Wednesday, October 19, 2011

40 Reader Space: Dolled Up Storage

You all impress me all of the time.  That's why I couldn't wait to share today's idea.  It was something I have never seen before and probably something that I never would have thought of myself.  It is so creative!

And although this specific space is tailored for little ladies, I can imagine it will spark all sorts of creative ways to store crafts and fabrics or toys for boys.

Fiona wrote:


Hi Jen, 


I have an organising solution that your followers maybe interested in. Although we live In Australia, my two daughters are in love with their American Girl dolls and all the accessories that come with them. My only problem was how to contain their clothes, their shoes and bits and pieces where they would be accessible for playing with but not all stored on the floor making it impossible to vacuum. The solution was to turn an Ikea Expedit bookshelf into an American Girl display. We have created cubbies for the clothes to hang in simply by attaching curtain rods. Adding drawers to one the cubbies to store shoes and then having all the lovely accessories shown off in their own little cubbies. My daughter loves it and takes pride in keeping it neat and tidy. Best all all the dog can no longer reach those cute little shoes!  We even used the American Girl boxes as wallpaper in the back of the shelves to add a little colour and also it was the only way my daughters would agree to letting me throw out the boxes that were accumulating.

Regards Fiona

Ready to see how Fiona scored 7,659 organizing points?




Awww, could this project be any sweeter?  What little gal wouldn't be beyond smitten with a setup like this?  I get asked about storing doll clothes all the time and due to "lack of experience in the girl department", I can only offer up fairly generic solutions.  This my friends, is beyond creative.  And if you don't want to invest in an entire Expedit, Closetmaid makes smaller cube options that could function similarly!  So SMART!

Thank you Fiona for reminding us to get creative with our storage solutions!  Also, thank you for reminding us how an Expedit is one of the most powerful organizing furniture pieces in existence. 

Totally adorable right?  Those shoes?  Oh my.  Who else is in love with an Expedit and why?  What other doll storage solutions do you have for mommies that are swimming in doll stuff?



ATTENTION!!  Want to be featured in a Reader Space edition?  Have an awesome organizing story to share?  I am looking for projects that have made a positive impact to your life.  Please send your story and photos to iheartorganizing@gmail.com and I would heart to feature them right here, on the blog!!  Photos should be high resolution and un-editted.  Please include a description of the project, including any costs, inspiration, and how it has changed your life and routine for the better!  Oh, and no worries my friends, we will NEVER judge "before" pictures because that just wouldn't be nice!  Only love goes on at this blog!  More info HERE

40 comments:

  1. Ahhh it likes a closet for dolls! Super cute, and a great idea.

    I wouldn't want to be buying clothes for those kids when they grow up though - that's some high expectations to live up to!

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  2. That makes me wish I had a little girl to do this for. I think I could do something like this with all my boys cars they have. Thanks for the inspiration.

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  3. Every time I read this blog I wish we had an Ikea! I was looking for what to do with dolls. Thanks!

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  4. Oh thats amazing!
    I love the clothing!
    xoxo
    Kerri at HollyMuffin

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  5. Brilliant! I've been trying to find a smart way to house all of our American Doll accessories. Love this. I think we will try this.

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  6. This is great. The best part about it - It can be used for all the make up and teenage girl storage later! Great long-term investment!

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  7. Those dolls have a nicer "closet" than I do! Great idea.

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  8. I love this!!! My daughter has two baby dolls (they are called "baby born" here, but I think they are German dolls so don't worry if you don't know these), and has collected a few clothes. Now the idea with the clothes rails is too cute and I might copy this instead of buying some doll furniture which is surely expensive and takes away space on the floor again. And the best thing about it is that my daughter already has an Expedit in her room. ;)
    Jule

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  9. awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
    *deep breath* wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!

    Too cute!

    xoXOxo
    Jenn @ Peas and Crayons

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  10. I would have LOVED this when I was little. This is the cutest solution and a great way to teach children to take care of their dolls and toys.

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  11. What a Terrific Idea!!!! I LOVE this!!

