshelves. They're working amazingly bc they're super tall so all of our books fit on the top few shelves and then the bottom one is now going to become some toy storage. Im thinking 3 big natural wicker or woven looking bins with toys in each so she can pull them out herself. I also have a hope chest where we store lots of toys. Im figuring on starting to rotate what is in the bins and whats in the chest that way she'll have her own access to diff. types of toys every few months to keep things fresh!

chance_encounters · September 2012

I have one of the colored bin things and I HATE it! Not all toys fit into it. So you end up setting them in the corner or on the floor or getting a toy box to put them in there. Just my 2 cents. We use a laundry basket. I know not beautiful but it moves from room to room easily for clean up

Blackfire12 · September 2012

PErsonally I asked my dad to build a changing table, and the one he picked out can convert to a bookshelf /shelf. You use like wicker baskets to hold the things in and the. When lo gets bigger it can be used to store toys/books. :

smwiggle · September 2012

Right now we just use a big rubbermaid storage container for the toys in the living room. I think if we are going to stay here for another year or more, than we are going to convert DH's gear room to a playroom. There just isn't enough room in the living room for DS's toys and baby gear (like a swing and PNP). Also, we are getting our new entertainment center today, so I am hoping that will help open up the room some and we can push the baby gate out some more.

laurapacheco · September 2012

Ktande22:
We recently got some huge bookshelves. They're working amazingly bc they're super tall so all of our books fit on the top few shelves and then the bottom one is now going to become some toy storage. Im thinking 3 big natural wicker or woven looking bins with toys in each so she can pull them out herself. I also have a hope chest where we store lots of toys. Im figuring on starting to rotate what is in the bins and whats in the chest that way she'll have her own access to diff. types of toys every few months to keep things fresh!

This is what we're doing in our den. I'm also going to use some of the bins on the middle/upper shelves for things like extra diapers, etc. so I don't have to run upstairs every time we do a diaper change.

LaurelBee · September 2012

When Ds was really little he hit his head on our coffee table, so we switched it out for a cushy storage ottoman. It's great to throw toys in when we have company coming, but our family room looks like TRU blew up in it on a usual day

Kie310 · September 2012

We have a toy box, white wood, in the living room. But my living room still looks like a TRU threw up in it... I will have to snap a picture... But if you are good about keeping toys to a minimum you can get away with a really nice toy box.

littlemaybaby · September 2012

In our living room we have an ottoman with storage inside and two end tables with doors. If his toys don't fit, they go in his room, or into the basement.

In his room we have an IKEA Expedit cabinet and use some bins for closed storage, but use some of the openings for open storage (ie - books that stack nicely, stuffed animals, etc). I love the Expedit options at IKEA and would definitely consider getting another unit for our living room (probably the 2x4 cube size and not the 4x4 cube size we have in his room).

bearkatjen · September 2012

We have a bookcase, and the lower two shelves hold wicker baskets that we hide DS's toys away in.

this decaf life · September 2012

I don't mean to compare my dog to a child but we have a basket we use for dog toys in our living room. It's a nice looking basket from Ikea and it fits perfectly under one of the end tables so it tucks out of the way easily. We definitely couldn't do this for kid toys though because our dog would go wild but if you don't have a pet it's an option! We'll need something that closes because our dog will destroy anything soft.

SunshineShades · September 2012

Our living room is tiny, but we have a storage ottoman so I think for there we will put a few toys in our ottoman.
Once baby is on the move I plan to spend most of our time in the basement. There I want to buy this https://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/10103088/

From Ikea.
Flip it on its side, and then put storage boxes inside some of the spaces for toys. You can buy storage boxes that go with it at Ikea as well, or I am sure find some that fit and are cheaper elsewhere.

mrsodonnell12 · September 2012

For DS we use a wood toy box. It is from Walmart- but it surely doesnt look it! It looks great and hides the mess

jobiann · September 2012

I suddenly pictured our living room covered in baby toys...I'm highly organized and a little crazy with the neatness factor so I'm going to have to get busy finding something. I have a hard enough time keeping DH's "toys" organized and out of the way!

Oriam · September 2012

I bought a huge basket from Target and plan on using it to store toys...sorta like what YHL does. I also ordered an ottoman that has storage inside and plan to use that.

brianabrad · September 2012

chance_encounters:
I have one of the colored bin things and I HATE it! Not all toys fit into it. So you end up setting them in the corner or on the floor or getting a toy box to put them in there. Just my 2 cents. We use a laundry basket. I know not beautiful but it moves from room to room easily for clean up

Thanks for the comment. I actually have one on my registry and I think I'll delete it.

Marisajean01 · September 2012

littlemaybaby:

In our living room we have an ottoman with storage inside and two end tables with doors. If his toys don't fit, they go in his room, or into the basement.

In his room we have an IKEA Expedit cabinet and use some bins for closed storage, but use some of the openings for open storage (ie - books that stack nicely, stuffed animals, etc). I love the Expedit options at IKEA and would definitely consider getting another unit for our living room (probably the 2x4 cube size and not the 4x4 cube size we have in his room).

I just bought the IKEA Expedit for baby's closet!!!! Its sooooo cute in there!!!!

JaiteJanerico · September 2012

We're probably going to use an antique looking chest to store LOs toys in.

Allycat11 · September 2012

sewvt86:
this decaf life:
I don't mean to compare my dog to a child but we have a basket we use for dog toys in our living room. It's a nice looking basket from Ikea and it fits perfectly under one of the end tables so it tucks out of the way easily. We definitely couldn't do this for kid toys though because our dog would go wild but if you don't have a pet it's an option! We'll need something that closes because our dog will destroy anything soft.
I can just picture our dog right now stealing stuffed animals from our baby. We actually got a baby gift bag from MIL and there was a stuffed bear in there. Our dog immediately went for that bear! He was disappointed and confused as to why in the world a stuffed animal wasn't for him.

This worries me a lot. We have a 3year old black lab that has finally started chewing less but I worry that it will be hard to train him that toys on the floor are not his. We also have a cat that will swat/destroy anything that hangs (potentially a problem with a play mat, swing etc...). I swear our animals think they own the house and we just live here.

I'm pretty sure I've decided against the toy storage bins and I'l have to check out my options for baskets and storage ottomans. Thanks for all of the suggestions!

mseeyore6380 · September 2012

This is my fav and I have bins for the majority of the shelves aside from a few that I use for their books.

https://www.target.com/p/closetmaid-cubeicals-9-cube-organizer-espresso/-/A-11187165

I also use this for all K's bigger trucks and such.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80191289/

Want a personalized experience?

Toy Storage

Re: Toy Storage

Choose Another Board

Search Boards