Creating a Small Space Play Area

 

Before I had kids I said “I won’t have a ton of plastic toys in the house and I won’t let the toys overtake the house.” After I had kids I have a lot of plastic toys and the toys have taken over, funny how things change.  I live in the city and space is limited.  I don’t have an extra play room and I don’t have a huge living room.  So I get creative in creating a small space play area.  I’ve actually created a few in the house, primarily in the main living area

Creating a Small Space Play Area

Living Room Play Areas 

We have one main living space in our condo.  It’s where we watch TV, eat, play on the floor and sit to enjoy the view. It is important to me that this room works for everyone in the family without infringing on style.  In the main living space there are no toys.  While toys can be played with in this area I don’t store toys here.

 

Play Table

In the dining area we have our main table and Lizzie’s sensory table. What I love about the table is that it’s natural wood and self contained. Lizzie can play at the table and when she is done everything fits back inside the containers. I also added a roll of craft paper to the table so she can use it as a coloring station too. It’s fun for her, not an eyesore for me, and a great small space play area.

 

Play Kitchen 

Another defined small space play area is in the corner of the main living area. It’s not a focal point and is somewhat hidden by a large architectural pillar. However, I have all the toys organized in this corner. The main toy in this area is the play kitchen. I picked one with tons of storage so I could hide everything inside. I didn’t want Lizzie to miss out on having fun toys like play food and groceries, but I didn’t want to see them. The mat I have is also super cute, you can find it here.

 

In addition to the kitchen we store her other toys here too. I have one bin  that holds all of her other toys. I try very hard to keep the toys organized in that bin, but she’s a little kid, and they get messy so I just straighten them up one a month. Another tip is to rotate the toys stored in this bin. When Lizzie gets new toys I hide them for a bit and switch them out when she gets board with her current toys. I also have a small basket for Legos so she can easily grab them and quickly clean them up.  

 

Bedroom Play Areas

When I grew up I didn’t play in my bedroom. I didn’t have toys in there and didn’t need to, we had a basement where most of the toys were. However I don’t have that kind of space now so I’ve had to switch gears and have a small play area for each kid in their rooms.  The key in the rooms is storage of course!

 

Lizzie’s Room 

In Lizzie’s room we had a custom closet put in with tons of shelves. These shelves are perfect for bins to store toys! These are the exact bins I have and they come in a ton of color and pattern options. She can easily grab them off the shelves and play with the toys inside. 

Books are huge in our house but they do take up a lot of room. My solution was to create a book nook in Lizzie’s room. I found this book nook on Wayfair and it stores all of her books.  It also provides a space for her to sit and read the books too. It might be my favorite piece in her room and is a great small space play area.

Maggie’s Room 

Maggie is still pretty little to play in her room, but I’ve created a space for her to grow into. The storage nooks in her room are from IKEA. Both cube storage pieces are from the Kallax Family. The cube storage can be found here and the taller cube storage unit can be found here. Books are placed on the shelves for easy access while all other loose toys are in baskets. The gray bins are the Pudda bin from IKEA.

I’ve also added a cushioned play mat  for Maggie to roll around with. The pattern is neutral which allows me to move it around the house without it sticking out like a sore thumb. Right now I have her Lovevery play mat on it to give her a little cushion.  As she grows I will expand the space to fit her needs, but for now it works great.

 

Even though you have a small space doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice fun for your kids. You can still create a fun environment for them to learn, play and explore!