Name: Valerie
Children's names and ages: Vyolette (VyVy), 20 months and Drake, 11 years
Location: Chicago, IL
Category: Toys

Items used for the project and favorite part of the storage solution:

Our house is a small 100+ year 2 bedroom house. What used to be the attic is now the two bedrooms. The ceiling/walls are angled all the way down to the floor, with only one and a half closets for the whole house! So .... needless to say we needed storage.

Adam (my husband) custom built these shelves into the bottom corners of the wall/floor upstairs on both sides of the room. We use one side for blankets, books, and records. The other side of the room is for the kids. Children's books, plush toys, VyVy's clothes are in the middle/cream colored bins. Separated by pants, shirts, onesies, overalls, sox/tights, sweaters & bedtime clothes. I just labeled them with a label maker for simple, non distracting reference. I love this system for her clothes because I can just throw her stuff into the corresponding bin in no time flat. I don't have to worry about folding anything or cramming , or loosing anything at the back of a drawer! (which is what happens with my own clothes). The green bins are crib & bed linens. Above the green bins is the "accessory" shelf. Shoes, barrettes, jewelry & a couple of toys!

I love to use vintage baking muffin tins and brownie pans for organizational storage. VyVy's barrettes are in the muffin tin and her shoes are in the brownie tin. VyVy loves to take the muffin tin down in the morning and sort all of her barrettes by color or style. It keeps her busy for a while so I can get myself dressed in the morning.

What's your best storage tip for families with children?

Make use of any and every little space you have. Especially in the city in a small apartment
or house, space is precious. If possible make the storage low enough to the ground so that the kids can use the space themselves.

Thanks for your entry, Valerie!