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  12. This is such an adorable storage solution. I love it! :)

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  13. OMG I heart this idea. I don't have children yet, but OMG this was an awesome idea. Everything in it's place. I wish I had a walk-in closet now for myself, so I could play around with my cloths and shoes. ;)

    I love the Expedit bookcase that I have in my office at home. Fits lots of magazines, boxes with lids and baskets so that everything looks neat. IKEA is the best when it comes to great storage ideas. This is a cute little IKEA hack. ;)

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  14. So sweet and creative!! I love IKEA storage systems. What did families do before IKEA? ;)

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  15. I really appreciate you posting this. I have a daughter with 4, soon to be 5 american girl dolls (at christmas) and she would love to have all of their clothes/accessories organized. I should mention that my mom bought her one doll, three she inherited from an older cousin, and my mom bought her one more that she found for a steal on QVC. I just didn't want anyone to think that we had actually bought 5 for one child. I am way to cheap for that. LOL. Thanks for posting. I think I can do something like this once I add another bookcase downstairs. It will make my daughter's day. Thanks for posting again!!!

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  16. I soo need to do this and try to use it for their barbie things too. Amazing!

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  17. That's adorable....too bad I have all boys :)

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  18. Oh my goodness! I had tired to do something similar with a bookshelf but the spacing was all wrong. I am going to be implementing this as soon as possible. My girls are constantly asking to have the doll clothes hung up as they love to play "real mommies" with their bitty babies. Now why didn't I think of using an Expedit shelf or something similar that has taller shelf spacing. By the way my daughters name is Fiona we love that name and it's not to common here in the states. :)

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  19. This is just insanely adorable. My daughter (who's now 24) has the Samantha doll, etc. What a lovely way to display/organize all the lovelies.

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  20. Love, LOVE this!
    My daughter is getting her first American Doll for Christmas this year and I was already starting to try and think of ways to organize the clothes and accessories. This is awesome!
    Thank you for sharing!

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  21. OHMYGOODNESS!!! Super cute idea! I cannot wait to do this! And I can foresee one in my son's room for all of his John Deere tractors too! LOVE LOVE LOVE Thank you for the idea!

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  22. Beautifully done! Next week, my husband and I will move our daughter's room into what is now the office (because it's much bigger). The office will move into her old space. I'm so impressed with the Expedit bookcase. We have to drive 3 1/2 hours to visit our nearest Ikea, but it will be worth it. This bookcase will be the centerpiece of her new space and really help organize her board games, Littlest Pet Shop play sets and dolls.

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  23. This was so clever I had to share it with my friends on FB!!!

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  24. I Heart Art....Love the Family Rules Poster, would put it my kitchen because that's where we spend most of our time. Thanks! (Wendy Boyd)

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  25. What did she use to hang the rods? I have dowels the right size but what are the things on the sides?

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  26. This is amazing! Looking for AG storage in the playroom and stumbled on this through pinterest. We are definately using this as our model! Thank you!

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  27. Just what I was looking for! We have a cheapy look a like shelf from target I will try this with, unfortunately there is no Ikea any where near us, I would LOVE one of these shelves! as far as hanging the clothes maybe a small tension curtain rod? LOVE LOVE LOVE!

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  28. Just what I was looking for! We have a cheapy look a like shelf from target I will try this with, unfortunately there is no Ikea any where near us, I would LOVE one of these shelves! as far as hanging the clothes maybe a small tension curtain rod? LOVE LOVE LOVE!

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  29. My Mom showed me this (she LOVES your blog) and I was like "Cool! I have 2 dolls of my own! I love these Ideas!" Tomorrow morning I'm going to redo my doll room! Thanks Fiona and Jen!!!

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  30. follow!

    http://thedollwardrobe.blogspot.com/

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  31. This is beyond adorable! My 7 year old daughter would love this in her room for all her baby & doll clothes and accessories...so clever!

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  32. Great idea! I love it! Can you tell me how you made the rod for the hanging clothes? How did yo attach the curtain rod?

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    1. I'm not sure how she did it, but they sell tension rods that you can use. They stay up on their own and once the kids are out of the doll stage they can be removed and the bookcase can be used for sometning else.

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  33. Love this idea. It looks so neat and tidy. We don't have room for this in our house, but if we did....... Thanks for sharing. I'm going to share this on my blog tomorrow when do a post about how we found a way to store all the AG doll clothes. http://controllingcraziness.blogspot.com/
    Thanks for sharing this great idea.

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  34. Is that a small tension rod, where did you find that?

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