Are you wondering how to declutter your children’s toys? Are you wondering if it’s even possible?

Do you feel overwhelmed with the amount of toys in your house?

Worrying about how many more are on their way with Christmas just around the corner? You’re not alone!

Nowadays, most kids don’t have just a few special toys, rather they have an abundance of toys and a never-ending supply chain!!

Plus, have you noticed how toys have a way of taking over and infiltrating every room in the house, causing mess and clutter?

The truth is, too many toys can have a negative effect on your child and can actually mean LESS play.

Children become overwhelmed when faced with too much choice. They get easily distracted and therefore less focused, going from one toy to the next without really ‘playing’ properly.

More toys do not equal happier children.

The sad fact is that when children are used to new toys coming in all the time, they learn there’s no need to look after the ones they’ve already got.

On the flip side, there are many benefits to limiting the number of toys in your home.

With fewer toys…

Children become more creative, more imaginative, and more inventive.

They will…

• Focus and play longer on one thing.
•  Develop better social skills
• Spend more time reading, writing, and doing arts and crafts
• Learn to appreciate, look after and take better care of their toys.

It’s not just adults who benefit from living with less!

So, how do we get there?

 

How to declutter your children’s toys

Here are 16 ways to reduce the number of toys in your home and tackle toy clutter head-on…

1. First of all, change starts with you. Look at your own habits, behaviour, and motivation when it comes to the toys your child has accumulated. Analyse why there are so many in your home and how they got there…

2. Buy fewer toys. Decide on a budget and stick to it.

3. Choose quality over quantity.

4. Kids aren’t daft. Don’t give in at the shops even when there’s a full-blown temper tantrum underway. If you do they’ll quickly learn how to manipulate you.

5. Edit frequently. Donate or pass on toys your child has outgrown.

6. Get rid of toys, puzzles, and games that have broken or missing pieces that cannot or are not likely to be mended.

7. For close family, a gift list of ideas can be helpful and will reduce the chance of getting duplicates. If your child does receive duplicate toys, keep one at the grandparents’ house or pop in your gift cupboard for re-gifting.

8. Have a designated area for toys in your home and try to keep within that space.

9. Give toy rotation a go. Switching things up every few weeks or once a month can make your child excited about their toys again.

10. Stop toy clutter in its tracks by deciding less is best and being more mindful of what you allow in through the front door in the first place.

11. Communication is key. If you are struggling with too many toys due to over-generous gift-giving from well-meaning family and friends, it’s time to have some conversations. Talk to your family about how you feel and offer suggestions for alternative gift ideas (see below). Speak to friends with kids and you’ll probably find they feel the same. They might even agree that giving toy gifts isn’t necessary at all. A group gift is another idea, a bit like a secret Santa.

12. A great alternative to the huge number of toys that can accumulate is experience gifts. Gifts that don’t take up any space and won’t end up as clutter, such as days out, a monthly magazine subscription, tickets for the cinema, a trip to the zoo, going out for ice cream or to a show, etc. More meaningful and will create memories that last a lifetime.

13. If your child struggles to get rid of their toys adopt a one-in, one-out policy.

14. If all else fails, and your kids are still quite young, edit when they’re not there. Pop the toys they never play with in a bag and set them aside for a while until you’re safe in the knowledge they’ve forgotten all about them. Out of sight, out of mind. It works. They won’t remember. I’ve done it many times with my own boys and have never been caught!

15. Take a photograph of your child with the toys they know they won’t be keeping but are finding hard to part with. A great way to keep a memory without keeping the actual object. This works well with soft toys.

16. Give yourself and your child permission to keep the toys that really do hold special memories and do it for the right reasons. Are you keeping it for yourself, or are you keeping it for your child? If it’s a baby toy, it’s YOU that holds those memories, not your child. They won’t remember playing with it and chances are, it won’t mean anything to them the way it means something to you, once they’re all grown up.

I hope that helps give you some ideas of how to declutter your children’s toys and reduce the number of toys accumulating in the first place.

Take a look at some of the Children’s room projects I’ve worked on HERE.