How are we already at February?! Wow. Somehow January flew by in a flash and here we are. In Vancouver we’ve already enjoyed a couple of days that feel just-a-little-bit like Spring. I’m dreaming anyway. This month we’re rounding up favourites for the month of love alongside a few picks that hint at the coming of Spring.
SHOP THE PICKS!
I can hardly believe that we are more than halfway through September and that the school year is well underway. I love a fresh start and I always feel like September is the ideal opportunity for a reset. It’s the perfect chance to start a good organization project and today, I’m excited to share a project that I put together over the summer: school memory boxes for our kids! I really wanted to start this year with a place for all of their art, report cards, work we’ve kept and awards they’ve earned in one happy place. This school memory box is something I have only just discovered is ‘a thing’ and even though our kids are 8 and 10, I approached this project with the same motto I approach life…it’s never too late!
SHOP THE POST…
While this is definitely not the least expensive project I’ve done, I think it’s well worth it to have a memory box that you can hand your children later in life that documents their school years in a really practical way.
Ready to make your own school memory box? Let me walk you through how I did it.
Order a letter file box. I ordered this clear box, but any hanging file box will work.
To personalize the box, use decals for either their initial or name. These white decals worked well for our kids’ boxes!
Choose letter-size files WITH tabs; I loved that these files had 3 different colours for our 3 kids!
Order labels for each category/grade that you want: I used Mabels Labels and loved that I could customize them!
If you end up doing this project, I’d love to see! Tag #WDschoolmemorybox on Instagram and I’ll share them as they come in!
2021 has officially begun and that means new routines and fresh starts for many. I love hitting the reset button at this time of year and setting plans in place for the year to come. Many of those plans revolve around getting more organized (at home and in life!) and today, we are sharing how to get started in organizing kids play items.
Bright & Fresh Playroom Project
As we all know, life with kids can become messy quickly! When you scroll Instagram or Pinterest, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the perfect images you see of all kids toys put away and playrooms that look unrealistically clean. Spoiler alert: many are! Designers and bloggers are often shooting rooms before the children have ever played in them and let’s be real, sometimes unsightly toys are pushed out of the frame just for the photo!
While those things are true, we have found some key ways to keep toys, crafts and books organized.
Start with the biggest toys first!
While built-in storage is the ultimate dream (see above!), custom storage (especially in kids’ spaces) is certainly not in everyone’s budget. Think about what type of closed storage you already have. Is there a closet near where your kids’ play? Could you keep your child’s favourite cruiser vehicle there and pull it out when needed? Use this to store big items if you can.
If not, there are some excellent ready made choices, like this storage unit, that house a large number of toys and crafts, and is streamlined and versatile enough to suit many different families and their needs. This unit is particularly great to have when kids are young as you can keep craft items up high (and out of reach) and use the surface on top of the drawers as a play area for toddlers to pull up on. To add a custom touch, consider changing the handles like we did in Kase’s playroom project, below.
From there, think medium sized toys. Play farms, toy towers, puzzles, games or any plastic toy that you’d rather not view after the kids are in bed, I like to put in the cupboard sections in the unit above (or similar) or big baskets. Our favourite baskets come in 3 sizes, with the large one fitting a giant fire engine toy amongst other things. Size large is HUGE, trust me, and also perfect for dozens of stuffed animals that you may prefer not strewn all over the floor. A set of these baskets is so versatile that you can use them for a play space, but they also come in a more neutral colour if you want to incorporate one in your living room (blankets, pillows)or anywhere else in your home (laundry hamper!). I love items that work for a variety of functions like this.
This next step is all about grouping like items together. Pull out your child’s toys and start to group them. Magnatiles? One bin. Have a set of Paw Patrol figures? Put them together in a basket. Blocks? Another basket. A set of cars? Another. You get the idea. See our post about best baskets and bins for pretty options if you like. Yes, it takes time to separate and organize everything, but once it’s done the first time, it’s much easier to teach your little one to put their toys back in the right place. At first, it will definitely be you picking up the toys and putting them back in their place, but starting this system helps to create some much needed order as kids grow. If you’re lucky enough, you might even have one kiddo who LIKES putting things away in an organized manner. It’s highly possible that you won’t though (there’s a mixed bag over here!) but at least it helps to know where things actually belong.
From there, go smaller. Add hooks for a place for dress up clothes, and think vertical (book wall or shelves) for displaying little figures or toys cars.
