Legos, Organized

If you haven't checked out our "Meet the Family" tab
or the "Legomania" tab on the home page, 
you may not realize how important Lego 
is in this household.
We have a major Lego Master living in our midst.
I'm not kidding, this kid can build.
 (It ain't braggin' if it's true.)

Not only is he creative beyond belief,
it's one of the few things 
that he can concentrate on for hours
without being distracted.  
There are times when he doesn't even want to stop
to eat a meal or take care of other needs, 
if you get my drift.
He sometimes reminds me of Fred MacMurry
in The Absent-Minded Professor.  




We're all about encouraging gifts, 
talents and interests.
Our home is however, small by comparison.
Lil' Guy has his own room, but no designated area
in which to produce his amazing creations.
We wanted to not only give him a building sanctuary,
but allow him to keep everything orderly 
so that he could find exactly what he needs 
to bring his ideas to fruition.
(And let's face it, the lack of organization was driving me nuts!)



 

Our first solution was this set of containers,
which are garage bins that traditionally house
screws, nuts and bolts.
They held all kinds of bricks,
solids, specialty parts, wheels, just everything.
It worked well for a while,
but we needed bigger containers for some items
which he uses for his detailed innovations. 
 Plus, I didn't like them being on the floor.




So we hung them on the wall, 
giving him floorspace on which to work.
Still not an ideal set-up.

A couple of rolling bins were purchased
and placed underneath the overhead bins.
I needed to come up with something better,
more efficient that would still give him the room
he needed to create, build and explore.


At a visit to The Container Store while on vacation,
there were several options for Lego storage.
They might be efficient for some folks,
but they just weren't practical 
for our Lego craftsman.
We came up with a different solution
that happened to be much more affordable.

Four of these drawered bins were purchased 

and two were placed next to each other.

The top four drawers 

give the solid-colored bricks a home.

Each drawer was labeled.

There's still room to grow.

The lower drawers hold larger items, 
like these base plates.

We're still using the garage drawers.

 When the solid bricks were transferred 

to the new bins,

it allowed us to use these for the specialized parts.

They're off the floor and within easy reach.

He's got his own names for these pieces,

so he knows exactly where they belong.

We even have a few empty bins 
in case we have an overflow
(and you know there will be).

   
 Wheels were one particular part that were taking up 
lots of these little bins.

They come in various sizes, 

some of which barely fit in the smaller bins.

So we used one of the larger drawers 

on the new cabinets to contain them all.  

It's easy to see them all 

because they're not so crowded.

 

Need wheels?

We got 'em!

The other part of the solution was to give him a building surface.

We got this door at  

Habitat for Humanity's ReStore for $12.

Big K cut it to fit the space and VOILA!  

Instant worktop.

It fits easily on top of the rolling bins,

and with the smaller cabinets right on top,

everything is in one place.

The exercise ball gives him a place to sit

and helps with kids who are restless or fidgety.

It may not look like it, but it's SO comfy.

His room has been rearranged a bit,
which will be featured in an upcoming post.
It feels good to have accomplished this task.
He's able now to have a workspace 
and everything he needs right at his fingertips.
Let the building begin!