Efficient use of space is key in a shared bedroom. Look for furniture with built-in storage, such as a play table with two or more drawers, or bins that can slide beneath. Beds with trundles or shelves in the headboard give each child a private area to fill with favorite things. You can also give each child a set of wall-hung pegs or hooks to make it easy to keep backpacks and other gear off the floor.
Put underutilized areas to work for storage (the backs of doors, the sides of bookcases, under the bed). Take advantage of wall space with bookracks and shelves mounted at kid height; these can be allocated among siblings, too.
Find more ideas for storage in kids' rooms.
Storage Solutions for Shared Rooms
When kids share a bedroom, the trick to a well-organized space and happy kids is to divide storage equitably, whether it's space in the closet, drawers in a dresser or a row of identically sized toy bins.
Plan for a combination of shared storage and individual storage for each child. Modular systems with a mix of open cubbies and closed cabinets are ideal – assign cubbies to each child and use some for shared storage. Fill the cubbies with baskets, buckets or bins to contain small items. A few portable storage containers, such as baskets or even wagons, make it easy for kids to transport their gear to family areas.
Establish a system for clearly defining ownership of individual storage drawers or containers. Label baskets and buckets with each child's name to give them a special sense of ownership – as well as avoid conflicts. Try baskets with personalized fabric liners, or small chalkboard labels hung from shelves. Color coding of the bins or liners is another great solution; assign one to each child, and it will always be easy to pick out whose belongings are whose.
