I’m going to get real on you for a moment. I’m going to take off the rose-coloured glasses and actually tell the world that there is something I dislike about parenting.
*hides from an angry mob screaming ‘YOU CAN’T SAY THAT!’*
But here’s the truth…clutter in your home created by your children is painful and nearly 30 years on; I finally feel bad for all those times (and there were a lot of them), that I wouldn’t help clean the house or my room as a kid…my poor, poor parents. If you ever find this article on the internet Mum…I’m sorry.
But this is why it bothers me so much. A cluttered room creates a cluttered mind and during this pandemic where your house is also your office, your local restaurant and even your holiday destination…it’s imperative that you can be happy and calm in the space you live in.
Here’s the thing, my kids are 3 and 10 months old, I don’t blame them. They don’t know better, they don’t value a clean floor and I don’t expect them too and while I will probably spend the next 20 years teaching them otherwise based on my own journey, there are some measures we have put in place within our household that have helped organise our children’s playroom (all on a budget), which also means you should be able to find your own version of our ideas.
1. Storage Solutions for Children
Let’s start with the obvious one.
You need to buy storage for your child’s playroom.
And no I don’t just mean washing baskets or something similar that you just “place all the toys in”…no, proper storage.
For us, this meant investing in these awesome shelves from Ikea that have multiple tub options that slide within them. This meant there wasn’t a toy that we couldn’t store and pack away. We have tubs for blocks, for train sets and my wife’s epic sensory play activities that she handmade just to name a few.
The plus side of a solution like this is that they actually look great too.
2. Donate Unused and Old Toys
The aim of the game – decluttering.
While we’re going to suggest awesome ways you can do this to achieve this in your child’s playroom as a whole, I highly recommend doing a huge cull of your current toy situation.
If your family is anything like ours, you probably have grandparents, aunties, uncles and friends who think a present for your little one every time they visit is a must.
Now, I don’t want to come off ungrateful and sometimes they bring something really awesome for our kids to play and learn with but wow…all these toys stack up and are half the reason we find ourselves with the problem of an unorganized playroom in the first place!
So make this step a priority.
Get a huge garbage bag (probably 7 of them) and find all the toys you feel your children no longer need and start a huge donation pile.
You can go to a local donation centre and know that you’re passing on the fun while making your life a little less cluttered…win/win!
And giving doesn’t cost a thing!
3. Turn Large Toys into Storage and Decor
Another way to declutter your child’s playroom is to see what larger toys can turn into storage within the room.
For example, our playroom has a relatively large wooden kitchen to roleplay with.
Firstly, we sit this against the wall to clear as much floor space as possible but then in addition to that the oven is now storage for her food based toys so we save room on needing another tub specifically for this.
Think about how you can get creative using the toys that already exist within your space to create a level of functionality that may not have been obvious.
4. Multi-purpose Furniture
Keeping your child’s room fun, exciting and practical all on a budget requires multi-purpose thinking.
Now, let’s think about furniture.
A great way to add extra utility to their playroom is a table and chairs set for example. This can become a great place for drawing, role play activities, painting and even eating!
By setting up a table, it lets your child know this table is a place for activity x,y or z to take place compared to them just doing their puzzles and drawings here, there and everywhere.
5. Wall & Window activities for Children
The last tip I want to share with you is 100% inspired by my wife and her genius ideas.
But did you know not all of your children’s activity and play needs to be done on the ground.
What about the walls and windows?
A great example of this is a water bead pouch my wife made, stuck to the window simply using sticky tape and it’s now a great sensory play activity for my son and daughter as they try and push the beads up to the top.
The best part? It’s not on our floor!
What are your best ideas to keep your child’s playroom decluttered and calm?
While this is our short-sharp list to make your child’s playroom a place that isn’t a cause of instant stress, we’d love to hear your tips too!
Leave your tips in the comments below and let’s save one play room a time!
