Does your home feel trashed after summer break? Many of my clients have been calling me in for organizing sessions to help get their kid friendly spaces back on track, so today I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite organizing tips for kids!
The above photo shows a before and after of a small art space that one of my client’s has off her kitchen. The summer wreaked havoc on the space (it is also the entry to the crawl space for the air conditioner) so we needed to get it back on track. While I was sorting all of the items I put them into piles so I could take them back to their original “homes” throughout the house. Children are like squirrels, they are always gathering things into their zones that don’t belong!
Once all of the items returned home I could reorganize the art supplies and set up a work space for my client’s daughter to get creative. The little space is under the stairs and it curves around to the left so I set up a little “fort” in the corner for her to play. I gave her a few bins for her games and miscellaneous art supplies. The table top has glue, washable paint, markers, and colored pencils. Her daughter will love it!
Start Fresh! Dump out every bin and drawer and start from scratch. It might appear that your child needs everything in their toy bin but dumping it out and resorting all of the items will uncover all of the junk that sinks to the bottom. When I am organizing kids spaces with my clients I often find cell phone chargers, small electronics, kitchen utensils, and missing socks at the bottom of the toy bins.
Allocate Enough Time! Schedule the proper amount of time to complete the project from start to finish. Limit distractions (phone calls, TV watching) and dig in for a few hours.
Remember, You are the Boss! It is important to give your children a chance to learn how to make decisions when it comes to purging and letting go but remember, you are the boss! Most of my clients are afraid to rock the boat by purging toys that annoy them but their children like. Also, just because it was a gift from Aunt Sally doesn’t mean it needs to take up precious storage space.
Clean as You Go! I always have Clorox Wipes in my organizing bag so I can wipe out bins and shelving as I work on an organizing project. I often move furniture and vacuum under everything just to make sure I covered the entire room. You might think I’m nuts but you’d be surprised what you might find behind your kiddos dresser. I’ve found birthday checks, books, photos, jewelry, etc..
ReInvent! Don’t be afraid to change the layout of a room or the storage location of an item. If your child is no longer into dress-up or legos like they used to be, it’s okay to move them into a lower priority zone. Items that live on a child’s bookcase, in bins or shelves in their room, and in the dresser should be items that they use currently. Your kids are always changing and so should the items they need in their high priority zones.
Don’t Expect To Much! When I work with children I typically do the sorting on my own and bring them in for the decision-making because I find it to be the most important part of the puzzle (if they are old enough). If I can get a good picture of how often the use things and what their favorite items are based on their decisions to keep things or let them go, I am able to set up the space in a way that is user-friendly and functional.
If you can also get your child involved in sorting it is a great skill that they can use for the rest of their life (you’d be surprised at how many of my adult clients never learned sorting skills). Even if your child is too young to sort or make decisions make them apart of the process somehow so they can start to understand the organizing process and feel a connection to the new system so they can maintain it.
I love this cute bookcase from a playroom I organized this week! Follow
me on Instagram to stay connected with what I’m working on!
I hope these tips will help get your home back on track now that school is back in session! Here is another glimpse at yesterday’s project.
There are more before and afters and kid friendly organizing tips in these recent organizing projects featured on my blog…
Tracey says
In our house, we call your “start fresh” step “dump it day”! We dump all of our toy bins out into the middle of the toy room and sort it all back out into its designated area. The kids actually love finding all of the treasures that they have forgotten about, and I love finding items that need to secretly disappear after the kiddos are in bed!
Angela says
Where can I get the albums you used for artwork? Also is the bookcase for sale somewhere? Thanks.
kuzakscloset says
The artwork folios are available on Amazon in a variety of sizes: http://www.amazon.com/ITOYA-Profolio-Original-Presentation-ANIA1212/dp/B002XIV07O/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1378742776&sr=8-8&keywords=art+portfolio+black
And the book case is also on Amazon in a variety of colors: http://www.amazon.com/KidKraft-14221-Sling-Bookshelf-Natural/dp/B0018MCVH4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1378742807&sr=8-2&keywords=kids+bookshelf
marissa | Rae Gun Ramblings says
Such great tips. Thanks so much for linking up at Block Party last week. I’m featuring this tomorrow in next weeks party. I can’t wait to see what else you have to share 🙂
kuzakscloset says
Thanks again for the feature!