For a child, as for any adult, a room has the meaning of personal space, where he feels like a little master. Accordingly, this tiny world must fulfill the individual needs of the baby. In the understanding of adults, it should be light, clean and spacious. For the baby, the most important thing is the atmosphere of the room, where he feels comfortable, first of all, with his favorite things. And each of them should have its own place. An option for storing toys, in addition to regular boxes, is a rack. Making it yourself means being able to provide all the child’s preferences.
Accordingly, this tiny world must fulfill the individual needs of the baby.
The benefits of creating a toy shelf with your own hands
Furniture made in a factory is devoid of individuality due to mass production. Production is on stream. Making your own items for storing toys has a number of advantages:
- ability to satisfy the most demanding requests;
- combination with the overall interior of the room;
- originality of execution;
- confidence in the quality of the materials used;
- convenience and functionality.
Making it yourself means being able to provide all the child’s preferences.
Toy rack design and construction
It's hard to imagine a children's room without a shelving unit. From birth, it is able to perform the function of storing personal hygiene items. As the baby grows up, it begins to be used for its intended purpose. Toys, books, and construction sets appear on it.
For the baby, the most important thing is the atmosphere of the room, where he feels comfortable, first of all, with his favorite things.
The design and construction of a toy storage rack must be selected based on personal needs, as well as taking into account the following requirements:
- stability - the structure must have good support;
- safety - the absence of sharp corners and protruding parts will reduce the risk of injury to a minimum.
The simplest option for making children's furniture for storing toys is from fabric stretched over a frame or thick cardboard.
Depending on the age of the child, the toy storage system can be classified as follows.
- Up to 1 year - as a rule, at this age a baby has a minimum set of toys that can fit in one box or section with several shelves.
- From one to 6 years is the most active and inquisitive age, which is why the functionality of the children's room and the storage system for children's toys increases. There are a lot of items to play with and more space is needed to accommodate them to maintain order. In this case, an integrated approach to the issue is required: creating several boxes for storing toys that are interconnected.
- From 6 to 10 years is a transitional age for games. Some children continue to actively play with toys, others devote more and more time to studying and reading books. Accordingly, the role of furniture is changing. This can be a separate drawer or box for storing toys, or shelves that combine several tasks.
- After 10 years, there are usually a few favorite toys left that don’t take up much space. Functionality is directed to the placement of school supplies. It is most convenient to store them in a hanging cabinet, with open or closed shelves.
Depending on the type of rack, the materials and tools used in production will vary.
Depending on the gender of the children, the design of the children's toy rack will vary. For boys, it is preferable to choose more restrained tones in the design and keep decorations to a minimum. Furniture for girls should be more romantic, in bright colors, with a variety of decorations. However, the toy storage item must fit organically into the overall interior of the room.
Depending on the skills and abilities, it is possible to create an object from wood or rods, chipboards, plastic.
You can initially make a shelving unit for a children's room with your own hands in such a way that, as the child grows up, it will grow with him.
It is optimal to place niches along the free wall, which can gradually increase in number.
Among the variety of types of furniture with specific functions, single boxes, drawers, groups of boxes, ottomans, hanging shelves for storing children's toys and much more are distinguished for a children's room. It is optimal to place niches along the free wall, which can gradually increase in number.
For convenience, the toy rack is equipped with wheels and lids.
Original shelves for a children's room: a selection of ideas
The wall shelf has a simple design, so when making it you need to think about an interesting design. Of course, you can get by with an ordinary board attached at the corners to the surface, but such a product will not decorate the interior of the nursery and will certainly upset the child.
You can easily get acquainted with interesting options for children's shelves on the Internet.
Before you start making a shelf, you need to ask your child what toys he wants to place on it. You can ask questions about the color of the structure, its shape, etc. Children from an early age have an excellent imagination, so a product made according to their ideas will be truly original.
Inspiration for creating your own shelf can be gleaned from a small selection of ideas:
- Figured product. Not the most practical, but very beautiful shelf, which is made using a jigsaw.
- Hanging house. A girls favorite design for folding dolls and books.
