How to keep your child’s room clutter-free

Teja Lele Desai lists nifty ways to keep your children’s bedroom or playroom neat

E very home with a child has a surfeit of toys. Soft toys, board games, pretend play…the list goes on. Stowing away kids’ toys strewn all over the house is no child’s play and here are a few tips to make the job easy:

Picture this

This is the simplest and cheapest hack that is sure to make life ever-so-easy. Put toys — according to type — away in boxes and paste stickers or pictures on each box. A doll’s photo on a doll box, a car on a box with cars, a Lego scene on the Lego storage, and so on. You can put the toys away quickly and lay your hands on them just as easily. Plus, it looks cute!

Hanging baskets

Plastic containers typically used to put up plants in the verandah will be perfect for this. Get tiered ones and hang them up on the bathroom curtain rod or even on a wall. This is perfect for bath toys.

Add a drape

A set of shelves is ideal to put those toys away; one shelf for each kind. If you think it looks messy, pull drapes on it. Hide the clutter behind a pretty curtain.

Cardboard car park

If your child loves her cars, here’s a fun organising idea that doubles up as a number or colour game. Make a parking lot on a shallow cardboard box and number or colour code the slots and cars.

Your kid can park each car as per the colour or number. Slide under the bed after play time is over.

Baskets and bins

This one’s an idea we’ve all tried but never fails. All you need is wire, plastic or wooden baskets, and as many hooks you can get your hands on. Hook the baskets to the wall one under the other and save floor space.

Under-bed storage

Make use of all the dead space you can. A layered sliding storage can be especially made for the under-bed area or you can just put things in a handy — and decorated suitcase — that the child can pull out and put back.

Collapsible storage cubes

Another double whammy. You can store toys neatly and the kid can use the cube as a seat to play, read, or play. There can be more than one and they are available in the cutest designs and different sizes.

Doll organiser

A plastic shoe organiser doubles up really well as another floor space saver. You can hang it on the wall or behind the door. Not only are the dolls neatly stored away; their hair won’t entangle either.

Up on the rod

Soft toys can hang out, literally. And all you will need to do is have a curtain rod fixed on the wall. Stuff the animal behind it and voilà! You’ve got yourself a neat storage idea.

Customised storage

If you have more than one child, customise and separate their toy storage. Put up their photo and hook basket(s) under it so they know whose toys go where.