Best Way to Organize Toys (and Keep Your Home Mess-Free)

Have the toys taken over your home? If your home is anything like mine, the toys are everywhere!

And, with each passing year, my kids just keep accumulating more. No matter how hard I try – between birthdays, holidays, and grandparents – the toys have a tendency to take over the house.

If I step on one more Lego or teeny tiny Barbie shoe, I might lose my mind.

And I know I am not alone with this issue. My friends are always talking about the best way to organize toys, and I am always on the hunt for a new way to keep things more orderly and less likely to make me lose my mind.

For any other parent who has taken offense to the mess in their house and considered throwing all the toys in the garbage, I am here to offer some help in the form of toy organization.

Keep your home mess-free with these tips for the best way to organize toys, and reclaim your space again!

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Best Way to Organize Toys (and Keep Your Home Mess-Free)

Focusing on specific areas of the house where your kids inevitably will leave toys behind and the types of toys that seem to overrun every house with little ones, I have compiled this handy list of the best ways to organize toys and keep your home mess-free.

You’re welcome.

Best Way to Organize Toys: Playroom Storage

Ideally, most of your toys will be kept in the playroom, or at least in a designated toy area. For this purpose, you need a toy storage organizer.

Unlike other storage systems, those designed for toys are made for kids to use. For instance, they are the right height and angle for kids to easily see what is inside.

My pick is the Giantex Toy Bin Organizer.

Best Way to Organize Toys: Bath Toys

You will also need a solution for the best way to organize toys in the bathroom. You want to make sure the toys can air out to avoid mildew, and you don’t want them to take up any more space in an already small area.

The geniuses behind The Inspired Home have come up with a kid-friendly solution – and one that stays easily hidden behind the shower curtain but keeps the toys within reach.

Source: The Inspired Home

Best Way to Organize Toys: Lego Brick Organization

While Lego bricks certainly inspire creativity, they also inspire chaos!

Any parent who has ever tried to organize small Lego bricks knows that it takes a Herculean effort. For kids who spend hours building and playing with Legos, finding an organizational system that works is key.

I love the system Sustainably Chic Designs has come up with for her kids!

Using a plastic storage cart with drawers and labels, this mom organized her kids Lego collection in a way that makes it easy for building projects and easy to clean.

Plus, she organized each bin by color and function.  She even made a drawer just for the Lego instructions (which we lose all the time).

Source: Sustainable Chic Designs

Best Toy Organization: Barbie Dolls

For parents of Barbie fans, you know how quickly your home can be taken over by those dolls and their accessories. And, you don’t just want to throw all your naked Barbies in a bin where their hair can become knotted and tangled.

Instead, follow this example from Parents. They use an over-the-door shoe holder to and organize all the Barbie dolls and their accessories.

Not only does this organize all the Barbies, but it also makes it much easier for kids to pick out which dolls they want to play with that day.

Source: Parents

Best Toy Organization: Stuffed Animals

Are your kids’ favorite toys their stuffed animals? If so, then you need to invest in stuffed animal storage.

These cuddly toys can quickly take over entire bedrooms. You need to look for something to store your kids’ furry friends that they can use themselves.

I love having the MiniOwls Toy Storage Hammock in my kids’ bedrooms for this purpose.

They can see their stuffed animals, but they can also easily access them and put them away on their own.

Best Toy Organization: Books

Filling your home with books is a great idea! But, you want to organize the books so that they are easy for kids to find and access.

Unlike adult bookshelves, kids’ books need to be eye-level with their covers showing.

If you want to avoid giant piles of books, you need to create book spaces. An easy and cost-affordable way to organize children’s books comes from The Sweetest Digs.

Check out how cute her kids’ DIY bookshelves are!

Source: The Sweetest Digs

Best Toy Organization: Craft Supplies

When it comes to crafting, your kids need easy access and clear ways to organize their art supplies.

For example, separate the markers from the crayons from the colored pencils – or else you will end up with an unorganized mountain of art supplies and broken crayons every single time.

While your kids may be too young for the pretty glass jar display like Style Blueprint’s image, you can find plastic containers you can use for the same effect.

Source: Style Blueprint

Best Toy Organization: Toy Cars

If your kids have started amassing a collection of Matchbox Cars, check out this fun way to organize them!

Attaching a magnetic strip or a wall-mounted knife holder, your kids can easily find the car they are looking for and just as easily put it back up. No more slipping on cars left on the floor because your kids will love seeing their cars hanging on the wall!

Source: The Style Files

Best Toy Organization: Games and Puzzles

If you do not already own several see-through pencil bags, go ahead and stock up. These bags come in so handy for car trips and busy-bags, but they work especially well for organizing games and puzzle pieces!

Instead of losing pieces or having boxes take up too much space, simplify your life by using a different pencil bag for card games or puzzles like Penny Pumpernickel Pants.

Source: Penny Pumpernickel Pants

Best Toy Organization: Quick and Easy Clean-up

Even the most organized parents will face a time when the toys seem out of control. For those times, it is handy to have a quick and efficient way to clear the clutter.

You know – those times when someone calls to say they are stopping by in five minutes.

For those times, I love this storage playmat that changes from a playmat to a drawstring bag. Simply pull the cord, and all the toys on the mat are now enclosed in a bag where they can be hidden out of sight and out of mind – until the time comes when you can properly organize them.

Tips for Organizing Toys: Final Thoughts

Keep your kids ages in mind when looking for the best way to organize toys.

• Label with pictures instead of words for children who are not reading yet.
• Use organizational systems that are eye-level.
• Choose clear, see-through products for storage as often as possible.

You’ll thank me for this later. Keep toy organization simple.

Your kids are more likely to help put things away when it’s easy for them to locate where the toys belong.

What are some of your best toy organization tips? Leave a comment below!