Children’s toys are essential for their growth and development, but they can quickly accumulate and clutter the garden if not properly organised. As a parent or guardian, it’s important to create a clean and safe play area for your children.

I’ve put together  practical tips on how to organise children’s toys in the garden and declutter effectively.

Assessing the Garden Toy Collection

• Before the summer holidays start get out in the garden and have a look at what you currently have.
• Decluttering doesn’t mean you need to buy more. You can probably get by with what you’ve got. We generally have way too much!
• Donating and Recycling Unwanted Toys should be done yearly, more often if your children have grown out of particular toys. You can donate toys at the local charity shop or sometimes your local playgroup will be grateful for your donation.

Cleaning The Toys – sprucing up to make them brand new

• If you find you need to clean up your garden toys, why not use the paddling pool and a drop of washing up liquid in the water. Children will have a fun time giving them a good old scrub up in bubbly water!
• Make sure that you put away your garden toys to keep them clean for your children to play with.

Creating Storage Solutions (in sheds, garages, loft)

• If you don’t have a shed available, there are lots of different storage solutions available to keep toys tidy
• Really useful boxes are my favourites as they keep your toy hygienic, and safe from spiders, foxes and mice / rats 🕷️🦊🐁 and make a perfect longer term storage over winter.
• There are large trunks available at most DIY stores and garden centres they offer a fairly inexpensive and durable long-term storage solution.
• If you don’t have access to any kind of closed in storage, then you could hang a couple of the big blue IKEA bags to lift everything off of the floor.

Designating Play Zones (sand boxes, playhouse)

• Creating designated play zones within the garden helps in organising toys effectively. Set up specific areas for different activities such as a sandbox, a playhouse, or a sports corner. This separation of play areas encourages children to focus on one set of toys at a time, reducing clutter and confusion.
  To keep sand clean and safe from cats and foxes, make sure you cover it before you leave the play space!

Implementing Rotation Systems

• Remember to rotate your children’s toys this includes the ones in the garden. Don’t get everything out all at once, rotate toys and offer few things to play with at a time, keeps playtime fun and fresh.
• The reality is children are incredibly happy to play with a bucket some plastic mugs and access to water – Mud pies are always fun!!

Promoting Clean-Up Habits with colourful storage

• Teaching children the importance of clean-up habits is crucial for maintaining an organised garden. Encourage them to clean up after playtime by making it a fun and interactive activity.
• Use colourful bins with catchy labels (you can paint and decorate these with your children) and playful reminders to get into good habits from an early age.

Maintaining Toy Organisation – we all like a system!

• Pop yourself in a monthly diary note to review your children’s toys for both indoor and outdoor toys.
• Make sure everything you have is complete and in working order. Little and often is much easier than ending up with a big pile of broken items you can no longer match together, not knowing what goes with what can be incredibly frustrating 🤷‍♀️

GRAB A BARGAIN!

• You know me I LOVE preloved! The best bargains are often on marketplace or on eBay (check out my eBay tips here). You can pick up amazing quality garden toys at a fraction of the price.
• Start looking now for those big price-tag items and save yourself a fortune. Best bit is you can sell them on afterwards if you keep them in good condition.

If you need any help decluttering and organising your garden, drop me a message here to book in your playroom and garden toy review.