- Hanging shelf decorated with ropes or straps. A design element that will become a real decoration for a boy’s room.
- Hook design. A functional shelf that is suitable for children of all ages. Used as a hanger for clothes, medals or jewelry.
To make shelves, you can use any available materials. For example, sheets of plywood, drywall, boxes, old boxes, chests and even skateboards. The more unexpected the choice of material, the more original the product will be.
It is important to consider the size of the room. The ideal solution for a small room would be homemade corner shelves that allow you to make the most of the space.
Necessary materials
Depending on the type of rack, the materials and tools used in production will vary. Everything depends only on imagination. The simplest option for making children's furniture for storing toys is from fabric stretched over a frame or thick cardboard. This task will be feasible even for the mother of a baby. The choice of the fabric itself should be based on its ability to be durable and wear-resistant, i.e. have a tight weave of threads. These types include poplin, calico, satin, denim, as well as artificial leather and fur. Depending on the skills and abilities, it is possible to create an object from wood or rods, chipboards, plastic. For convenience, the toy rack is equipped with wheels and lids.
You can initially make a shelving unit for a children's room with your own hands in such a way that, as the child grows up, it will grow with him.
In addition to the basic materials you will need:
- glue – stationery, PVA, for gluing parts made of wood and plastic;
- colored paper and cardboard - for decorating the product;
- frame wire - for making fabric items;
- plywood - for the back walls.
Having decided on the type, design and construction of the toy storage rack, you need to make a sketch of it.
What to build from
Selecting material to implement your plans is now not difficult. Children's shelves that are mounted on the wall with your own hands can be made from plastic or a combination of metal and wood. Each material has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Wooden shelves are classic products. Wood as a material is environmentally friendly and safe. The material is easy to saw and cut with any tool and can be easily shaped into any shape. Children's shelves made of plywood are short-lived for 1-5 years, but are also strong. But wooden ones can last up to 30 years without losing their original attractiveness.
A DIY plastic children's book shelf will be practically in no way inferior to a wooden one. Plastic is made using modern technologies and can withstand heavy mechanical loads.
On a note! Manufacturers tend to claim that plastic is safe and does not emit chemical compounds, but do not forget that it is flammable.
The main advantages of plastic furniture include:
- little weight;
- simplicity of design and assembly;
- small price.
The combination of wood and metal is an option where there is quality and reliability. Usually the frame is made of metal and the shelves are wooden. For example: a do-it-yourself shelf for children's books, made using metal and wood, will, without exaggeration, be considered eternal and will not be in danger of any deformation. Any of the listed materials will be a worthy alternative to store-bought products; the main thing is to correctly and positively think through the very idea of your design.
Step-by-step production
Having decided on the type, design and construction of the toy storage rack, you need to make a sketch of it. Great artistic abilities are not required in this case. This can be simply a sketch on which the dimensions and overall dimensions will be noted. From these data the required amount of materials is calculated.
For an item consisting of three vertical shelves, you will need 1.3 m of fabric with a width of 1.5.
The production of a fabric variation does not involve the construction of special patterns and patterns; as a rule, markings, taking into account future sizes, are applied directly to the fabric.
Furniture for girls should be more romantic, in bright colors, with a variety of decorations.
For an item consisting of three vertical shelves, you will need 1.3 m of fabric with a width of 1.5. From the specified quantity, cut out and cut, taking into account seam allowances of 1.5-2 cm, elements of the following sizes:
- shelves – 4 pieces measuring 30*60 cm;
- side parts - 6 pieces measuring 30*30 cm;
- cardboard inserts – 4 pieces, size 28*28 cm;
- braid – 1 m.
The parts of the shelves are folded in half and stitched with a pocket, similar to a pillowcase.
The parts of the shelves are folded in half and stitched with a pocket, similar to a pillowcase. Then they are connected to each other by the side parts. Cardboard is inserted into the pockets to strengthen the bases. A braid is sewn onto the top of the finished structure and tied for hanging in the right place.
For boys, it is preferable to choose more restrained tones in the design and keep decorations to a minimum.