If you are finding you have toys that don’t fit in these categories, comment below and I’ll reply so everyone can read. If you are on an organizing roll, I’d love to see. Tag me on Instagram and I will share my favourites with you all!
We made it to Friday!! I know that our kids breathe a little happier knowing a couple of days at home are ahead too. I file this one under efficient Mama because it covers off two things at once: being organized and feeling connected! As a child, I loved receiving notes from my own Mom and now I’m carrying on the tradition in our home by popping a little hand written note into our kids’ lunchbox most Fridays in hopes of starting the weekend off on the right note (see what I did there?!).
It really doesn’t take long and it definitely doesn’t have to be complicated; even a simple ‘I love you!’ goes a long way to letting the kids know that we are thinking about them when we’re not physically there.
As with anything, what gets planned for gets done and this is no different. Schedule it in your calendar, set a reminder in your phone, write yourself a prompt on the fridge…whatever it takes, I encourage you to pick a date and try it out!
I’d love to hear if you do. Did your kids like it? Were they surprised?
Anyone else in the organizing mood? If you’re like me, getting my kids’ rooms and play area organized is top of my priority list this month (that’s January for you!). It’s a case of new toys and old ones, clothes that are too small and books that seem to seep into every area of our home. That, and Marie Kondo, who’s motto of ‘tidy your space, transform your life’ seems to resonate loud and clear! Please tell me I’m not the only one!
So, while we’re all thinking about getting things sorted, I thought it would be helpful to share some of my go-to places to shop for baskets and bins, and even the tiniest of containers which keep my client’s rooms and my own rooms neat and tidy.
I like to think about storage starting from large to small, with the obvious largest items being stored in closets and under bed drawers, which I’ve talked about how to conquer in a previous post. Once those areas are exhausted or the rooms don’t have those options, I use baskets, bins and all the way down to little containers for treasures that kids seem to love to have in sweet little bowls on their dressers and side tables. My kids collect rocks and a plethora of other weird and wonderful items, which I’m sure yours do too. Books are another story and I’ll address those in a later post, although board books are a great item for mid size baskets on the floor!
LARGE STORAGE BASKETS WITH LIDS
Without a doubt, these baskets pull double duty on holding all the things, from blankets to diapers to large plastic toys while looking pretty on the outside. You can use them ANYWHERE and that is their beauty; they are covered and so a living room, playroom, nursery, even dining room corner is a perfectly acceptable (and great!) place to keep these. If you want to be the host that has everything cleaned up when guests come over (trust me, this is NOT me!), I’m sure these work well for papers, cords and laptops too ;)
MID-SIZED BASKETS
These are typically open baskets but still a large enough size for items such as blankets, diapers (next to change table for easy access), stuffed animals, and generally items you want to be able to reach easily. They are super versatile and easier to move around than the really large ones. Some clients prefer all open baskets and these ones are a few of my faves.
EVERYDAY BASKETS
The most popular size for a reason!!! From belly baskets to the 12” ones to fit all cube storage, everyday baskets house things your kids play with the most regularly. The baskets on the top shelf in the left photo are holding musical instruments that my client didn’t want her son to have access to at bedtime, but wanted a basket she could easily pull down for the times she was ready for her son to play music ;) In the photo on the right (our newest basement playroom), those baskets hold blocks, Magnatiles, large Legos, stacking cups, etc. The kids can choose whichever they like and also put them back (fingers crossed!).
LITTLE CONTAINERS / BOWLS
Like it or not, SO many kids seem to collect little treasures of the strangest sort. If you can dream it, I’ve seen it! As all parents know, kids will keep things wherever they want (no matter how hard we try!) but I find it helpful to provide at least a few options for their special things. This is where the little bowls and boxes come into play. If you have a spare drawer in a dresser, nightstand or even under the bed, it’s an ideal spot for these. If your little ones are anything like mine though, they take pride in their treasures being in the open on their shelves or on top of their dresser, and I know one day, I will miss seeing those little messy trinkets. :)
In case you like to PIN things for later, here are some of my favourite baskets and little bins for storage in children’s rooms.
01. // Large neutral basket; 02. // Rattan side table basket; 03. // Patterned covered basket; 04. // Set of 2 baskets; 05. // Pom pom hamper; 06. // Striped jute basket; 07. // Everyday basket; 08. // Tassel bin; 09. // Belly basket; 10. // Canvas mini bin; 11. // Brass bowl; 12. // Handmade rope mini bin.
