Please help me plan toy storage

[butadream]

Am I optimistic in thinking I may have found an alternative to Ikea and GLTC in these Really Useful Boxes?

I am looking at combining the 18L and 35L boxes in some form of made to measure shelving unit, I have space for 3 wide and, ooh, lots tall.

I am thinking from the top down:

3 x 18L
3 x 18L
3 x 35L
3 x 18L
3 x 35L
3 x 18L
3 x 35L at the bottom with rollers on

The question is whether to go for clear transparent or different colours? What do you think?

[butadream]

Also what categories of toys do other people have? We have a 3 yo DS and a baby DD, at present we have the following all over the place in different boxes and baskets and drawers:

• books
• duplo
• cars
• train set
• blocks
• puzzles
• baby toys
• soft toys
• animals & dinosaurs
• musical toys
• a few figures, expecting more
• Playmobil pirate set
• toy food
• art stuff like brushes and paint
• balls of various types and sizes
• building toys
• dressing up things
• board games
• random toys like bucket & spade, puppets, pull-along things

Oh rats even in my dreams a new storage unit isn't going to handle all of these is it?

Which would you say are better to keep in the bedroom (the storage unit will be downstairs)?

[thisisyesterday]

i have found, through experience, that you don't want it too tall.

it's far easier, esp as they get bigger, if they can access all toys themselves. otherwise you're forever pulling boxes out, and of course only you can put them away!!!

they're quite expensive too. ikea/homebase etc do plastic boxes for a fraction of that

[butadream]

Both very good points thisisyesterday.

Mind you whenever I look in Ikea I can't find enough of whatever box I'm trying to buy in stock which is a right PITA. Hadn't thought of Homebase.

[SofaQueen]

We have some of the really useful boxes, but I despise my system full stop. If I could start over, I'd get this. It will accommodate board games, lego, books, etc in an easy access and easy put-away manner. I'm holding off until we move to throw away my current system (these) which is supplemented by the really useful boxes and is very inadequate.

[butadream]

The GLTC ones look lovely but none of the long low ones fit in any room in my house so even though it is not ideal to go high I think we will have to.

Is all toy storage just doomed then? Should I just lay out my living room with lots of open boxes and retreat to a little island on the sofa until the DC are teenagers?

[WeNeedToLeaveInFiveMinutes]

Piles of boxes with lids is a bad plan. You need open topped boxes/shelves that the children can use themselves. They, and you, need to be able to tidy up easily.

There is a reason that ikea's trofast is so popular. It does the job well, is robust and is not expensive. Ideally, of course, I'd have fitted shelves with the right size boxes.

[butadream]

But Trofast doesn't fiiiiit

In my imaginary tidy world I was thinking I could get a few boxes out for the DC at a time and they could play and tidy up on the floor and then I would put the boxes back.

DS can open and close lidded boxes perfectly well, is this unusual in practice? Should I not expect DD to be able to do the same when she is toddling?

[butadream]

Also I have fairly tall kids if that helps at all

[CarGirl]

I love my tall units. You but the stuff at the top you don't want them to free access too and the stuff that if they don't ask for it can be sold

[butadream]

LOL yes I don't want free access to paint, for example or lego with its evil-- foot destroying powers

What tall units do you have please cargirl?

[Wonderstuff]

I'm having problems too. theselook like contenders?

[ApuskiDusky]

We have really useful boxes, they are really robust, tolerate being stood on etc, and 2 yo ds can open and close them properly without a problem.

[Wonderstuff]

I'm also considering this

[thisisyesterday]

wonderstuff, the second one yu linked to is really small! have seen one in the flesh, you wouldn't get much in it

i have resorted to asking dp to make some shelving, and we've just got big plastic tubs to go on it, so will be purpose built.

[duckyfuzz]

we have expedit from ikea, with a variety of boxes in plus some shelves empty, I like them because they will still be acceptable to teenagers

[thisisyesterday]

actually, i think the key is less toys!!!

i am striving to keep toys to a minimum. the children don't even play with half the stuff they have, and i secretly get rid of a lot. but seriously, they have so much STUFF! it drives me mad

[thisisyesterday]

yeah, downstairs we have the traby units from ikea with wicker baskets in.

[CarGirl]

I have trofast - one tall one and one shaped one under the stairs and they have the GLTC open tray things and 2 short bookcase - between 3 dds.

TBH if you need that much storage perhaps you do have too many toys?????

You can also use the inaccessibility of the high ones to rotate toys which def works very well with pre-school children. As they get older you really know what their favourite toys are and can sell the rest to pay for the storage system

[Habbibu]

second expedit - really good options

[butadream]

Wonderstuff, the cubes look nice in the picture but what would you put in them? I can see that they would work for books and soft toys, but I think things like jigsaw boxes would be too wide and you would need to use several baskets to store a train set. I think the same question / criticism might apply to the open tray boxes?

Thanks ApuskiDusky it's good to know the boxes can be stood on as I am certain that will happen! Do you have normal ones or the special strong ones?

[CarGirl]

Ones you've linked to at 35 & 18kg actually look too small you need at least one row of something bigger IYSWIM

[JustKeepSwimming]

Glad to hear some people recommending Expedit as I'm bullying persuading DH to let me invest in that

We currently have some 'grown-up' shelves that are very shallow so not v practical, and something to be noted, the top current one I can't reach, the Expedit i will be able to, yey! How tall are you Butadream? will you be able to reach the highest level?

[ApuskiDusky]

We just have the normal ones. I'd agree with getting some big ones though, I have two 25 litre ones full of duplo. Mind, it means they're not too heavy for ds to tip out over the floor.

[butadream]

Yes CarGirl I did wonder if that is too many toys! DC have v generous GPs and we also get lovely presents from broody friends, we're very lucky that way so I'd feel really mean throwing them out. I am one of 4 kids so having tons of toys around seems normal to me.

Also reading these boards it seems lots of people have even more Playmobil so I didn't expect my list of toys to be exhaustive!

What baskets do you use inside the expedit Habbibu or do you use it open? Do you use expedit for all types of toys or just books and boxed toys like board games?

[butadream]

ApuskiDusky v v good point re weight, would have to use the bigger ones carefully then.