As parents, we all like things organized and our kids may not share the same organizational desires that we have for closet areas. There may also be a lot of things to sort through with all of the gifts from family and friends as well as the abundance of clothes that are purchased for different seasons and stock piled as they grow. There are some tips though that can help to clean up your kids messy closet and this week we share 6 great strategies for cleaning up your kids storage space in your home. The holidays provide the perfect opportunity for this organization because you have more free time and also becuase your child is likely going to be getting more stuff that requires space. Avoid cramming presents into your closet and spend a day organizing with your kids.
Follow these 6 steps for an organized and mess-free closet in your kids room:
1) Empty everything
It is difficult to organize anything while it is still jam packed with stuff. The first step for your organization is to empty everything into a common area so you are starting with a blank slate. This will help you evaluate just how much stuff there is to work with and also give you a better picture of what to do with the items and where to put them.
2) Evaluate clothing
When you start organizing your child’s closet this is the perfect time to evaluate all of their clothing to see what fits, what is damaged or worn and what should be replaced as well as what simply doesn’t get used and should be donated. Seize this moment to go through all of the clothing with your child to ensure that the wrong thing doesn’t get tossed but definitely make sure that you downsize some items that are no longer needed. There are much better things to hang on to like photographs rather than a pair of pants that are attached to a school performance or something similar. If you hang on to everything you will quickly run out of space.
3) Get your child involved in the process
It is important to utilize your child for this organizational process to ensure that you do not toss something they really wanted to keep but also to start educating them on organization and keeping things clean. After all this is their stuff and there room that they need to keep tidy. Get them involved and you will cut your workload in half and also teach your child very valuable lessons for life.
4) Make the space kid-friendly
Rather than having a typical closet that is built for adults, consider the space your child will need and put in shelving etc. that will store their toys and other childhood belongings. Adult closets are usually designed with less shelving to fit our clothing and suits and dresses etc. whereas children’s clothing is much smaller and they usually need places to store toys and books. By making the space more kid-oriented you will find that you have more space than you thought for all of your child’s things.
5) Remove clutter-gathering items
Things like school crafts and home work assignments and tests do not all need to be kept. Sure some things hold sentimental value but at the end of the day you have to take a close look at what items you are keeping in order to decide whether or not you truly need to hang on to something that is likely just there to collect dust and create clutter. Also, to prevent dirty clothes from gathering in the closet, add an easy-to-access hamper outside of the closet that your child can use to put their clothes in rather than opting for the closet space.
6) Focus on maintenance
It is important to start speaking with your child using different terminology that is related to keeping things organized according to recent studies. So instead of saying “Please put this away” you would say something like “Where does this toy go?”. This gets your child critically thinking about where each item belongs so that it is committed to memory but also so that they can start assessing their space and finding good homes for items in each place that they may fit. This way your child will become a great organizer over time.
It is a good idea to hang on to clothing that your child has grown out of as you may want to pass them down to another sibling or give them to a friend who has children or even donate them to a local organization like the Salvation Army. Also you may want to keep them for sentimental reasons. If you find that you are looking for some extra space to store your kids excess stuff then it is a great time to check out some of our promotions on self storage space in Ottawa that can provide you with a home for your belongings and free up some room in your home – especially if your child’s birthday is coming up and they will be getting more stuff and presents.