What can I do to make my living room look neat without toys all over the place, but still have toys in the room? I also have a little desk that Christian plays at in the living room.
Look at my post on "new fall pillows." In the top picture of the couch, what you can't see is that behind the couch, under the sofa table, is a big basket full of their books. And on the other picture I posted of the fireplace, behind the red chair is another larger basket full of their toys. If you can rearrange your furniture in such a way that there are little vignettes to hide stuff, no one will even know the toys are there!
1)I went with bookshelves of varying heights but all in the same stain: then hit up container store for their canvas boxes (they come with nameplates so you can right in "cars" "blocks" "puzzles" etc...) This works great for all the small toys and clutter.
2)I used PB Kids catologues for inspiration and tried to incorporate some of their storage ideas on the cheap.
3)Stuffed animals work best in baskets...if you have some kind of landing on the stairs that would be a great place.
4)Suprisingly, childrens books in small stacks can make good coffee table books!
5)Small things (silver rattles, cups, etc) I have on a few display shelves.
6)And of course, the big toys are best lined up neatly against a wall or under a table.