Aaaaaah, bath-time.
A time for bonding with your child, splish-splashing, learning, and playing with bubbles and toys. Oh, the toys, where do I start? Bath toys are great to have around to distract your child when you are trying to rinse their hair or shampoo or wash those tickly hard-to-reach spots like under the arm. At some point though, your child does end up coming out of their bath (fingers and toes all wrinkly) and you’re left wondering now what do I do with all these toys?
You can’t really just leave them lying there in the tub. Well, I guess you could but I don’t think I want to shower or bathe with a rubber duck swirling around my legs. And if you do store the toys somewhere, someway, ensuring that the toys are clean and drained well is just as important. Moldy and slimy toys are nobody’s idea of fun.
How to choose the right storage for your needs
From ready-made to DIY options, there are lots of ways to keep bath toys at bay so that everyone can enjoy the bathroom. Whatever solution you do choose, consider the following:
1) Is the bathroom just designated as your child’s bathroom? (i.e. you have your own piece of heaven)
2) Is it a tub or a standing shower? (Even if it’s a standing shower, you may bathe your child in a small tub but your toy storage solutions may differ.)
3) What type of material are your bathroom tiles? Some types of material may hold things like suction cups better.
4) How many toys do you need to store?
5) What other things does your child use when they bathe?
6) How often do you plan on cleaning your storage solution?
6) If you are doing DIY solutions, how much are you willing to spend and what types of supplies will you need?
Now let’s check out some of my favorite ideas!
1. Scoop and Store
I saw this
Boon Frog Pod at a girlfriend’s house and thought it was insanely cute. There are 3 designs but the ladybug is my favorite. In addition to having storage for your child’s shampoo and wash, there is also room to hang a towel or loofah. The bottom piece also detaches and you can use it to scoop up the toys!
Similarly, there is a Whale Tail Pail made by OXO. A little smaller, it’s really just the scooper piece and a suction attachment to mount the whale. The clear window allows you to see what’s inside, especially if the child is searching for a particular toy. While you do lose storage space for shampoos, you make up with the tiny holes that can double as a sprinkling can to gently wash suds from your child’s hair and body.
2. Tension rod with hanging baskets
It can be an inexpensive or a very extravagant project depending on your individual tastes. You can pick up many supplies probably from the local dollar store or fancier ones at IKEA or bed and bath type stores.
You get to choose what baskets, how many, and how you want to hook or hang them on the bar, you can use different colors, the bath’s the limit! I know, it’s supposed to say sky but we are talking about bath toys right now. One note, you may need to drill extra holes in the bottom to support drainage)
Here’s an example from Kidspot of what that could look like.
Another example
3. Corner Hammocks
Make use of the corner of your tub or shower with a
fun bath toy hammock. Using suction cups to fix your walls, leaves the main part of the tub free of clutter. The MiniOwls bath toy hammock has large holes allowing for good drainage of the toys. Don’t let the size fool you, the stretchiness of the material can allow quite a bit of toy to just “hang” out. An “S” hook, as well as a toothbrush holder, are provided as well to let you hang things like a loofah or anything else that your child might use in the bath.
4. Toy caddy
The wide hanging lip can help with keeping all the toys stable, provided you don’t overload it with heavy things and cause it to the cave. Secondly, it has large vents to allow toys to drain out. Above all, if you have more than one child to bathe at once, the caddy can serve as a divider and each child can splish-splash in their own space.
5. DIY
The tension rod is a DIY project but costs can add up quickly depending on how you go about it. If you are looking for easy options without breaking your wallet, check out your local dollar store. You could probably pick up most of your supplies there: baskets, suction cups, shower, and S hooks. You could get a few baskets and attach them to your tile walls depending on your needs. Here’s an example from Real House Life
Finding bins a little bulky? Consider mesh bags (make your own or use laundry bags) and hang them or hook them on the shower wall as shown on
Two Twenty OneThere, simple and easy.
Happy splashing and easy cleaning!
Julie
