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My Top 5 Kid Storage Solutions That Don’t Look Like Crap

When I was pregnant and imagining what life would be like with a child, I remember being horrified at the idea that my house was going to look like Little Tikes threw up all over it.

I mean, there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with Little Tikes and I’m in love with many of their products… but I really didn’t want primary colored plastic to be my new design style.

Since we moved right before Jack joined us, I put a lot of thought into ways to organize his stuff without everything screaming, “WE HAVE A KID!!!!” After a little over two years of living with it, I figured I’d share with you my top 5 storage solutions… that don’t look like crap.

#1. Cube Organizer with Baskets

I looked at a bazillion organizers before I found this one, which is EXACTLY what I imagined I wanted. This organizer came from Target a couple years ago and they have an updated version in their Threshold collection that looks very similar. The reason I liked this one is that it’s very hearty AND fit Target’s standard sized baskets for the bottom three cubes.

The top is wide enough that I can display some grown up crap – like candles, glittery potpourri and ceramic animals – without Jack grabbing them and throwing them against a wall for no freaking reason. The three baskets store a HUGE amount of toys and toy pieces, will still looking nice and tidy. So, if someone is coming over in like 2 minutes and you need to hide a toy mess that has suddenly spread throughout the first floor… you can just shove everything in these baskets and pretend you’re totally one of those Pinteresty people who have clean houses all the time. By the way, now is a great time to ask you to please overlook the MOUND OF DUST on the bottom of my lamp. Sigh.

#2. Book Organizers

I made these baby book racks a couple years ago while doing a Pinterest challenge. They are actually $4 spice racks from Ikea that I painted with Rustolium oil-rubbed bronze paint.

When I first made them, I went a little crazy with them and put them up in the living room AND in Jack’s room (with a couple left over). I just recently took some down so that they just live in the living room now. I LOVE these book organizers – like so, so much. In addition to being a great way to store a bunch of books, they’re kind of like fun art for the wall since you can see all the covers.

#3. Woven Baskets

I’m kind of a basket slut. I use them EVERYWHERE to keep stuff together and looking pretty. These are a great example – Jack has a crap-ton of trucks and tractors. It’s like they somehow make sweet, sweet truck love and multiply when I’m not looking.

We started out with one of these cute baskets and then overflowed into two. I could actually use a third one at this point… I chose these particular baskets because they are soft and won’t poke or scratch Jack if he grabs into them. Also, they’re FUN without screaming KID. These came from Target, but there is usually a great selection at World Market, Marshalls and Homegoods too.

#4. Hooks

In our entrance area, we have a teeny tiny little alcove that is the perfect size for Jack’s stuff. I found this little umbrella hook at Joann’s and use yet another basket to corral his shoes. The hook is low enough that he can grab his own coat and hat and he’s (partially) trained to throw his shoes in the basket when he gets in the house.

I LOVE the cute umbrella hook, but I also really like the giraffe hook that lives in our kitchen (from World Market):

#5. Hey Look, More Cubes

When we were wandering around Ikea one day, we found this cube storage thingie in the “as is” section for less than $30. At the time, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it… but then decided that the ikea book racks weren’t really working in Jack’s room anymore.

BOOM, insert cube storage as the new book racks and I’m a happy camper! I really like this particular piece because I can see it growing with Jack – right now it works as a bookshelf, but it can totally be a TV stand (storing DVDs or video game stuff below), toy storage, clothing storage, or even a bedside table. Once again, it’s classic and modern and doesn’t scream KIDS ROOM.

Oh and I feel like I should mention that all of the storage shelves are anchored to the walls with anti-tip furniture straps. Just in case. I used Safety 1st Furniture Wall Straps because they were reasonably priced and super easy to install.

So there you go: 5 of my favorite storage solutions that don’t look like crap. I also have some storage solutions that DO look like crap, but that’s a totally different post. There is a REASON I made a kiddo playroom…

What do you think – do you prefer the primary colored plastic fabulousness of actual kid storage? Do you have a cool way of storing toys out of the way that you love? If so, please share because I swear Jack’s toys are multiplying as I type…

Disclosure: Pocketful of Joules is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

A Front Porch I Actually Want to Use

With the arrival of spring, I’ve started thinking a bit more about our home’s curb appeal.

