Child’s Closet Project

Are you looking for a fun weekend project to share with your child? Consider a fun closet make-over that shows your child that you respect their choices and interests.

The first thing you should do is to brainstorm with your child. What are their interests? What are their hobbies? Would they like to theme their closet or paint it to match their room decorations? Encourage them to express their individuality. Try not to interfere much with their choices. After all, it is just their closet and you can always change it later.

Choose paint colors together. Decide what features your child’s closet will have. Cork boards can give them a space to post up pictures of friends and family. Here they can also display ribbons, art, and clippings from their favorite magazines. Use decorative ribbon criss-crossing for a unique look. You can even spruce up a dull frame by painting on soccer balls, fairies, or any other interest your child might have. Personalize it with initials or their name.

The front of the closet door can also be used for organization. This is a great place for slotted file hangers for organizing homework, projects, letters and art. Continue the organization inside. Design a layout of shelving that accommodates your child’s special needs. If you have a son with lots of sports equipment, you might like some large bins near the bottom to hold balls, pads and shoes. Adding wooden or wire system shelving makes organizing fun and easy. It is also easy on the wallet. Bins and baskets can hold everything from mouth guards to hair bows, art supplies to collectibles. Leave a section for hanging clothes. Opt for decorative children’s hangers that do not take up extra space and stretch out their clothes.

Special lighting or light pulls can make a closet fun. Allow your child to paint their name on the door itself if they want. Encourage artistic expression as you go. When your child tells you of their interests, be interested and supportive of uniqueness and individuality.

This is a great opportunity to keep the lines of communication open between you and your child. You will end up being closer in the end. You will share a fun experience together. You will have something fun and unique to show for all of your hard work. You will encourage teamwork and self-esteem. Who knew that a kid’s closet could actually bring you closer to them? All along we thought that it was just about the childrens clothes hangers.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the owner of Only Kids Hangers, a leading provider of childrens hangers. The right childrens clothes hangers really make the difference in kid's retail or home organization. For more information, please visit www.onlykidshangers.com.

Nursery to Toddler Room

You’ve spent countless hours preparing your nursery for the arrival of your baby. Now, in no time at all, you are starting to realize that your little baby is quickly outgrowing all of those baby decorations and toys. In as little as a year, your baby goes from a sweet innocent dependant ball of joy to a walking talking busy-body that can get into anything. It is becoming quickly apparent that you will soon need to upgrade that baby room to a toddler room.

Safety is the first thing to keep in mind. Toddlers can get into anything. Even things that you know they can not get into may be a hazard. They can quickly progress from a child that can climb a foot to one that you catch on top of your refrigerator. Keep the progression of exploratory behaviors in mind. This is a healthy developmental step and they do need to learn how high is too high, but make sure that if they do climb, they will not be seriously injured.

Dressers and bookcases should be anchored to the wall. Drawers and shelves make an easy ladder for toddlers to climb or even crawl up. Nothing dangerous or tempting should be kept on top of a dresser or out of reach on bookshelves. Even if you have the drawers on your dresser latched shut, remember that toddlers are strong and do not have much weight to lift. They can easily climb drawer pulls and handles with just their little fingers and toes. Another problem with dressers and bookcases is that they take up valuable play space.

An alternative to even having a dresser and shelves taking up space in your toddler room is to create a closet that takes the place of a bulky dresser. You can easily install a small lock on a closet door to keep a curious toddler out. Simply buy planks of wood and cut them to the depth and width of the closet. It is a good idea to leave space at the bottom for bulkier items or a laundry basket. If you want your toddler to learn to dress themselves, then install the hanging bar down low. Invest in some cute childrens wood hangers and keep their hanging clothes near the bottom.

Shelves above the hanging bar are very useful for keeping stacks of t-shirts, pants and shorts. Inexpensive baskets that hang from the shelves make wonderful drawers for socks and underwear. Higher shelves can be used for other things that you need to keep near, such as diapers, blankets, a first aid kit or even a fire extinguisher. Toys with small parts that require adult supervision can also be kept high up in a locked closet. By implementing these inexpensive ideas, you can create space, a safe place, for your toddler to climb and play.
About the Author: Ron Maier is the owner of Only Kids Hangers, a leading provider of childrens wood hangers. The right baby hangers or childrens wood hangers really make the difference in kid's retail or home organization. For more information, please visit www.onlykidshangers.com.

Baby-Proof Your Nursery

It’s never too early to start baby-proofing. Before the baby arrives is the ideal time to start considering what may be a hazard in your home. The nursery is especially important since your baby will be spending lots of time there. Keep baby-proofing in mind when you decorate your nursery. Furniture anchors and electrical outlet covers are very important and can be easily installed when you decorate the room.

