It was an absolute DREAM working with the incredible Gray Malin and his family. For his twins’ fifth birthday, he and his husband wanted to forgo traditional gifts and surprise them with a playroom makeover instead! The playroom already had an adorable coastal interior design style, so we focused on purging old toys, sourcing new developmentally appropriate ones, and organizing it all in a child-friendly way!

Organization 101

We can’t overstate the importance of a well-organized playroom! A child’s main job is to play, and to do so efficiently, they need an orderly space. We started by purchasing multiple sizes of these adorable whitewashed rattan baskets to fill the cabinets. We don’t have a strong preference when it comes to storing toys in plain sight or behind cabinet doors. What matters most is that the children can easily access them on their own. Since this playroom doubles as a guest room, we loved that the toys could all be neatly stored away if need be.

Labels, labels, labels!

To play independently and creatively, children need to know what’s inside each container! That’s why we are big fans of adding images to labels for pre-literate children. This means they will not only be able to identify what’s in each bin, but will also start associating words with the correlating objects. These gold bin clip labels were the perfect addition to the rattan baskets. They clip in so easily and securely!

Dramatic Play

Gray requested we focus on bolstering the family’s dress-up selection, which we were PUMPED about. In addition to purchasing a few more traditional costumes (firefighter and astronaut) we thrifted some super fun pieces. We are huge proponents of thrifting dress-ups because it is sustainable, affordable and allows you to find the most unique pieces. We still have distinct childhood memories playing with our moms’ vintage items and love passing that on to the next generation. Extra points if the items are from your younger years!

Doctor Accessories

We also purchased some medical instruments to accompany the family’s existing doctor costume. Don’t be afraid to offer your child the real items instead of toy versions. They will be much more engaged using a set of ace bandages and a reflex hammer than with a copycat.