This type of rack is convenient because it is completely mobile, and the soft side walls, devoid of frame support, allow it to be folded like an accordion. The shelf is ideally placed in a closet if its purpose is to store children's supplies. Equipping the design with side pockets will provide additional storage space. This type will serve as a good alternative to a regular box.
A braid is sewn onto the top of the finished structure and tied for hanging in the right place.
Making a version from wood planks or chipboard will require more advanced skills, such as metalworking.
This type of rack is convenient because it is completely mobile, and the soft side walls, devoid of frame support, allow it to be folded like an accordion.
The manufacture of the frame begins with the walls: side, top and bottom. They are cut from laminated chipboard with a thickness of approximately 16 mm, according to the dimensions. Ordinary plywood is also perfect for the back wall.
Depending on the gender of the children, the design of the children's toy rack will vary.
The next step is making shelves with dividers. Rebates are cut out on the finished parts and grooves are made in the right places. The joints are glued with special wood glue and dried well. To ensure reliability of the structure, the elements are tightened from the inside with a metal angle. The boards must be provided with a good corner connection, which can be equipped with additional spikes and eyes. The sampling is performed with a chisel or chisel.
Making a version from wood planks or chipboard will require more advanced skills, such as metalworking.
Now you need to connect the shelves and vertical walls with nails and additionally glue them. The intermediate shelves are connected to each other with wooden pins. To do this, you need to make a through hole in the frame board, and drill sockets two-thirds the length of the pin in the shelves. They sit on glue. The back wall of plywood is nailed.
The design and construction of a toy storage rack must be chosen based on personal needs.
To equip a structure with drawers, it is important to accurately determine their dimensions. Installation takes place on special furniture casters.
According to psychologists, from early childhood a child must be taught order.
Finally, the finished structure is processed with sandpaper, the existing holes are filled with putty, and excess glue is removed.
And the evening collection of toys can be turned into a kind of ritual.
The wooden model is quite heavy, and therefore, in order to prevent falling and injury, it must be attached to the wall with a metal corner. In this way, sustainability will be ensured.
As the baby grows up, it begins to be used for its intended purpose.
What are furniture brands ready to offer?
Every year, brands of Russian and foreign manufacturers offer wall shelves for a wide variety of purposes and types.
Small houses, characters from fairy tales in houses, decorated with shelves and bright boxes are most often bought for children under 3 years old.
Boxes, which are made on the principle of game cubes and are used as components.
Wall-mounted shelves are among the most popular. They are created in a modern style and recently quite often supplemented with various designer drawings or decorative baskets.
An interesting element for a bed consisting of two tiers is a ladder with secret drawers in which you can easily store toys and other things.
Various corner shelves with additional organizers for writing instruments.
Decoration
Depending on who the children's toy storage rack is intended for - a boy or a girl, as well as the interior of the room, its decor is also carried out. But, despite all the strict rules, it should give the baby a feeling of joy and comfort. Any option can be combined with decorative elements such as butterflies, flowers, bows, cars or fairy-tale characters. They can be made of fabric or special paper and glued to the finished product. It can also be a ready-made decorative element purchased in a store.
- The finished wooden product, after finishing work, can be painted in the required color and varnished in the desired shade.
- Drawer fronts can be made directly using colored chipboard.
- The installation of melamine edging works well as a decoration. To do this, it must be applied to the end parts and ironed with a hot iron. After it is firmly fixed, the residues are removed with a knife. Another type of design is installing a baguette. This will make the rack look neater and more interesting.
- An interesting option would be to invite your child to decorate his children's bookcase himself.
It's hard to imagine a children's room without a shelving unit.
According to psychologists, from early childhood a child must be taught order. And this, in turn, is the baby’s personal belongings and toys laid out and placed in their places, forming a single storage system. Having a separate place will also be useful if a small family member does not have his own children's room. And the evening collection of toys can be turned into a kind of ritual.
Furniture made in a factory is devoid of individuality due to mass production.
Having a separate place will also be useful if a small family member does not have his own children's room.
