Toy boxes

How to choose boxes that suit the child's own tidying up

Toys tend to spread out. Cars under the sofa, blocks on the rug, teddy bears on the stairs. A child tidies up if the system is simple enough for them to manage on their own, and boxes are the easiest way to achieve this. When each type of toy has its own fixed place in a box, tidying up becomes a single movement rather than a big task. Here you get help choosing the size, material, and location, so the boxes can withstand daily use and fit into both the nursery and the living room.

Low and open boxes instead of deep ones with lids

The most important thing for a child is that the toys are visible and easy to reach. A deep box with a tight-fitting lid means the child has to dig, and half the toys end up on the floor anyway. Instead, choose boxes the child can look into and pour the toys back into without help.

Our white storage box is available in three sizes and has a clean, light surface that blends into most rooms. They can be stacked, so you can build upwards when floor space is limited. If you need a spacious box for large items such as doll carriages, building sets, or soft teddy bears, the large storage box is deep enough to hold a lot in one place.

If the child should be able to take out a single piece of toy without tipping over the rest, a box with an open front is a good solution. Open-front boxes are open at one end, so the child can reach in and pull out a car or a book from the front, and they can be stacked on top of each other like small rooms in a shelf.

Plastic, fabric, or wood

The three materials each serve a different purpose, and they work well side by side.

Plastic is the most durable. It can withstand being dropped, dragged, and wiped clean with a damp cloth, and it doesn't matter if a juice bottle spills. Plastic boxes are therefore the most robust choice for the toys that get used the most.

Fabric is soft and light. A fabric box weighs almost nothing, so even a small child can move it from the floor to a shelf, and there are no hard edges to bump into. Our beige fabric storage box is good for soft things such as teddy bears, dress-up clothes, and cushions.

Wood lasts the longest and looks nice out in the living room, where the toys can be displayed without looking untidy. Our wooden boxes are available in both light natural and darker acacia, so you can match the box to the rest of the interior. Wood can be wiped with a damp cloth, but should never sit in water.

Match the size to the type of toy

A fixed place works best when the box fits what it is meant to hold. If you divide the toys by type, it will be easier for the child to find them and tidy them away again.

• Small boxes for things that otherwise get lost. Lego, cars, doll clothes, and puzzle pieces are best kept in smaller boxes, so they don't get lost in a large one.
• Medium boxes for mixed toys. A medium box holds the daily play without becoming too heavy to lift when it is full.
• Large boxes for bulky items. Teddy bears, building sets, and large vehicles need space, and here a large box is the right choice.

A good sign of the right size is that the child can lift the box themselves when it is full. If it becomes too heavy, it won't be used.

Place the boxes on a shelf so the child can reach them

Boxes on the floor quickly become an obstacle course. If they have a fixed place on a shelf at child height, the child knows exactly where things belong, and tidying up becomes a habit rather than a struggle. A shelf with open boxes also provides an overview, because the child can look into each one without pulling it out.

Our Naturel Wood Shelf: Open-Front and Acacia Wood Shelf: Open-Front are built for exactly this, with open compartments where the toys can be placed. You can also build your own system of stacked boxes and let them grow as the toy collection grows.

Give each box a label so tidying up becomes self-running

When the toys have fixed places, it helps the child to know what belongs where. A label on the box tells whether it is for cars, blocks, or drawing things, and for the youngest, you can draw or attach a picture yourselves. This makes tidying up a game the child can do on their own, and you avoid having to sort it all afterwards. See the selection of labels that match the boxes, and create a system that runs by itself. Then you don't have to turn the whole room upside down at once, but can start with one box at a time.