IKEA TROFAST Ideas for Small Playrooms: 12 Clever Ways to Save Space

Creating a beautiful playroom is easy when you have endless space. But what about when the playroom is actually a corner of the living room, a small bedroom or the space under the stairs?

That's where IKEA TROFAST really comes into its own.

The simple combination of low-level storage and removable tubs makes TROFAST particularly useful in smaller children's spaces. Better still, there are plenty of ways to make it look less like basic toy storage and more like part of your home.

Here are 12 IKEA TROFAST ideas for small playrooms that help you make the most of the space you have.

1. Give Every TROFAST Tub a Purpose

One of the easiest ways to make a small playroom feel calmer is to give everything a home.

Instead of filling the tubs randomly, divide toys into simple categories such as:

• Building blocks
• Cars
• Animals
• Dolls
• Dressing up
• Puzzles
• Arts and crafts

You don't need dozens of categories. In fact, fewer categories can make tidying much easier for younger children.

Adding picture labels to the front of your TROFAST tubs can also help little ones identify where their toys belong before they're able to read.

2. Turn Your TROFAST Into Part of the Playroom

Toy storage doesn't have to look boring.

One of our favourite TROFAST hacks is using decorative TROFAST stickers to transform plain storage tubs into part of the room.

Choose colours or designs that complement your playroom and suddenly the storage becomes a feature rather than something you're trying to hide.

It's also an easy way to give an existing TROFAST unit a completely different look without replacing the furniture.

3. Use the Top as a Play Surface

In a small playroom, furniture that performs two jobs is your best friend.

The top of a low TROFAST unit can become an extra play surface for:

• Small-world play
• Toy animals
• Cars
• Building blocks
• Dolls houses
• Play shops

Keep the toys required for that activity in the tubs underneath and everything your child needs is in one place.

4. Create a TROFAST Toy Rotation System

If your playroom constantly feels overcrowded, you might simply have too many toys available at once.

Try using your TROFAST tubs for toy rotation.

Keep a smaller selection of toys accessible and store the rest elsewhere. Every week or two, swap a few tubs around.

Children often rediscover forgotten toys when they reappear, and the playroom feels much calmer without everything being out at once.

5. Make Use of Awkward Corners

Small playrooms often contain spaces that traditional furniture doesn't use particularly well.

A TROFAST unit can work brilliantly:

• Under windows
• Beneath sloping ceilings
• Under stairs
• Along short walls
• In alcoves

Measure your space before buying your unit and think about how much usable floor space you can preserve.

6. Create an Art and Craft Station

Instead of keeping pens in one cupboard, paper somewhere else and stickers in a drawer, create one dedicated creative station.

Use separate TROFAST tubs for paper, colouring supplies, stickers, play dough and craft materials.

The top of the unit can hold a small selection of frequently used supplies or children's artwork.

It makes spontaneous crafting easier — and gives everything somewhere to go afterwards.

7. Use Picture Labels for Younger Children

A beautifully organised playroom isn't much use if you're the only person who knows where everything belongs.

Picture labels can make a storage system much easier for toddlers and preschoolers to understand.

A picture of a car means cars go in that tub. Building blocks have their own picture. Animals have another.

It's a simple visual cue that can encourage children to take more responsibility for their own space.

8. Create Activity Zones

Even a tiny playroom can have different zones.

You might have:

Creative zone: colouring, stickers and crafts.

Building zone: LEGO, blocks and construction toys.

Imaginative-play zone: dolls, animals and pretend food.

Quiet zone: books and puzzles.

Your TROFAST storage can sit between these areas and hold the toys associated with each one.

You don't need a large room — you're simply giving each part of the space a purpose.

9. Keep Everyday Toys at Child Height

Put the toys your child uses most frequently in the easiest tubs to reach.

Less frequently used activities can go higher up or elsewhere.

This creates a play space that children can navigate independently instead of constantly asking an adult to retrieve things.

And, importantly, they can put them back too.

10. Don't Fill Every Available Space

This one can feel counterintuitive.

If you have an empty TROFAST tub, you don't necessarily need to find something to fill it.

Leaving some breathing room makes storage easier to use and gives you somewhere for new toys to go after birthdays and Christmas.

A playroom generally feels calmer when storage isn't overflowing.

11. Match Your TROFAST to Your Room

Children's storage doesn't have to mean bright primary colours.

If your playroom is part of your living space, choose TROFAST designs that work with the rest of your home.

Soft neutrals, checks, florals, stripes and muted colours can help children's storage blend beautifully into a family room.

This is especially useful when your "playroom" is actually one end of the lounge.

12. Make Tidying Part of Play

The best toy-storage system isn't necessarily the one that looks most impressive on Pinterest.

It's the one your family can actually use.

Keep categories simple, make storage easy to reach and use visual clues so children understand where things belong.

Instead of facing one enormous pile of toys at the end of the day, tidying becomes a much simpler game of matching toys to their homes.

Make Your IKEA TROFAST Work Harder

You don't need a huge playroom to create a space that feels organised, playful and beautiful.

With thoughtful storage, simple categories and a few clever IKEA TROFAST ideas, even a small corner can become a space where children can choose their own activities - and hopefully help put them away afterwards too.

At Toddle & Play, we create decorative stickers and accessories designed to transform IKEA children's furniture and make everyday play spaces feel a little more special.

Explore our IKEA TROFAST collection to find a design for your playroom.