Revamping Your Wooden Toy Box for the Tween Years

ByMichelle Garrett

 

Quick Note: This article on ways to revamp your wooden toy box for the tween years is sponsored by Little Colorado.

True story: I was super excited about receiving a wooden toy box to put in my daughter’s room. My daughter quickly reminded me that she was a “big girl” and had other plans for her toy box. Be still my heart as I deal with this transition to the tween years with my baby.

Little Colorado has recently introduced the Whale, Elephant, and Train toy boxes from Bannor Toys to complement the collection of wooden toy boxes available on their website.

Natural Wooden Toy Box from Little Colorado
This wooden toy box is available from Little Colorado in multiple designs and finishes.

We both loved the elephant shape and it fits perfectly with the decor in our family room and her room. My initial thought was to have it in our family room to keep her books, dolls and crayon supplies in one place.

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She already had a vision for how she would revamp her wooden toy box to fit her bold and sassy style. First up was a trip to the craft store for paint. So much paint, y’all!

A quick visit to the craft store to purchase supplies for her newest craft project - personalizing her wooden toy box.

I had to reel her in because she would have picked out all the colors if she could. It was wonderful to see her mind churning, face light up and creative juices flowing.

Ideas to Repurpose Your Wooden Toy Box

While we were shopping we discussed ways that she could possibly use the toy box in her room. Have I mentioned how much I love how her brain works? Some of the top ideas she came up with were:

  • an accessories storage area using her plastic storage containers
  • a place to keep her sweaters for easy access
  • shoe storage
  • arts and crafts supplies storage
  • storage for throw blankets
  • to store purses and totes
  • a new home for stuffed animals (see there’s still a bit of my baby girl in there)
  • a place to keep her electronic devices and their accessories

Once we finished our shopping, she was eager to go home and start her latest project.

The beginning stages of my daughter's art project

The importance of creative expression and freedom

One thing I have embraced with this stage is allowing my children to tap into their creativity in the ways that work most for them. My daughter has always had a very eclectic style – from her love of bright patterns, flashy shoes and unique decor for her room. As I type that I should have already known what I was in for when I chose a natural colored toy box. The great thing is that she now has a blank palette to create a design that sparks joy in her heart.

And that she absolutely did! I may be slightly biased but she did a fantastic job. Over the course of a few days, she made her vision come to life. It was wonderful to watch her work through her creative process. I gave her complete free-range and she even encouraged me to assist. She “taught” me how to mix paints to create new colors and how to go with the flow if you did not get the color you were working towards.

The finished version of tween daughter's wooden toy box revamp project.

She has since moved it in her room and created her own nook for reading, drawing and just relaxing while admiring her beautiful creation.

You can purchase a wooden toy box for your little or not-so-little one from Little Colorado. There was no assembly needed and is very sturdy. Ours has been moved multiple times throughout the painting process and it has held up wonderfully. I’m looking forward to years of use out of it.