6 Outdoor Organization Tips
With spring on the horizon, almost everyone is anxious to get outside and enjoy the warmer weather! As the days get longer and the breeze loses it chill, it’s time to start dusting off those winter blues. Dark days holed up inside the house will soon be behind you, giving way to evening cookouts and outdoor playdates.
After 89 long days of cold and dreary winter, you’re more than ready to welcome spring. Is your backyard living space as ready for spring as you are? In an effort to winterize your backyard, you may have haphazardly thrown outdoor toys, furniture, garden tools and more into storage. Now that these things are back it season, it’s the perfect opportunity to spend some time getting everything in order.
Outdoor organization keeps your kids happy, and helps keep you sane. Rouge basketballs and toy trucks will no longer lay claim to your lawn. Imagine clearly defined places for playing, eating, and lounging! You can even create your own storage solutions to make gardening and cooking that much more enjoyable.
Use the longer days and warmer weather of springtime to breathe some new life into your backyard organization with these tips:
1. Split the Space
Toys, lawn furniture, and gardening tools strewn about can make even the most up-scale backyard look messy. When things don’t have a defined place, chaos tends to take over. Regardless of the size of your backyard, you can create defined area to give your backyard even the illusion of organization!
Start with a trip to your local hardware store to pick out some backyard pavers. Creating a defined patio for lounging, or a dining area for meals and cooking, can be a quick weekend project. Pavers are an inexpensive way to add visual interest to your outdoor space – instantly making it feel more orderly and organized.
2. Multi-Purpose Solutions
Multi-purpose storage can be a lifesaver, especially for smaller spaces. When you don’t have a lot of room to work with, everything in your backyard should serve more than one purpose. This keeps clutter down while increasing your organization efficiency.
A little building experience and some creativity can leave you with a beautiful and functional storage bench like this one from The Kim Six Fix. A bench like this gives you added outdoor seating and a place to stow away cushions, blankets, even towels! You’ll never have to sacrifice seating for storage again!
3. Out of Sight…
If you have extra space to work with in your backyard, put the old saying “out of sight, out of mind” into practice. A storage shed might not be the most creative organization solutions, but it’s one of the most practical.
Your new shed can be anything but boring with a little love. Adding a pop of color or even some window boxes upgrades a boring storage space, transforming it into a stylish backyard addition. You’ll have space for all your outdoor needs, even a place to store your grill and outdoor furniture when winter rolls around next. What’s better than functional andpretty storage?
4. Love to Label
One of the best parts of warmer weather and longer days is getting the kids outside to play! Just like you, they’ve been cooped up inside all winter. Spending the day outside, or some time after school, is the perfect way to use some of their boundless energy. Adding a touch of organization to their outdoor toys makes for better play and easier clean-up.
Adding a metal bread rack on your deck or off of your patio keeps all different toys in one place. Metal buckets with fun, kid-friendly labels help separate the toys into like kinds. If your kids can read, they should have no problem finding what they’re looking for, and even putting it away, too!
5. Embrace the Upcycle
Upcycling old, broken, or worn out stuff works incredibly well in the backyard! If you’re not familiar with upcycling, this is the practice of turning something old into something new by redefining its purpose. An old microwave cart can be refinished and remade into a grill caddy, while old shipping pallets can be made into a contained sandbox with a little building skill.
This is the perfect solution for sandbox fun with no mess! Just when you think there is no use for old pallets, skids, or scrap wood, you can create something your kids will really love. Upcycling is the perfect way to add organization to your backyard while turning something old into something new. It’s good for the environment, and for you!
6. Wash Up
When they day comes to a close and it’s time to go inside, the last thing you want to deal with is a trail of grass, sand, and dirt through your home from outside. If you don’t have a mud room, creating a wash-up space outside is a perfect solution. This keeps the dirt outside, where it belongs. No more double-duty cleaning!
Instead of the typical wash box made with rocks, opt for something kinder on your feet. Something made from stained and sanded wood boards, like a foot washing station is kid-friendly too. This can be easily made with any skill level, keeping the mess outside for good!
