One of my favourite things about being a mum is the excuse to get down on the floor among all the toys and dream up a whole new world to play in with Mr 5!  But once my little partner-in-crime has gone to bed, my husband and I were beginning to find it difficult to unwind from the day when we were surrounded by all the toys. We needed a play room!

As our little guy grows up, so does the stash of toys.  Every birthday, every Christmas and every grandparents visit brought more (and more!) boxes of brightly coloured plastic.  Before we knew it, the situation was out of control.  We needed storage!

Our lovely villa has a good sized living room and a bright dining room, but apart from the kitchen those are the only rooms on the ground floor.  No room for a play room.  We decided to use one end of the dining room for toy storage, but I wanted to make it attractive.  After all, who really wants to be staring at an out of control toy mountain when eating their supper?

A quick trip to IKEA solved the issue.  Not only did we have room for two Kallax units, we could fit a table between them to make a fun art space.  We finished off the bare wall with a selection of Mr 5’s artwork.  We can easily change up his paintings which helps to create a fun, evolving space for Mr 5 to enjoy creating in.

The blue bins make it easy for Mr 5 to put his toys away, guided by the fun labels made by the talented Megan Deusterhaus over at The Homes I Have Made.  We also have plenty of open storage to display bigger toys and favourite books. The drawer unit at the end containing art supplies, craft materials and science “experimenting” things.

The whole family loves the new space – it’s bright, fun and organised. Leaving us to enjoy peaceful evenings in our living room once our little guy has gone to bed.