This is Step 1 of the 7 Genius Steps to Sustainable Toy Organization series. I’m going to show you step-by-step exactly how to get your toys organized and KEEP them that way day after day.
When tackling big projects like organizing, I have to break it down into smaller steps. If not, I just freeze-up into a non-functioning ball of overwhelmed-ness.
Winning is motivating. And each step I complete, is a win. Each win motivates me to complete the next step, which gives me even more motivation and more momentum.
If you’re human, this will probably work for you, too.
So come on this journey with me. Take it one step at a time. One win at a time. I promise, once you get to the other side, the grass really is greener. The honey really tastes sweeter. And our homes really do look and feel better when all the toys are organized and are in their place.
The Toy Problem
Toys have taken over. But their reign has ended. It’s time to reclaim your home once and for all!
If you want to eliminate the toy clutter in your home, then you need to get organized.
But there’s nothing more frustrating than spending a whole weekend cleaning and organizing only to wake up on Tuesday morning with everything exactly how it was before.
You need to get organized. And you need to do it the right way, so it STAYS organized! I’ve been where you are, and I know the way to the other side!
So, say goodbye to tripping over the clutter of neglected toys, and say hello to sustainable organization through toy storage and rotation.
I’ll lead you through the 7 steps to organizing toys the right way, so once it’s done, you NEVER. HAVE. TO DO IT. AGAIN!
Are you ready?
Where Did All These Toys Come From?!
It starts out innocent enough. You bring home your newborn and all they need is milk, love, and diapers–well, for the most part.
But somewhere in those sleep deprived days, you become aware that every minute that baby sleeps is another minute that you might get the opportunity to as well. So first, it’s the swing, the bassinet, and the Pack n’ Play.
Then as your child grows, they need more “stimulation” and “motor development.” So you get the rings, the blocks, and the activity tables. Then it’s the stuffed animals, balls, and dolls, and why does everything have to make noise?!
Before you know it, your kid has more stuff than you, and it’s not-so-slowly overtaking every room in your home.
The 7 Genius Steps to Sustainable Toy Organization
Quick disclaimer: You won’t find every step on this post.
Why?
Because I want you to win!
Each step is vital to the process.
There are 7 steps, but some of them are short, so you’ll be able to do more than one each day.
Are you ready to get started?
Here goes!
Disclosure: We use sponsored, or affiliate, links, which means that we could earn a small commission that helps fund our blog (at no extra cost to you!). All opinions are our own and we only recommend products we love. Thank you for your support and happy shopping!
Step 1 : Gather all the toys in the entire house. Yes, ALL of them.
This is a KonMari idea that I think is completely brilliant.
KonMari is a decluttering method created by Marie Kondo that is super drastic yet so effective for editing and paring down your stuff.
In Kondo’s book, The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up: the Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, she emphasizes tidying up by category, not by space.
The idea is that when you get all of one thing out of closets and cabinets and see how many (for example) pens you have, you’ll realize, oh I don’t actually need all these, and it will be easier to edit your pen collection.
The same applies here.
Dump out the toy box (Your toddler will love helping with this part!).
Empty drawers, cabinets, closets, the basement, and the garage.
Get every single toy you own and put them all in one room.
It’s going to look worse before it gets better.
Step 2: Sort toys by category and by sets.
Now that you’ve got all your toys together, it’s time to sort them into categories.
Sorting by category will help us see how many of one type of toy you have and decide where you need to pare down in the next step.
Toy categories can include:
- Building toys: Anything used to build structures, such as LEGOs, blocks, k’nex, MagnaTiles, etc.
- Dolls: This includes action figures, Shopkins, baby dolls… basically any little figurines.
- Stuffed animals
- Musical toys: You can split this up into instruments and battery-operated noisemakers if you prefer. This category is for the noisy toys.
- Real-life toys: Toys used for real-life, dramatic play. Examples include food and kitchen toys, dress-up clothes, and tool boxes.
- Gross motor toys: These are toys kids can be active with: walkers, Rody horse, kickballs, trikes. You can probably leave the bigger ones out in the garage or basement or wherever they currently live:)
- Puzzles & problem-solving toys
Toys in these categories are what I like to call foundational toys.
Foundational toys are toys that kids of all ages LOVE to play with and keep coming back to over and over.
These are the toys that do more than entertain. They help kids work on developmentally appropriate skills and keep them engaged and learning.
Find out more about foundational toys in this free toy guide.
Some toys may fit into multiple categories, and that’s OK.
Choose the category that best fits, and move on.
Don’t think too hard about it.
It’s also OK to have a “random” category, too.
Also, some of these categories can be broken down even further, but we’ll get to that when it’s time to actually organize and put them away.
For now, group like items, and place items in a set together.
When I was going through this step myself, I added a “baby toy” category so that I can easily find baby-safe toys when I need them and donate them when our baby outgrows them.
You may want to use additional categories, such as bath toys, books, or magnets.
Add as many as you want if you have several things that can fit into the category.
Group toys that are often played with together.
For instance, my daughter likes using a toy potty chair with her baby dolls. I would put those things together even though they are not part of a set because they get played with together.
Grouping toys that go well together will extend the playability of these toys and keep kids entertained for longer.
One characteristic of a foundational toy is that it can be played with in lots of different ways.
I’ll break it down for you tomorrow in Step 3!
Summary of Steps 1 & 2
OK, so, today we rolled up our sleeves and gathered all the toys into one place. Then we sorted them by category.
Next, I’ll break down Step 3 of the Sustainable Toy Organization series.
Spoiler Alert: We’re going to start getting rid of stuff!
Rest up.
Tomorrow is going to be a big day!
Comment below if you are stressed by the current toy situation in your home! (I know I was!)