Lego Storage: a Mama’s Solution to Lego Mess

How to Organise, Store and Display Your Kid’s Lego Collection

When your child’s Lego collection starts to grow, it can be hard to decide how to keep it best organised. There are plenty of ideas on Pinterest and Google which can make it that much more overwhelming. Ideas range from organising by colour, brick shape or Lego sets. Storage option ideas are endless! Coming to a decision really depends on your child and how they tend to play with their Lego.

My son loves Lego of any kind. His collection is quite diverse and includes sets of Star Wars, Creator, Friends, and limited edition Holiday sets (to name a few). He likes to build complete sets, play with them for a while, take them apart and rebuild them again later on. With these two main factors in mind, I decided to organise his Lego by set so it’s easier for him to find the pieces he needs.

Here’s my step-by-step guide on how to sort and store Lego.

Click through the gallery for each step. 

1. I decided the IKEA Trofast frame and storage containers were the best storage option. They’re accessible and because of the different container sizes, you can store small and large items. The frame isn’t the most attractive but if you go with neutral colours, it will blend in with any room. The shorter frame can also double as a Lego table if you use a low stool.

2. Each Lego set was placed into a Ziploc bag and labeled with the name of the set and set number (i.e. Creator-Treehouse, #31053).

3. Each Trofast container was organised by series and labeled on the outside (i.e. Creator, Star Wars, etc).

4. Lego sets were then sorted into the correct bin.

5. For his collection of mixed bricks, I bought a large Lego shaped brick to keep them in. It can be stored in the Trofast unit or left on top for display.

Stacks of building instructions accumulate quickly with Legos. I wanted my son to be able to find them and put them away easily. They needed to be kept in something that would protect them from getting torn up.

I found that a binder works perfectly for this. I purchased some page protectors to put in the binders for the building instructions. I organised the instructions by series and in numeric order.

One binder has just Star Wars instructions. Another binder has Creator and City instructions. All are labeled so my son can easily locate them. The binders also fit inside the large Trofast storage buckets. Everything can be stored in one place!

This step is important so kids can display their pieces, and also so that the Lego can still be easily played with.

My son and his friends constantly play with the completed sets. I wanted the sets to be accessible, organised and off the floor. I repurposed an old IKEA shelf unit I had to store the Legos. Wall mounted shelves are another great option, especially if there are younger siblings around.

For some, collecting Minifigures is popular, too. Keeping all their pieces and accessories is a task in itself! I have found the best solution for storing them is a container with dividers. If you’ve ever received a Lego Junior set case, these work well. Old fishing tackle boxes or craft boxes are also great. IKEA sells a divider box called the Glis (box with lid) which is another solution for larger collections. Anything that can help you separate all the little bits!

Another option is to create a wall display board for all the figures. It’s a fun accent and makes it easy for your child to play with their figures. Making one is the next project on this mama’s to do list!

Where to shop:
IKEA – Trofast storage frames and containers, Glis divider box
Tango Mango – Binders and plastic dividers
Lego shops, Amazon, Tangs – Lego shaped storage boxes