Basement Redux

Everyone is talking about the big basement make over. (ok, so I've been talking to everyone who will listen) With the inspiration and assistance from IHeartOrganizing, and my shopping buddy Jenna, my financier John and my supportive Pre-Schooler Connor.

Before: Large TV in corner, toys leaking into the "computer room", toys piled on top of the TV. Toys scattered all over the place, with no real proper home.

Now: Large new shevling units! The big one is new ($99 at IKEA) and the smaller one used to be our TV stand up in the living room. It has been replaced by something new. Green Rubbermaid bins from Target for the toys, $6.99 a piece. The large bins on top are also from Target.
Connor, so happy to show off his new shelves. He helped me with the big one. The corner space he has a few pillows. He likes to hid back in there when he gets overwhelmed. It's a nice sensory break space. The top right on the smaller shelf is MY shelf. I keep my coffee cup there, along with some magazines for me to read while Con plays.

Connor and I made labels for each shelf, so that everything has a home. And since Connor isn't too good at reading, we painted pictures on the labels. I was not planning for Woody and Buzz to have their very own shelf, but Connor insisted. I gave him a few days to sort things out, put the toys where he wanted before attaching the labels. It's his space, let him put things where he wants!

The door to the "computer room" is closed, and no toys are in there. Unburied couch, super comfy! Considering a storage ottoman.

Before: Small TV sitting there, piles of old clothes stacked up next to it, random junk on the top shelf.

After: Got rid of the little TV, turned that stand into a place to play cars. It's the right height for a car garage to be parked on. The tool box is under the window, and he uses it as a stool to peak outside.

Before: Utter and complete chaos.

After: All the little toys are picked up and put into there proper homes on the shelves.

Before: Big open space in the center of the room being unused.


After: Plenty of room for his train table, with more than enough open floor space to play on the floor as well. In the back corner is a "bean bag" I made awhile ago, that homes all of Connor's stuffed animals. The green bucket on top has a few large/long toys that don't fit onto the shelves.