The closet next to our front door was an obvious place for our coat closet when we first moved in. But since our definition of “coat closet” seems to include random stuff like cleaning supplies (vacuum, dust buster, etc) as well as miscellaneous files and bags, we quickly realized that it was smarter for us to use the deeper closet under the stairs for that stuff instead. It’s slightly closer to the garage anyways, so it’s actually a more convenient spot for daily coat access (not that I’m ready to admit summer’s over yet).
But that left this lonely guy next to the door without a job to do. And what’s the opposite of having a job? Playing with toys. That’s what.
Well, not so much playing with them as storing them. I’ll get to the “why?” of this toy closet in a moment, but let me start with the “how?” since it was kind of lacking in the shelving department. We considered building some more shelves like the existing one up top (i.e. nailing wood braces to the wall and resting a board on top). But we decided we wanted something with more flexibility (so that we could alter the shelf spacing over time). So after perusing the options at a couple of stores, we landed on this Rubbermaid option at Home Depot (but with wood shelves, not wire ones).
Installation was pretty straightforward. Pun intended, since you do have to be careful about keeping your tracks straight and level when hanging them so your shelves don’t look all wonky. I used my laser level to help me mark my drill spots so they lined up and the shelves would be nice and straight.
Rubbermaid sells a hardware pack that comes with anchors and screws, so it was kind of a no brainer. I just drilled a hole in the wall at each spot, tapped in the anchor, and then screwed the track securely in place.
When placing the second track I again wanted to make sure it was level with the first. Don’t mind the green slime on my yardstick. It was a victim of this paint spill in the garage.
Once both tracks were in place, I clipped in the brackets and rested the shelves right on top of them. Our closet was just an inch-ish narrower than the 36″ stock white shelf they sold, so it did require a quick cut on the table saw for each one.
Certainly not the sexiest shelving unit I’ve ever laid eyes on, but considering it took me about an hour to install and it’ll be behind a closed door most of the time, we’re satisfied customers. Especially since it made this closet approximately 89.542% more functional, and we can move the shelves to be closer together or further apart, depending on what we’re storing. Here’s the cost breakdown:
- Four 12″ x 36″ shelves: $14
- Eight 12″ brackets: $28
- Two 48″ twin tracks: $13
- Two hardware packs: $4
- TOTAL: $59
With “construction” done, Sherry gave the existing blue shelf and baseboard a couple coats of white primer and paint and then loaded in the toys after everything dried.
We know some of you might be scratching your head at this. A toy closet in the foyer? And with things she can’t even reach? Plus, where can I get one of those panda hats? Well hang on to your bear-less heads, for I will explain…
Clara’s at an age where it’s tough for more than a few favorite toys (like her play kitchen or her dolls) to keep her interest for more than a minute or two. So she can be that typical three-year-old tornado that burns through an entire jumbled basket of cars, balls, puzzles, and games in five minutes. We also have a few things that we don’t keep readily accessible to her since they’re supervised activities, like painting, markers, play-doh, etc. So that’s where the idea for this toy closet, er, toy library comes in. We figured we could still keep a basket of her favorite toys out in a few rooms where she plays (along with larger things like her dollhouse and play kitchen) but the rest of those easily-dumped-and-ditched items might feel more special and exciting to her if they’re not always jumbled up in a basket that’s right under her nose.
We call it a “library” because it’s meant to have the same effect that library books have on her versus the books that we have around all the time. Library books seem special and new, keeping her excited and attentive longer. So we’ve taken a bunch of her existing toys and activities out of the everyday access spots and organized them in this closet (which is centrally located, so it’s actually a convenient spot). Here’s how it works:
- Clara often plays with a few favorite toys that are still out in baskets, but if she decides she’d like something from the closet, she just asks us and we help her get the item that she wants
- She can only “check one thing out” at a time, so one thing must be returned before another is taken out (this is already really inspiring her to clean things up before asking for something else)
- We hope this will work for us long-term (growing up Sherry and I both had a closet with shelves full of board games and movies, so we think even for older kids this could come in handy – especially since we can adjust the shelf spacing).
We debated organizing with cute image or photo labels (since Clara can’t read the words yet) but since it’s a grown-up guided activity (meaning we’ll be the ones getting things off most of the shelves for a long time since they’re out of her reach anyway), we stuck with text labels for now. Sherry even repurposed a frame to make a little “menu” of what’s inside so she can quickly offer up some suggestions to Clara without digging through all the baskets and bins to remember what’s in there.