Babies grow and develop so quickly. If you wait until you see a need for baby-proofing, then it can sometimes be too late. New parents especially may not realize how curious and creative a new baby can be. Before you know it, your little one will be putting everything in his or her mouth. Everything within reach will be explored by feeling, grabbing, chewing and tasting. Because of this, choking hazards are your first concern. The general rule is, if it fits down a toilet paper tube, it can fit down a child’s throat. Any small items should be kept out of reach and where a toddler or child can’t climb to get to it. On top of the dresser can entice them to climb up to it.

A non-anchored dresser is a serious crushing hazard to have in your home. Make sure that all shelves are anchored as well. Anything that could possibly tip over should be anchored to at least one stud in the wall. Cover all electrical outlets with plug covers when not in use. Outlet covers that allow things to be plugged in and covered are very useful and easy to install. The cover locks down so that only an adult can unplug the appliance. Keep cords bundled and out of children’s reach. Long cords can be inviting to chew on, get tangled up in or trip over. Keep cords behind an anchored dresser or shelving unit whenever possible. You can even secure excess cords to the wall with a small clamp to discourage your child from playing with them.

Keep lamps, heaters and other burn hazards well out of reach. Secure these items so that they can’t be pulled off of a shelf or dresser by the cord. If your heating vents are located on the floor, keep in mind that they can become very hot during the winter. Replace metal vents with plastic ones or place a physical barrier that your child won’t be able to get past in the way of the vent. Take precautions if there is a radiator or portable heater in the nursery as well. You may end up putting a baby gate all the way around the radiator or heater.

Stuffed animals, blankets and clothing pulled from drawers are the number one fire hazard in a child’s room. Your gates should be high enough that a child can’t throw flammable items near a heat source. Don’t forget that incandescent light bulbs can be very hot and start fires as well. Consider fluorescent light bulbs for lamps in a child’s room. Keep baby blankets, stuffed toys and clothing out of your child’s reach. If you keep them in the crib, make sure that they are well out of the child’s reach from the outside. Install child locks on dresser drawers and keep as many clothes as possible put away in the closet on childrens clothes hangers. Prepare early and you’ll be confident of your child’s safety when he or she arrives.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the owner of Only Kids Hangers, a leading provider of childrens hangers. The right childrens clothes hangers really make the difference in kid's retail or home organization. For more information, please visit www.onlykidshangers.com.

DIY Little Boy Room Ideas

Boys can be very active and you want to keep this in mind when you’re designing a room for them. Everything must be organized and easily accessible by your little fellow. Getting organized can take a little planning, but its well worth the effort. Once you get everything in place, you can start decorating. Hiring an interior decorator and making major changes can get expensive. Here are some ideas on how to organize and decorate in a cost effective, do it yourself, timely manner.

First take inventory of everything that you want to keep in the room. Start with the basics. Clothes need to be easily accessible to your and your child. Keep the closet nice and neat with high-quality childrens clothes hangers or childrens wooden hangers. Extra rods are easily added and can make twice the space in your child’s closet. Hang as much as possible to avoid overstuffing drawers. Closet organizers that hang from the rod can be great storage places for sports equipment, shoes or can be used to lay out school clothes for the week in advance. Use high shelves for extra bedding or out of season clothing. Hooks and behind-the-door racks are convenient for hats, book bags, belts and other small items that may not currently have a place to go.

The next step is organizing the toys. This is something that parents sometimes dread, but the effort is well worth it. When toys are organized, it makes cleaning the room a snap. Little boys will play with things that they once ignored and get the most out of the toys that they have. Toy boxes stuffed with every kind of toy is confusing and just looks like clutter when it’s opened. Toys are lost, crushed and parts are separated when they’re not organized. Let’s face it, it happens to everyone and it makes for money wasted on toys that do not get played with.

Divide toys into groups like super heroes, balls, sports equipment, big trucks, little cars, and so forth. Use existing shelves and toy boxes to separate each type of toy. If you have a large toy box, you can sometimes use cardboard boxes inside of it to keep things separated. You can also add buckets and extra shelving to the room for just a little money. Use the space under the bed for larger trucks, train sets and race tracks. Put games with small pieces up high so that you can dictate when they are taken out and ultimately dumped. This will help keep things organized and keep their toys and games together with all of their parts. No more wasted money or time searching for pieces and parts.

If you’re trying to save money, go with a theme that matches the bed spread or the current color of the room. Wall adhesive stickers are a great option for kids who really want a character themed room, but will soon outgrow it. They are easily removed and won’t leave marks on the walls. Kids have fun decorating their own room with stickers and the project will give you something fun to do with your child. Toys or balls hung from the ceiling add a cute touch to the room. Keep a dresser top or shelf clear for the character toys or sports equipment matching the theme to be displayed. Keep as much of the room as possible clear for play space and your little boy will have a fun new room to spend time in.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the owner of Only Kids Hangers, a leading provider of childrens hangers. The right childrens clothes hangers really make the difference in kid's retail or home organization. For more information, please visit www.onlykidshangers.com.