When we first moved in, I decorated our front porch with a couple painted chairs. I actually found the chairs in our garage (left over from the last homeowners) and spray painted them yellow. They were okay for a while, until I decided that the yellow wasn’t doing it for me and I repainted them navy blue.

When I painted our front door a pretty clover green, the chairs still worked… but I never really LOVED them, even if they were free.

Adding to the outdoor chair fun, I’ve been dreaming about having a few Adirondack chairs to go around our fire pit. I was stalking a plastic version from Home Depot last year, but before we committed to buying them they were sold out everywhere.

When we stopped by Home Depot last weekend, we scooped up these four mushroom colored plastic Adirondack chairs for $17.98 each. We also picked up a matching table for less than $10 (I don’t see it on the website) to hold our s’mores supplies. Most of the time, it’s just Travis and me around the fire… so I figured I could use the other two chairs on our front porch and then steal them back if we have company over.

The navy blue chairs were demoted to the sunroom and two of our new chairs found a home on our front porch.

The pillows are from Target this season for $15 each. I was worried that they’d be too short and stout, but I think they look great AND they’re pretty darn comfortable.

The little stool/table is the one that I spray painted a couple years ago (originally from Ikea’s clearance section for $3). My sassy sparkle squirrel is from West Elm, the tray is from a Totswap and the candle was rescued from another room. The lantern is also from Ikea, by way of a thrift store.

I feel like the colors work well with our door and the chairs are SO MUCH more comfortable than the old ones. I’m actually loving our front porch now!

Oh, and here’s where the other two chairs and table live:

Anyone want to come over for a bonfire? Have you been doing any outdoor updates now that the weather is finally warming up?

My Underwhelming ‘Dream’ Closet

I’ve always wished that I could have an awesome walk-in closet.

Instead of packing away my off-season clothes, they could all live together in harmony. I’d have all my jewelry displayed and all my shoes accessible. Maybe I’d even have a girlie chandelier hanging from the ceiling, along with a FULL SIZED mirror leaning against the wall.

Yeah, that’s the dream.

So, when this month’s catalog from The Container Store my heart went pitter-pat. Check out the cover:

Now THAT is a sexy closet!

Now, check out my ACTUAL closet:

I mean, its KIND OF organized… but mostly it’s kind of a mess. I bought the latest shoe organizer (I’m pretty sure I’ve been through a half dozen) with the hopes that it would FINALLY corral my shoes in an orderly fashion.

It does not.

I mean, it STARTS OUT being orderly, but then after a couple days of using it… well, it looks like that.

I decided that even though I won’t be enjoying a walk-in closet anytime soon, I could still steal some of their organizing tricks. The fact that The Container Store was running a sale on exactly the pieces I wanted helped push me over the edge of indecision.

So, I stopped by and picked up two of their 12 section shoe organizers and one of their 6 section handbag organizers for a total of $95.37 (each item was $10 off the original price). I figure that all my shoes can fit in the 24 slots (or less) and then I could use the larger slots for small stuff like belts, bathing suits, tote bags, and miscellaneous stuff that ends up in my closet.

It took me a little over an hour to get all three organizers put together and then I tried out a bunch of different stacking configurations before ending up with this:

It’s nice.

I mean, it is certainly a lot neater than the previous incarnation of my closet. But it’s still not awesome like the closet on the catalog. I think the HUGE difference though is the fact that I actually use my closet and it’s not just a model for pretend people to use.

So, I guess I’m happy with the finished product. I’m just not sure if I’m $100 worth of happy.

I probably could have gotten more of the ‘model closet’ look if I had gone bigger and stacked two more cubes on top of the ones I have… but I don’t have that many shoes AND I would have lost some clothing hanging space.

What do you think? Does it seem neater and more organized to you? Do you have one of those covetable walk-in closets that I drool over? What are your tricks for keeping your closet organized?