organization {toys}

after christmas (also known as the day our house was taken over by toys), it didn't take us long to figure out we had to do something to regain control of our den. since we don't have a playroom or a bonus room or any of those toy-collecting rooms, we had to make our main living space fun for coleman, while bearable for the rest of us.

one thing that was a issue was our lack of space. we have a really large den but it's already pretty full of furniture. after some brainstorming, i came up with the idea to purchase one of IKEA's expedit bookshelves that is only one cube wide and turn it on it's side. it fits perfectly under a railing that separates our breakfast nook from the den. i purchased 5 fabric bins from Target to fill the cubes.

 this system has some really great perks...
1) the five compartments allow for categorizing toys. right now we have them divided into blocks, puzzles, balls, little people, and of course miscellaneous. i have a feeling these will be continuously revamped, which is perfectly fine!
2) it's the perfect height for coleman to access all his toys...and to put them away himself!
3) the long top serves as extra bench seating when we have a houseful of guests.
4) the piece of furniture is incredibly versatile. if it wears out its welcome in this room, it can serve as a shelf in several other rooms in our house (it's actually the same furnitue spencer has in his room now).