When organizing a playroom, there’s a lot to consider. The size of the room, the age and number of children using the playroom, the height of the children (so toys can stay within reach), furniture and storage closets in the room, etc. The amount of time it takes to organize a playroom depends on the number of items to sort through, the decision speed of the children and parents, and several other factors.
Here is a case study example of a playroom organization project completed by On Task Organizing. This is the playroom of a 6-year-old girl. It is located on the first floor of a home in a small front room, about 14 ft. x 14 ft. in size, with no closets. This project was broken down into two 3 hour organizing sessions. The first session was for decluttering. A parent made most of the decisions on what stays or goes, but the child was in the home, being watched by a family member, and consulted toward the end of the session before any items were donated or tossed. After the first organizing session, I dropped off outgrown toys at a local charity for donation, and provided my client with the tax-deductible receipt. The second session was for arranging and putting organizing storage products into place.
During the first organizing session, the toys that remained after decluttering were sorted into categories such as Barbies, American Girl Dolls, My Little Ponies, dress-up clothes, arts and crafts, puzzles and games, etc. Once I was able to see the size of each category, proper storage containers could be chosen.
The family wanted to first use any storage items that they already owned, and then only purchase what was needed. Since furniture remaining in that room after decluttering included a white cubby storage unit purchased at Target, I recommended buying one more matching cubby storage unit, along with more matching plastic baskets to fit inside each of the cubes. To continue with the white furniture theme, I recommended two small white 3-shelf units, also from Target, to store books, games, puzzles, etc. Because this was for a small child, I recommended short shelf units, so she could reach everything.
Other items were also recommended based on my client’s shopping preferences and budget. She preferred Target and Amazon, so that is where all products were sourced. Other suggested storage products included a portable caddy for art supplies, bin clips to label all of the cubby bins, and a tall basket to hold the very tall items that would not fit in the cubbies or shelves, like the toy guitar and toy archery set.
After the first session, my client was given the “homework” to purchase the remaining storage supplies needed. In my business, I offer services to shop for or with my client, or to give them a list to shop from on their own, and she chose the latter option. We scheduled the second session, and she ordered or picked up the products in between sessions.
At the second organizing session, I worked on arranging everything in place using the storage products my client already owned, as well as the newly purchased products, based on my recommendations. Since a few weeks had gone by and the child had played in the room in the meantime, there was some more category sorting to be redone, but no decluttering this time. I then created labels, using chalk labels for the cubby bins and label maker tape for other storage pieces. I organized the playroom, and then reviewed the location of everything with the client, and discussed ways to maintain organization going forward.
After each session, I sent my client an email with any remaining follow-up tasks, storage product suggestions, and tips to stay organized. When it comes to playrooms, I suggest decluttering and organizing twice a year. Good times to declutter are once in the summer and once during the winter holidays. If twice a year isn’t possible, decluttering annually, just before a child’s birthday, before new toys are likely to arrive, is a great option. This family was very happy with the decluttered and newly organized playroom, making it so much easier to find, play with, and put away toys.
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