The toy library closet has actually been in use for a couple of weeks now (we wanted to wait to report on how it’s working for us – just in case it was a huge bust and we decided it was a better tool closet or something), and so far it’s working even better than expected. I sort of anticipated this being one of those “a 3 year old won’t bend to your need for systems and order, Petersik!” moments but Clara actually loves it. It seems to be helping with her attention span and how long she plays with things (we’ve had a couple marathon marker coloring sessions lately) – and it’s definitely helping her better grasp the concept of cleaning up one mess before making another.
So yes, we may be the weirdos who greet our guests with a basket of finger paints and an over-sized dinosaur puzzle, but the former library employee in me is quite proud of our little closet. Ooooh, maybe we should make library cards?! Too far, Petersik. Too far.
If you’re In the mood to peruse more shelf projects and ideas, this post has a collection of 16 DIY shelving ideas.
Psst- Wanna know where we got something in our house or what paint color we used? Just click on this button:
Alicia says
I think this is a great use of space! We recently turned our hall closet into a tool closet, and it definitely works better for us. As we were working on it, I told my hubs that it would probably be a toy closet in a couple years, haha. I’m super glad its working so well for you guys!
Question… are your shelving tracks hanging from a top rail? We used a Rubbermaid system but we had to screw in a top rail that the tracks hang on. I’m wondering if your method made it more sturdy?
YoungHouseLove says
Ours don’t have a top rail, we just used screws and anchors to secure each side’s metal strip into the wall so it’s nice and sturdy. It was just their recommended install method, so we didn’t go rogue or anything. Haha!
xo
s
Zoua says
I’ve been wanting to do something similar for our “coat closet” too. No one ever uses it because it’s not directly in front of them when they enter. You have to take a few steps… lazy people! :) So I am going to install a coat hook rack on the foyer wall and then do something similar to the coat closet.
Question: How tall are your ceilings? Mine are 9 ft on the 1st floor. I was staring at the coat closet the other week and was thinking about all that wasted space at the top of the closet! Do you think it’s wasted space, too? And how would you use it up and still have access to whatever you use it for?
YoungHouseLove says
Ours are a little over 8′, but I love the idea of maximizing that space up there if you have an extra foot! I’d add one more shelf!
xo
s
Erin says
I have 9 foot ceilings and I put in an extra shelf! It’s one of the places I store things that I rarely use – sewing supplies for me. I have to get a stepstool out to pull stuff down, but don’t mind doing that every once and a while!
Val says
I seriously think this is brilliant. Thanks for sharing this idea…totally going to implement this like…umm….TONIGHT! :-)
Megan L says
Love this! I think my 3 yr old would love this system. Hopefully it will solve the clean up issue. His love his puzzles. You can imagine how annoying it is to pick up 3 different puzzles. Now, if only my 1 yr old could catch on that would be a miracle!!!
Kim says
I love this!! Our foyer closet is being used for the same thing – although mine is definitely more cluttered! The space is really too small for coats, and it had shelves, so we have the toys in the bottom (in a round laundry basket) and on the bottom two shelves, books on the next shelf, and up higher the crayons, coloring books and crafty stuff (grandie is not quite two). Organizing it and cleaning out some of the “junk” toys has been on my list, now I have inspiration to start! And with two more grandies on the way, I need to get it done. Great job.
Sarah T says
As a library employee, I approve immensely! Well done.
Megan @ Teaching Every Day says
We do the same thing with our toys! They are tucked away in the closet so I’m not staring at them all day. Plus the “need supervision” toys are out of reach of little hands. I also made my kiddos an “idea jar” with all of the toys listed on slips of papers. They draw one out and that’s what we play. They love it!
http://teachingeveryday.com/2013/08/16/idea-jar/
YoungHouseLove says
So sweet!
xo
s
oh Holland says
Brilliant storage + preventing stimulation overload + keeping the joy of each toy fresh.
What a stunningly great concept!
Sydnie F. says
This is a great project! As the mom of a two year old, everything you explained in this post makes perfect sense to me and its such a great, personal use of your space. Now you’ve got me thinking about reworking some of our closet space a bit…thanks for the inspiration.
Also, I’ve appreciated the realistic timelines you guys have been working with in this new house. We just moved into our first home (no more renting!) and we’ve realized that projects never get completed at the instant pace that others seem to portray. Thanks for keeping it real.
