Welcome back to my 10 week Garage Organization Series!
One of my goals for 2014 was to work on our garage. Our garage is not terribly cluttered, but it definitely has some pockets of chaos that if left alone will most likely get worse and out of control! Since the garage is such a hod-podge of random items and mostly storage for stuff we don’t want to keep in the house, I’ve decided to break it up into a 10 week series. One day a week, I’ll be tackling a section…Here’s what you can expect…
1. Small tools/hardware
2. Larger tools
3. Yard tools
4. Car washing station
5. Outdoor toys
6. Beach/Pool Gear/Camping
7. Sports Equipment/ Gym Items
8. Bulk Item Storage
9. Hurricane/ Natural Disaster Emergency Prep
10. Misc. Storage (Holiday decorations)
Not necessarily in that order, but at least we have a plan 🙂
Today I’m sharing with you how (for now) we’re organizing our outdoor toys and what I’m calling the KID ZONE of our garage.
I couldn’t believe how many small toys I found thrown about in the garage! The ironic thing is I did have baskets already in place to keep the outdoor toys corralled and organized. The main problem with those baskets is they had holes, so many of the smaller things were falling out when the kids would carry them.
I found these flexible LARGE rubber handled totes at Target, and at $5.99 a piece I knew they would be the perfect solution! Not only can they hold a ton, but they’ll be super easy to clean out when it gets dirty, and I love that they’re handled and flexible so the kids can easily grab them and carry them around!
I haven’t gotten around to labeling them yet, and actually I may not even bother. If I do decide to label them, I’ll most likely use my Silhouette and white vinyl since it will be easy to peel the vinyl off and rename it if the contents change. For now this is what is in each tote.
The plastic shelving unit was something I scored at a yard sale a few months ago for $5 and it was actually a dark gray, so I cleaned it and spray painted it white. Something about a new coat of white paint really makes everything look fresh, bright and clean which in a garage is hard to keep it like that, but this shelf is just a temporary fix until we can buy/build something more permanent. 🙂
On the top shelf is another plastic-y type bag. It’s from Ikea, and as soon as I saw it I thought it would make a great beach toy bag since it has small holes in the weave to let the sand drain through.
We live about 45 minutes from the Atlantic and about 1.5 hours from the Gulf, so it’s easy to hop in the car and head to the beach on any given day. We also are lucky to be near quite a few water parks as well, so this bag will be perfect to bring with us this summer when we plan a day out, and because the water toys are already right below in the tote, my daughter can pick the few she wants to bring and toss them in the bag.
The blue can next to the bag is currently holding a bag of wild bird food. I’m planning to do the same thing for that as I did to our pet food storage bins inside, but for the birds…I’ll share it with you when I’m done. 🙂
Hey! Who drank all my wine, and replaced it with icky water?! Just kidding… 😉
This wine fridge is sorta-kinda-broken and doesn’t do any favors for my beloved wine, so we retired it to the garage where it keeps the kiddos hydrated with cool water and electrolyte heavy drinks. They love it because they can help themselves, I love it because they aren’t tracking dirt in my house every 5 minutes- It’s a win-win for all parties involved! On top of the fridge is a small tray that holds some wet wipe, lysol wipes, sunscreen, bug spray, tissues, “ouchie” ointment and some bandaids. You never know when you may need any or all of these, and I like keeping these out designated in the garage for those just in case moments.
And then above that I just simply screwed a hook into the wall and hung my daughter’s sport bags up. Again, a temporary solution but for now it works and has made this space which is right near our door to enter inside so much more functional! The kids are able to play and keep things tidy which is making this momma super happy and able to tackle other areas of the garage!
I hope I’ve inspired you to create a “kids zone” of sorts and I would love to hear your tips and tricks for storing kid’s goods in the garage too!
Talk to you soon friends, take care!
XO
lesley says
Great job! I love it and I love the colors. And anything that keeps the clutter away is a win in my book. Thanks for sharing.
lesley recently posted…Fluffy and Zippy Sample Fresh Step and Meow Mix!
Christine says
Thank you Lesley! 🙂
Kelly says
What brand are those Target totes? Are they Target or another name? Also, what section of Target did you find these? Thank you!
Christine says
I’m not sure what the brand is, sorry! In my target they were near the storage boxes/vacuums.