Simple shoe storage for multiple children???

[Logan]

If you have a large family what do you do with the kids shoes? Looking for some clever ideas.

I don't have a big family...yet :) But I hope to, so we have already subscribed to the family closet thing and are keeping all the hand-me-down shoes so there are quite a lot. Even with the minimal amount in each size you still need several different types for each child. Have tried a lot of things, my favorite so far is probably just to have a nice basket for each size and tossing them in there, but they do tend to get the other pairs grubby after a while. Also need something which doesn't take up a lot of floor space like that does because I want it to all fit in the family closet if possible- or maybe near the front door if I could make that work. But has to still be easy to put away and stored in a way that the kids can reach them somewhat. Wondering what others have tried or do now?.....

[Masel]

Here is what I do for what it worth. I have a lot of hand me down shoes because my older DD is tiny and seems to perfer pre-loved shoes. I also have a toddler girl. In their closet are boxes with 2 to 3 sizes we aren't wearing right now. These are labeled. In the living room is a basket with all the shoes. I do a little seasonal sorting but most shoes live there. The toddler's "job" is to put shoes back in the basket. 

I have a couple nicer pairs of shoes on a shelf in DD1's closet so there is something clean for dress up occasions. 

[zoebird]

we only do two pairs of shoes at this point (gum boots and sneakers) for the kiddo, and my husband has the most shoes, and I'm down to three pairs as well. It works well for me.

anyway, what I would do for storage is wash the shoes, put some lavender (dried) in a zip-lock or cloth bag of the right size, and put the shoes in there. Then put them in a box with the size on the box. 

[Logan]

Sorry I meant the ones in use ;) The ones out of use are in storage boxes at the moment. Just finding that storing the ones in their size takes up a lot of floor space when there are multiple kids.

[zoebird]

i think that i would handle shoes basically seasonally, and perhaps have specific places for sport shoes, etc. here, shoe racks by the door are super-common.

[LaughingHyena]

A couple of the kids p lay places we go to have some cute shoe storage made from lengths of plastic pipe (like round drain pipe) They are cut into lengths, slightly longer than the shoes and stacked into pyramids. (A hot glue gun would probably work well to glue them together)  One pair of shoes can fit inside each pipe

If you have a door near where you want to store them the over door racks can work well. The big problem I had was that the kids could not reach up to it. Hanging pockets work for smaller shoes but again the over the door ones are a bit high for little ones to reach into.

[Logan]

That's a great idea, I never thought of doing it seasonally. The weather can be so variable so each size needs play shoes -for us Dawgs (Crocs but comfier/softer)- then going out shoes, gumboots, and sneakers or closed shoes of some kind. I also have a weakness for cute traditional sandals so I usually have one pair of those in each size. I had thought of getting 2 of these DVD racks I saw at Ikea as they are very tall and take up almost no floor space and you can fit quite a few pairs on them... http://www.ikea.com/aa/en/catalog/products/10168230 But they would only fit the littler sizes probably up to 8 or 9, and pretty pricey if they didn't turn out to be all that useful :). 

[minta]

DH and I store our shoes in a wardrobe.

Kids' shoes live in a long storage bench. It is very shallow so nothing gets buried. They each have 1 pair of school shoes, 1 pair of sneakers, and 1 pair of flip-flops. 1 DC also has slippers, and another has a pair of cleats. Rainboots live in a bucket outside.

I don't pass down anything that gets regular wear as I think it's bad for foot health. Rainboots and flip-flops (which only go to the pool or the beach) are exempt.

[Logan]

Why is it bad for foot health? I only have littler ones at the moment so I guess they don't really sweat much or anything. Just curious :).....

[minta]

Because insoles conform to the shape of the wearer. So say #1 has really flat feet, when #2 gets the shoes, they don't have proper arch support etc... For shoes that are going to be worn at least 8 hours per day, 5 days a week, I think a custom fit is really important; for beach wear, not so much.

[Logan]

ah okay never thought of that. I guess we are barefoot a lot and only wear shoes going out, park, shops etc. But I can see how older kids would be in them a lot more. All our shoes are soft/flexible types so they aren't really stuck/moulded into a certain position by the actually foot so much.

[purplerose]

I have been using shoe racks, can't imagine using any other method! There are 3 children, and we've always had *at least* a pair of sandals and a pair of sneakers for each child/mother, plus I have boots and dh has funeral/wedding dress shoes along with his sneakers and workboots. You can buy shoe racks that hang over a door, or screw into a door. Ours is attached to the inside of the closet door. With the kids getting older, getting into sports or horses, the shoes seem to reproduce like crazy so shoe racks have been wonderful in our home. I also have a 3-tier stand-up shoe rack in the front entryway that we keep our daily shoes on.

[Ruthiegirl]

We have a dresser in the foyer area where we store our shoes.  It is pretty simple and keeps everything in one place.  We usually have 2 pairs of shoes in rotation -- sandals/crocs and a sneakers right now.  The kids are good about taking their shoes off when the come in and dumping them in the dresser drawers.  

I have a basket outside for soccer cleats and shin guards...those are pretty stinky and can funk up the dresser.  

[boheime]

We have cubbies in the garage. Every family member has his/her own cubby and all of their current shoes go there. I will say we limit shoes, though. I know some families have many shoes and that might not work for them.