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much Sydnie! All the best with your new house!
xo
s
Amanda says
Awesome closet for Miss Clara! I’m going to simplify our toys and make a spot where they are a little more organized. This post is great timing :)
Tonya says
I always wanted to have a system like this but never had a storage area to do it. My mom did this with us when we were kids and it is such a smart way to keep toy pieces together, keep kids interested in their toys, and keep the house neat. Now my kids are bigger, and go figure, we are moving to a house with all sorts of big closets. :)
Erin says
This makes so. much. sense.
hannah says
i’m sure this has been mentioned… but thinking it would be cool to color code the walls behind- possibly do an ombre thing, or color code it? red would be paint/ things she has to ask help for, green would be books/ toys she can always play with, yellow is stuff for certain times, just thinking of all the possibilities :)
YoungHouseLove says
That’s fun!
xo
s
hannah says
and i like how john had to put on his smarty pants glasses to measure/ do this project ( from another glasses wearer :) )
YoungHouseLove says
Haha! He’s my own personal Clark Kent.
xo
s
Patty says
Are the hooks INSIDE the DOOR, those ‘command hooks’ or did you actually screw them into the door? Also, I looked the ‘simplicity parenting’ book and bought it off amazon. It looks GREAT! Can you recommend any other books? How do you guys find the time to shop, construct, write and read everything that is awesome!? You all continue to inspire and impress me. Thanks!! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Patty! Those hooks are just regular screw-in hooks from Home Depot (I was just sure the screws were shorter than the width of the door so I didn’t worry about them poking through). As for books, I’m now reading How To Talk So Your Kids Will Listen, And Listen So Your Kids Will Talk and it’s great! It takes me SO long to read books (I get like 5 pages in each night and fall asleep most times).
xo
s
Kristen says
My mom made us a toy closet and we DID have library cards!
Christie Thompson says
I spy Tattly! All the cool kids wear tattly!
YoungHouseLove says
We love those! John got a pack of them for Clara for Christmas and we break them out for special occasions. Haha!
xo
s
rachel l. says
i have the perfect closet for this!!! also, i have four kids with too many art supplies and a husband hoarding a hideous coat from high school… so converting the closet from ugly coat storage to art supply storage = brilliance! and the cost was oh-so-enticing until i clicked the link for the standard shelving and the shelves are $8 each. bummer. i’ll have to keep my eyes peeled for a sale on shelving, but the idea is solid. thanks for the inspiration! xo
YoungHouseLove says
Weird! I would check them out in stores because the online price seems to have been inflated or altered from what we found in the store (it’s showing us something with a 7, not an 8 – so maybe it’s regional?). We also hear they’re phasing them out, so perhaps they’re on clearance in stores? Oh and we use our HD card because it saves us 5% on each purchase (we mention the Lowe’s discount of 5% and they match it for us) – every penny helps!
xo
s
Diana says
Another side benefit of the “checkout” is that it’s keeping Clara aware of when she’s shifting focus, along with knowing when she needs to clean up.
Our preschool teacher “helps” an attention-deficit child in the class, by simply triggering him to observe when he’s changing his activities. This helps him understand when that happens, and theoretically will help him keep redirect focus back to the original activity (eventually).
Sounds like Clara doesn’t have any attention problems, but everything helps when you’re teaching a child executive-function skills.
YoungHouseLove says
So interesting! Thanks Diana!
xo
s
Maria says
I had a toy closet growing up and at the bottom were things like little people or things I could get out myself and then as the selves went up it got progressively more supervision required like puzzles and games and art supplies. It was also nice because I have a big family and these were toys anyone could play with and not special ones kept in your own room.
ctbaker says
We did the same thing thing to our coat closet downstairs!! Not as pretty as yours though! We did it because all the upstairs toys kept showing up downstairs. SO we gave them a permanent home in our “coat closet”!!!
Kudos!!!!
JessP says
It’s very “Montessori” of you. Good job. You will be so happy she learned the one-toy-out/one-to-in method early on.
alg says
Sometimes I think you two are DIY angels sent from heaven to make my life easier — this is the PERFECT idea for 1) what to do with our awkward hall closet AND 2) what to do with all our toy clutter!
(Currently being stored hodge-podge-style in Tupperware bins.)
I think I’ll add a locking hook & eye latch high up on the outside of our soon-to-be “toy library” door, though… I imagine Sonia might be just a little more likely to take matters into her own hands than Clara is! LOL! #littlerascal #likearacoonsheis
THANK YOU, PETERSIKS for another clever, do-able and inexpensive home improvement solution!!! You rock!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, thanks Alg! So happy to help.
xo
s
pam says
i love this! who needs a coat closet? you don’t have guest come everyday, but kids are around all the time.
