How to Store Stuffed Animals – Love & Renovations

Are your children as obsessed with stuffed animals as mine are? In our family, Jackson (my oldest) can’t get enough of them. Grant (who is almost 4) doesn’t care about them that much, but he sees how much his brother loves them and insists on keeping a large collection. I struggled with stuffed animal storage ideas for many years before I finally landed on the system we have…and it works for us, so I wanted to share how to store stuffed animals in a way that won’t make you bonkers.

Of course, I’m a bit of a stickler for keeping things clutter-free, so our collections aren’t that large. So, after I share what we do for stuffed animal storage in our house, I’ll round up a few other stuffed animal storage ideas that might be a good fit if your collection is a bit larger!

How to Store Stuffed Animals: Simple Storage Ideas

child's bedroom with a basket of stuffed animals at the foot of the bed

Idea #1: A Giant Basket

This is obviously a super simple idea, but it worked really well for Jackson for years, until his collection got way out of control. We bought the most obnoxiously giant basket we could find and set it at the foot of his bed. We told him he can collect stuffed animals until they fill up the basket, and then it was time to say goodbye to a few.

He also has always kept a few on his bed (like his huge Squishmallows), so they weren’t always all in there. But, having a designated basket that’s just for stuffed animals really helped corral the chaos. It also helped him think about which ones actually mean the most to him.

Here’s a roundup of some giant baskets that could be great for your stuffed toys!

A storage table with stuffed animals in it

Idea #2: A Stuffed Animal Storage Table

The little storage table that we use to store stuffed animals in Grant’s room is my favorite solution. It’s a genius way to keep stuffed animals corralled, and it looks so cute in his room. It doubles as a nightstand, and could be used for all sorts of other toy storage as he gets older.

I think just about every kid’s room could benefit from having a storage table. It’s the perfect storage solution for storing a small amount of stuffed animals!

Grant tends to have a few favorites that he sleeps with. The rest of them live in the little table most of the time. He’ll take the lid off and play with them on occasion, but they end up being decoration more than anything else.

Here’s a link to the storage table we have in Grant’s room. Below, I’ll share a few more options!

Idea #3: A Stuffed Animal Hammock

As Jackson got older and his stuffed animal collection grew, we needed a better solution than a basket. So, we grabbed a toy hammock and hung it from the ceiling. It has genuinely been one of the best stuffed animal storage ideas out there! I absolutely love how cute it looks in his room – I could never pull it off in mine, but in a child’s room? It’s perfect. It holds so many stuffed animals it’s almost shocking, and they’re still pretty easy to access.

He’s 10 and has an absolutely outrageous collection of teddy bears and other plush toys, but this handles ’em all. Stuffed animal storage hammocks are by far my new favorite solution, and I’ll tell anyone who will listen about them! It keeps the mess off the floor, it’s cute, and it works. It’s a 10/10 for me.

Other Stuffed Animal Storage Ideas

That’s all we’ve done in our own home, but of course there are a million other ways to store your stuffed animals. From toy chests to bean bag chairs to wall-mounted buckets, there are so many great ideas out there. Let’s dive into a few of them!

Let’s break down some of the ideas you see in the collage above:

How to Store Stuffed Animals: Other Creative Ideas

Stuffed animal hammock. In addition to the hanging hammock I shared in Jackson’s room, a corner-mounted stuffed animal hammock is also a great idea! I’ve never had a good corner for something like this thanks to the layout of the kids’ rooms, but I know so many people love using a little stuffed animal net to keep them corralled.
Use a shoe organizer. You can hang a shoe organizer in your child’s closet or behind a door and use that to hold individual stuffed animals. This will work better with small stuffed animals, but it’s a great way to see each one! A hanging closet organizer is so versatile, too, and can be used long after the stuffed animals are gone.
Create a stuffed animal zoo. This is a really fun and unique DIY stuffed animal storage solution – you can build a little cage for them and call it a zoo! Here’s an example of this fun little DIY project.
Use empty bean bag fabric. This is perfect for the kid who has a sentimental attachment to their stuffed animals but doesn’t play with them much. You can get an empty bean bag, fill it up with stuffed animals, and close the zipper! I imagine a stuffed animal bean bag is a tad more lumpy than your standard bean bag. But, a stuffed animal chair is a great way to keep the chaos out of sight and provides a functional long-term storage solution. You could also use a storage ottoman or bench to hold them!
Put them on shelves. A really functional way to store stuffed animals is to hang some shelves and display the stuffed animals on there! It’s something that will last your kids forever. It can be used for literally anything else when they’ve outgrown the animals.
Use milk crates or storage bins. Of course, you can always use a collection of pretty storage bins, buckets, milk crates, or even cute laundry baskets to store the stuffed animals. Basket storage is a great option for just about anything, and stuffed animals are no exception. A toy box or storage box is also a really simple example of this that would work great.
A stuffed animal storage swing. Stuffed animal swings are a new concept that I discovered when I was researching for this post. And, they’re so cute! It’s a fun idea for a child’s room as long as you trust the kid to not try use it themselves. It’s a tiered set of little shelves that hangs from the ceiling, and it’s adorable. Here’s a really adorable example of this project!
Wall-hanging planters. This is a great idea for a toddler, or to display a small collection in a playroom. Choose a few pretty wall planters (like this one), and hang them up on hooks. Tuck your animals in there and suddenly they feel really fancy and beautiful!
Vacuum Seal Bags. And finally, if you want to store your stuffed animals and your kids don’t need access to them, this is the way to go. It’s a solution that won’t allow moisture to get to the stuffed animals while they’re being stored long-term, so you don’t need to worry about mold or mildew!

I hope this list gave you some inspiration for your child’s room! Regardless of what you choose, having a system in place not only helps eliminate mess, but it can also protect your stuffed animals from collecting dust, getting tears or rips, or having pests get into them!

How do YOU store stuffed animals in your home? Anything I missed?!