Most modern families find themselves having difficulty storing things in their children's rooms. Our modern materialistic culture has led to an increasing amount of 'stuff' being bought, and you then have to find somewhere to put it. children are now gathering huge amounts of nice tings, that are quite simply getting to be too much to easily store. Modern, particularly American, homes are larger then ever before, and the families occupying them much smaller then in the past, and yet somehow we still take up too much space. At least in the past, kids had a limited selection of toys available, and so we could usually find somewhere to put them. I don't mean long ago, either. As recently as one or two generations ago there were far fewer toys for children to buy. Just think back to your own childhood. How much did you actually have, then? The solution to the problem is to figure out a way to neatly store everything. We, the adults, have a responsibility to explain to children how to tidy their rooms. We can't just say clean it up, and then leave it for them to do. So we have to figure out somewhere to put all their things.

The way to solve this problem is, of course, to find some unusual storage methods. Think outside the box, as it were. Now you may not have considered this, but simply replacing the bed can provide a great deal of relief. If you swap out the standard twin bed for a loft bed, or even a bunk bed, you'll find you immediately have a whole lot more space to play with. It's hardly original, yet bunk beds have become surprisingly uncommon recently and still offer a great way to reduce overcrowding.

If stacking your children up in their sleeping arrangement is bothering you, please consider that modern bunk beds and loft beds are far safer than their predecessors. Most countries have adopted standards to make them safe for children ages five and up. Beds sold in the US have to meet federal CPSC guidelines for safety or face huge fines and liability. If that is not enough to convince you, I have six children and they all have slept in, or do sleep in bunk beds. We have never had an accident that is a result of sleeping in a bunk bed or loft bed.

If you're still with me, then lets take another look at the problem of finding storage space. Almost any bed has extra storage space under it, which you may or may not already be using. Generally speaking, the average children's bed has some 20 cubic feet of space beneath it. That's as large as a small closet. The best way to make use of this space is not simply to stuff things in there willy-nilly, although of course you could do that, but rather to buy a set of storage drawers. Take of the lids you won't need them under the bed) and try to get some with wheels, if you can, for easier access. So take a tape measure, find the exact dimensions of your under bed space, and then head down to your local Wal-Mart and buy a pile of boxes. This is the easiest way to use the space, and the best solution if you don't have time to do anything in more detail. If you do, on the other hand, then I would suggest you go take a look at http://www.bunkbedsunlimited.com/. They have some good articles on how to make the best use of this space.

Loft beds free up the entire space that one twin bed takes and make it available for other furniture like dressers, chests of drawers, sofas, daybeds, futons, desks, dollhouses and the list goes on. Sometimes a loft bed can seemingly work a miracle in an overcrowded room.

Now have a look at a typical kids room. It's got two twin beds, two chests, and there are toys scattered all over the room. If you had a bunk bed in there, instead of the two twin beds, then you would have enough space for another chest of drawers and could quite possibly fit all of the toys neatly away. Drawers are easy to access, and if you use storage boxes with wheels under the bed, it will be easy for your kids to get to their toys.

As an added bonus, a bunk bed does double duty as a toy in its own right. Kids love to climb, and the prospect of sleeping high above the ground will turn a usually boring night, into an exciting adventure. This is something to bear in mind, and you can even tell them the upgrade to bunk beds is a reward for good behavior.

If you are considering buying a bunk bed or loft bed, I would recommend that you not buy the very cheapest thing that you can find. The cheap ones often do not hold up long with the rough use kids put them through. If cost is an issue, or you just want to build something nice as a family project, something durable that lasts, consider http://www.bunkbedsunlimited.com/. They have some great designs, easy to follow plans and great prices on hardware kits for the do-it-yourself person. You can also just look for ideas there. They even have a nice triple bunk bed plan that is very easy to build.

In the end, when you are trying to find a way to fit all your children's toys in the limited space of their bedroom, get prepared by reading as much as possible and putting together a careful plan of how you're going to arrange things. For example, once you have your bunk bed, how are you going to get it in the room? there are a lot of things you need to think about. Similarly, bear in mind how you intend to arrange the room afterwards. You should make some calculations, and decide if you'll have enough space as it is, or whether you need to get a bigger chest of drawers, or more storage boxes, or something similar. If you find that even after all this rearranging, you still don't have space, then you may need to shift some stuff out of the room.