Leigh says
Love it! I did the same thing to our foyer closet about 5 minutes after we moved in two years ago, except instead of housing toys mine houses office supplies, craft and art supplies and my restock bins of toilet paper and paper towels. We’re a homeschooling family of five with only 1750 square feet to work with. I can’t give up that much storage to guests’ coats. I still have room for 4 hooks right inside the door frame for the kids’ light jackets and I’ve got an over-the-door shoe organizer for smaller things that tuck in those slots, like my glue gun, yarn, etc. I was amazed at how much I could fit in there. Great idea to make the shelves adjustable to accommodate changing needs.
Laura says
This will be such a great spot to keep all of her school “stuff” later! Wish I had an area like that. As the mom of a high schooler, we have school “stuff” everywhere.
Melanie Brown says
Oooh, I love this. I have a five year old that does the same thing, plus a closet packed to the gills with accessories and my husband’s programming books that he doesn’t reference very much. I see a project on the horizon. What a great idea!
Trish says
Love it! Like the board games cupboard in The Royal Tenenbaums http://youtu.be/aH9c0vmuGAI?t=27s :)
Trish says
Although you’d probably have a ceramic boar’s head!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha!
xo
s
Julia says
I totally love to read your blog everyday and see what you are working on in your house but this post was an extra special treat. I have the same issue with my two almost three year old and have been trying to figure out what to do without the current shelf space to put all his toys up. This seems like such an awesome solution! Thanks for the inspiration!
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Julia! Good luck with yours!
xo
s
Kim says
How cute and perfect for your needs!
Leigh says
From one former library employee to another – I love this! I used to shelve books at my college library. I am trying to implement something like this for my 2 year old son. I need more closets or he needs less stuff!
Marlene says
We turned our coat closet into a shoe closet. I have flip flops and chucks in every color in there. much better than the giant pile they used to be in. plus we don’t need a coat closet here in Vegas.
YoungHouseLove says
That. Sounds. Awesome.
xo
s
Katie says
So glad I found your blog and your book! I just bought a fixer upper house and will be married to the man of my dreams in exactly 8 months!! I have so much inspiration for our first house together. Thanks!!
RobinD says
a ha ha ha!
Now I know why I love your blog and I am STILL following since the early days. It was the latent librarian humor! I did organize my own books using the Dewey Decimal system when I was 10. yep.
And it helps that I am so in love with this house. Your first house was great and this one is great. I never warmed up to house #2. Poor house #2, I hope it’s getting love from its new owners ;)
I am also a big fan of keeping the house from getting over-run with toys.
YoungHouseLove says
Former book shelving high-five!
-John
Jennifer says
I just did this about 2 weeks ago! We have two dinky front entry closets. We had a shelf in our kids study room (formerly the dining room right next to the entry) that was overflowing with board games. I emptied the closet of random clutter (and way too many hangers for a closet we didn’t really use) and turned it into a game closet. I asked my semi-handy husband if he could build me some shelves but don’t actually expect him to get around to it – he’s busy. So thank you thank you thank you for the shelving solution!!! Never would have occurred to me to use those. Duh! Yay for happy-organized-non-coat-closet foyers!
Megan @ The Brick Bungalow says
I love this idea! My daughter’s new room (http://thebrickbungalow.blogspot.com/search/label/Lily%27s%20big%20girl%20room) features two closets – one that is original to our 90-ish year old house and one that was added on since. When we remodeled her room (a complete gut job), we kept both closets and turned the smaller one into a game closet. The other closet got moved a few feet over and is all about her clothes. As we plan for the arrival of our son in 8 weeks, I look everywhere in my house for additional storage of toys and kid stuff. I figured that we could do a system like you (one in, one out) or something else but at least it makes our daughter more aware of cleaning up. It also keeps this momma sane as the thought of chokeable sized legos with a newborn is scary! I also like the idea of the kids being able to ask and know that some toys are for supervised toy time. I watched a friend’s kid who just turned 5 with my 4 year old and lets just say that all the playdoh had to be thrown out after they mixed every color together, didn’t put the lids on, and smashed it into our carpet.
Ellen says
As a teacher, I love this. Small suggestion for the label tags, color code them so she learns olors, then when that is mastered,letter them, etc. Shell learn that the symbols we use stand for something and help for reading readiness. Love you guys!
Niki says
Early on we were given this great parenting book called simplicity parenting. Its not so much a “how” but a “why” simple works. (Lots of nerdy brain science stuff) And basically it comes down to ” if every toy is special, no toy is”. We have a similar system, we just call it the toy rotation. When we first went there, we werent sure it would work but we’ve watched our daughter spend 45 minutes playing with one set of dolls and take less than 5 to empty every shelf in a friend’s well stocked play room. (Le sigh). Glad its working for you too!
