Organizing A Shared Bedroom

Is the thought of organizing your children’s room overwhelming?  You are not the only one that is overwhelmed they are too!  Getting help with organizing can be one option.

I was in this situation.  For years, I had been cleaning my girls’ room every 3 to 4 months when I just could not deal with their mess anymore.  I would clean, have them clean, clean with them, and try to teach them how to clean.  Nothing seemed to work for long, because there just was not a clear plan of where things need to go, as well as, not enough space to put all their special items.

It was time to get them organized.  Before going out and buy storage boxes and garbage bags I knew I had to sit down and make a plan, as well as ask questions.

Bring the Family on Board

First, ask what does this room need?  Yes, the need to see the floor and not step on toys while trying to tuck your children in to bed is a need.  What else do you need?  For me, I needed more floor space in their room.

Second, ask your children what they need and want for their bedroom.  My children had a list of what they wanted:

• no bunk bed- they both want more headroom

• no desk- want to be able to lay in bed and work on homework or down at the kitchen counter

• lighter – one terrible offset light in room.

• more floor space would be nice

• separate rooms (not an option)

• access to the dresser drawers

• easy access to storage for: toys, art supplies, and other knickknacks

Tips – Furnishing Right

We compromised on the bed.  Instead of a bunk bed, we created an “L” shape loft bed.  The second bed would still be under the top bed but only partially.  My youngest daughter would be on top but she needed space in her bed for all her stuffed animals so we designed an extra wide loft bed with a wrap around shelf for her stuffed animals.  We designed our own loft bed with plywood on top of two, four by four sheet of white plastic covered press wood ”legs” (these became the head board and legs for the bottom bed)and two readymade 3 X 4 cubicles offset slightly to fill the 4 foot wide space and set back to back at four feet tall.  (The cubicles were reinforced on the back with a thin piece of plywood and then bolted to the top plywood)  This solid custom loft bed bed was made for under $150!  With the design ready, it was time to organize.

Read more: 6 Tips for Organizing Small Spaces

Spring Cleaning – Create a place for everything 

Everything was taken out of the girls’ room.  Dad created the loft bed as we went through and organized everything that would go back into the room. 

The “Create a place for everything” process started as we organized each drawer, box, or bag that had been in the room.  As we organized, we created four “boxes”:

1) Giveaway bag/box

2) Throwaway bags/box

3)”I can’t get rid of/this is special/I want to display it” box

4) “Doesn’t belong in the girl’s room” box.

Once the loft bed was finished we put the mattress up and shelves for the top “bunk.”  We made the bed and then went through the seven garbage sacks of stuffed animals that were to go back in the shelves around the bed.  My youngest daughter got rid of a few of the stuffed animals!  Now that she has a spot for them, it is ok.

Storage for Under-Bed Areas – make it accessible

After going through all the books, toys, art supplies, trophies awards, pictures and created a spot for each category in the cubicles.  Since the three by four cubicles were back to back, each girl got a side.  This gives them 12 cubes to organize their special items.  Using cloth storage cubes can help the cubicles look cleaner.

Giveaway bags and boxes were given away, garbage bags were taken to the garbage.  The rest of the boxes were put in their correct places.

The room has a clean open look and they actually use their room now!  We are one step closer to being able to move without too much difficulty. – Article by Guest Blogger Tammy Eichenberger

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