Today’s outfit is work appropriate or great for running errands. Just pair a basic long-sleeve top with a long-cardigan and brightly colored ankle pants, like my blue ones. Add pointy-toe flats and a tote, and your outfit is complete.
This article is one of a series showing the many outfit combinations I’ve designed from my 24-piece Fall/Winter Capsule wardrobe.
Here are the items from today’s outfit:
Check out these blogs that I’m linking up with, including the “Clear the Clutter Challenge” hosted by Keri, Kate and Jaclyn. This week, they are talking about how they organize their kid’s spaces.
I remember back when my first was born and all his toys fit into one little basket. Those were the days! My sons have accumulated many toys over the years. Family enjoys giving them gifts at holidays and birthdays. Grandparents have shared toys saved from my husband and my own childhood. In addition to the toys, our boys love to read, and we have SO many books.
Today, I thought I’d share how we organize the kids toys and books. With the exception of our LEGOs, we keep the kid’s toys in three places in our home: a toy box in our family living room, shelves in their bedroom, and plastic bins in our attic storage area.
Shortly after we moved to Kentucky, I went through all the boys’ toys, and placed over half of them in storage bins. I selected toys that I hadn’t seen them playing with in a long time, as well as toys that they likely had outgrown into storage. My intention is that many of these will eventually find homes with some other family (more on that in a minute).
All this was done on a Saturday when my husband had taken the boys out to the family farm for the afternoon. I was expecting howls of indignation from the kids when they returned home. Guess what – they didn’t even notice! And they didn’t ask for anything I’d packed away for over six months.
In the living room toy box, I placed their Pokemon cards, Minecraft toys, and Beyblades. This toy box is the biggest problem area for us, so I wanted to keep it simple. Both boys have a tendency to “clean” the living room by dumping everything into the toy box. I periodically go through it and remove anything that shouldn’t be there and either place it into storage, the trash (think candy wrappers), or a laundry basket. The boys then have to find the right home for the items in the laundry basket.
The boys bedroom has a couple of cubbies with bins that store the rest of the toys they regularly use. For the most part this includes mainly Transformers and Imaginext sets.
We have another cubbie in the alcove of their room reserved just for books. Both boys often choose books from this shelf to read for a few minutes after being tucked in at bedtime. Even though we use our local library extensively, it is so handy to have options for reading at home too.
Then there are the LEGOs. At some point when Aiden was around 5, he became obsessed with LEGOs. He played with them all the time. Cade did the same starting at about the same age. Even now, both boys build with their LEGOs nearly every single day.
We wanted to keep the LEGOs in a place where they could leave them out and build projects that might take several days or weeks. So please excuse the “mess” in these pictures, the kids are having fun and I don’t make them clean up the LEGO tables. As long as all the LEGOs stay within the confines of the rug, they are considered ok.
At one point I found this LEGO table second-hand
Kevin built a top for a little table we already had to use as well.
The LEGO space is one of the most frequently used areas of our home. Neighbor kids come over to play there, as do other friends and cousins.
Now, I mentioned that I intend for many of our toys in attic storage will eventually need to find new homes. I use three methods.
First, at birthdays and Christmas, we have a one-toy-in-one-toy-out rule. These bins are the favorite source for selecting toys to donate.
Second, my husband’s family has at least a couple garage sales every summer. The boys are allowed to pick toys from the storage bins to sell for spending money.
Finally, some of the groups the boys belong to have gift exchanges at Christmas, and suggest bringing a toy from home. We have found some toys in the storage bin that were appropriate for the age groups in the exchange and still in great shape. I love when we can find a new use for something we no longer need!
Hi CapsuleDiva, first I want to thank you for the Fall/Winter Capule I’m really enjoying seeing how you put wardrobes together. I live in Michigan which is very cold in winter, most days a very heavy jacket or coat is needed. My question is how do you wear long cardigans and vests when the weather is so cold you need coats and jackets? Can you wear cardigans and vest with coats and jackets? And by the way the kids rooms look great.
Hi Ms. Tee! I do wear my long cardigan under my coats and jackets – even if the coat is not long enough to cover the cardigan. I’ve been on the hunt this year for a longer parka that would cover the cardigan, but until I find one, I just try not to worry about the cardigan hanging lower than the coat, or sometimes I will fold up the cardigan under the coat so it isn’t visible. Thanks for you compliments!!
Our lego collection looks like yours! I love that you have 3 designated spots for toys….sounds like an easier way to contain the clutter! Thanks for linking up with us for the Clear the Clutter Challenge.
Thanks for hosting the link-up Jaclyn! I enjoyed seeing your kiddos’ rooms too!
Love the Lego collection! We have a similar Lego situation! These are all such great tips- having designated space for toys really is key! Thanks for linking up!
Thanks Keri!