Rock on.
cheryl schaan says
I love this project .. she will be so proud of her toy closet
Autumn Beach says
Okay. You guys are just BRILLIANT. I LOVE it! SO doing this. Thank you!!
Meg says
Awesome! I’m using the closet in our guest/sewing room for the same purpose. :) Our house is old (built in the early 1920s), but one great thing is that it has huge, L-shaped walk-in closets in every bedroom. So, tons of room for our toy/craft closet. (Also, extra storage for a full-sized bed and a table.)
I read Simplicity Parenting awhile ago and loved it, too. One thing I do that Clara might like is based on an idea I got from the blog “Play at Home Mom.” I have lots of plastic containers in the closet that are “busy boxes” full of fun toddler activities. Some examples: one is full of beans with little plastic dinosaurs buried in them, one has measuring cups, funnels, and spoons, one is full of scraps of yarn, fabric, and ribbons, one has old makeup odds and ends, etc. Lots of pre-packaged fun (and usually sensory) activities for little kids. My boys, ages 1 and 3, absolutely love getting to play with a different busy box each day. I bet Clara would love some busy boxes or busy bags, too.
YoungHouseLove says
That sounds awesome! Love that.
xo
s
Jenifer says
This is so great to see. It’s what we did as well.
We live in a small place (480 sq ft), and needed some adult sanity around the toys. We set up shelving in our family closet, and then DS goes and gets what he wants to play with (he’s old enough now). When he’s done with that, he has to tidy and return to get the next thing.
It’s been working our great. The house is tidy, there’s rarely a tornado anymore (sometimes, just for fun, we’ll let him go for it), and it’s comfortable for everyone. Thank goodness. :)
Joli says
Panda hats – check Ebay & Amazon. They’re everywhere here in San Francisco because of Pablo “Panda” Sandoval our slugging 3rd baseman!
Jill says
Soooo… where CAN I get one of those panda hats?? Haha!! Love how you guys can always make everything look nice and neat.. somehow even with organization, my stuff just looks like plain clutter..
YoungHouseLove says
That panda hat came from John’s friend overseas, but I bet eBay or google could hook you up!
xo
s
Tasmin says
Because we live in a small space, everything except one box of toys is stored up out of reach and so we can remember all the options, we do have “library cards” / a photo of each on a ring. That way when she needs an activity I can show her 3 options and she can choose. No standing and staring forever at too many options, and I can cycle through what is available.
Christina C says
Love this idea!! My 3 year old struggles with similar toy/attention span issues and I am always hounding him to clean up after himself. He just started preschool, where doing one activity at a time and cleaning up after oneself are very important concepts. I think it’s so important to reinforces these concepts at home too. Nice work!
Liz P. says
We installed the same Home Depot Rubbermaid closet shelving recently as well. We bought a full kit rather than the individual pieces and it was AWESOME for two reasons:
1) The kit was way cheaper than individual pieces would have been. For $150 (Canadian) we got six uprights in two lenghths, four 16″ by 4′ wire shelves, a dozen brackets, all the hardware and a ‘FastTrack Hangrail’. The dozen brackets alone would have cost $120 if purchased individually.
And 2)That ‘FastTrack Hangrail” is the greatest thing since sliced bread; install the hangrail and slide the uprights right into position. I swear, it reduced our need to level it all, and hence, the total installation time, by half!
Jocelyn says
I have been following your blog even before Clara was born. My favorite part of the day (night) is checking Young House Love after my girls are in bed. Recently are family made a big move, and we are living in the country of Jordan. Often your blog posts will encourage and inspire me to continue making our apartment here more organized and more homey (even though it is difficult to buy or find things like in the States). This post is one of my favorites! While still living in the States, my friend and I created our own toy closets. It was immensely helpful and allowed our children to play without creating a huge mess. I think I’m going to try to do something similar here. Thank you for being an inspiration even 6,000 miles away!
Claire @ Claire K Creations says
Love it! I agree with the idea of only having a few main toys out all the time. I think kids get overwhelmed from too many choices.
Haha I’d totally support library cards. I tried to give all my books a library card when I was younger and family members would ‘borrow’ them. Oh dear I really should keep that to myself.
Leslie says
Love this idea. I would like to do something like that for older ones. Not sure how to get them into that habit once they are already used to pulling things out for themselves other than me standing over them every second to make sure they are not doing that.
BTW, I had seen an article that organized toy bins for little ones using a silhouette of a toy to represent what was in the basket. I thought that would be good on your menu for Clara. I might help with reading skills too since the word is right next to the toy. Just a thought:) Love your blog!!!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s a fun idea!
xo
s