Like every January cliche, I’ve been sorting and organising the house after a wonderful but very busy Christmas. The kids are 5, 8 and 10 years old so at that age where they have accumulated a lot of toys over the years, but not quite at the age where they want to pass them on just yet.

Our two eldest, both girls, share a bedroom and that space in particular can offer challenges with how cluttered it becomes. To be fair it doesn’t seem to bother them, (it never does, does it!) but it stresses me out when it’s so messy, not to mention the stress that comes my way if they can’t find anything.

So I’ve always tried to keep a lid on the amount of toys they have and with clever storage which makes the most of every space, their rooms are on a day to day basis, fairly manageable when it comes to mess. I have a few more things I’d like to do (watch this space,) but for now, here are some of the toy storage ideas that really work for us!

If you’d like to know where anything is from you can shop our girls’ bedroom and boy’s room here.

Toy Crates for Under-The-Bed Storage

I love the Aykasa storage crates which come in different sizes for making the most of the space under the bed. The girls have vintage beds with one slightly higher than the other which works out well as you can fit the large maxi crates under there for optimum storage.

We use our large crates for Duplo and Playmobil and the smaller ‘midi’ size which is under the other bed, for smaller Playmobil bits, Barbies and Magna Tiles.

Don’t fall into the trap of buying those beautiful house beds or beds with mattresses super close to the floor - like we did a few years ago - as not having that storage space under the bed really limits your options.

Maxi Crates by AyKasa in Milk Tea; Wallpaper, Blackthorn by Morris & Co, Wallpaper Direct.

Hooks on the back of doors and cupboards

Whilst hooks on the back of doors are a given, have you also put hooks on the backs of cupboard doors to really maximise that space you have?

Being behind the cupboard door is also great for minimising visual clutter when the cupboard door is closed yet still providing a safe space for some of the more miscellaneous items your kids collect.

Hooks, see similar at H&M Home; Wall and Cupboard Paint, Marrakesh by Fenwick & Tilbrook.

Multi-Purpose Furniture

I love a dual purpose piece of furniture that has extra storage included. From footstools to benches, or in this case, an old vintage school desk, anything that incorporates a space within it for storage is a friend of mine indeed. And of course, bonus marks if it looks good also!

I’m also on the look out for a vintage shelf with glass pull out jars (like the discontinued Ikea Forhoja style) to go above the desk to hold their pens and other craft bits which will help reduce the clutter on the desk itself hopefully!

Desk is vintage from Blue Ticking; Chair, Dunelm; Wall and Ceiling Paint is Threadneedle by Mylands; Cupboard Paint, Bloomsbury by Mylands.

Using wall space for toy collections and books

I love front facing book storage as it helps younger ones really see what books they have available, however I do find you can store less this way so tend to have another shelf for books as well and then rotate the books to keep it fresh (we all know what it’s like when you’re asked to read the same book for the millionth time!)

For toy collections like these Schleich animals my son loves, I found a shelf on Facebook Marketplace which I sanded and painted to fit in with the colour scheme. I think if these animals were shoved in a basket somewhere they definitely wouldn’t get as much play as they do being permanently on display.

You could also use something like this for Lego people, small cars, trains or for nature lovers, stones, pine cones and shells.

Bookshelves, see similar at Great Little Trading Company. I painted ours about 5 years ago and they are in need of a repaint! Tapestry from Moppet UK.

Put Notice Boards on the Back of Cupboard Doors

I’m not a fan of visible notice boards around the house personally (in our kitchen I also have one on the back of a cupboard door) as they can quickly look messy and just add to the general visual clutter in a space. I also find stuff goes on there and never comes off and before you know it, the piece of paper you put on there ‘to be safe’ is lost amongst a sea of a hundred others.

My solution to this is popping them on the back of cupboard doors. The girls liked the one I did in the kitchen and as I had some tiles leftover, they used them to put them up themselves. They use it for school trip letters and a few pictures here and there. I’ve blurred it out in the image below to keep their privacy.