Legos & Other Building Bricks

We use 1 gallon zip loc bags stored in [wherever]

One can spot target colors /pieces before dumping a whole bin etc

We use this bulk storage container. The big advantage is that the parachute/cord system lets them dump everything and spread it out on the parachute out and then clean it  up in like 3 seconds. There’s no way to organize by color but we love it! https://creativeqt.com/collections/toy-storage-organization/products/sl…

The eternal question! I don't know if there's a perfect solution, because they all come down to whether your kids will use the system you create, but here's what (mostly) worked for us with 3 Lego fanatics in the house: 1) clear plastic shoe boxes for each color of "regular" bricks - 1x1s, 2x6s, etc. - labeled with the color name; 2) clear plastic tackle boxes (the kind with the latching flip-up lid and adjustable compartments - Plano Stowaways are nice) for smaller and unusual parts - we have a compartment full of Lego hats, one full of weapons, one full of gems, etc; 3) a larger bin or tray where things go when they don't fit in other categories, when we needed to clean up quickly and didn't have time for a fancy sort, or when kids didn't quite want to take them apart yet. We used a bookcase with shelves set just tall enough for the shoe boxes to slide in - you can fit in a lot that way and it's easy to see what's what  I'm not a big plastic person, but clear plastic is a life-saver here because even if it's all in one bin, you can lift it up and look at what's sunk down to the bottom - my kids for some reason used to take the hands and heads off their minifigs and that's how we'd find them (well, that and vacuuming...). My kids were good at sorting the bricks by color, less good about putting special pieces back in the right compartments, but sometimes when I needed a moment of peace I'd just pull out the random bin and sort all the pieces back to where they belonged while they were building alongside me - it gave me a sense of accomplishment, anyway. :) Having a large tray with sides to build on worked out well - it keeps all the little pieces contained, and is easy to pick up and move if you need the floor or table back, need to get it away from a younger sibling, etc. And if they do need to dump, put down a sheet first so you can corral everything. I know some people like to build on a cloth with a drawstring and then just pull it all together when they put it away, but I think that makes it hard to find what you're looking for, especially if you have a lot of Lego.

Your system actually sounds great.  Ours has a variation with plastic bins with lids with types of stuff - wheels, windows etc.  I have two big kids and one little.  In the 6-15 year range I was constantly surprised by how “ strangely satisfying” dumping out categories was so we focused on putting away during builds more than leaving in the boxes 100% of the time.  

We use those IKEA drawers that everyone seems to have, but we sort by function, not color. I know some people sort by color but it has never worked for us. So we sort our pieces by: People, Rectangular Bricks and Plates, Buildings, Vehicles, and Misc. Under "People" I include anything a Lego person might wear or hold, like hats, cups, etc, under "Buildings" I put anything that looks like it belongs in a Lego house, like doors, windows, slides, fireplaces, etc etc etc. And obviously, "Misc" ends up being a huge drawer, because this involves anything that doesn't fit into the other categories. I also have a big bin for half constructed creations, and a lot of those big flat Baseplates so when the kids build something, I can just move the whole baseplate with the creation stuck to it, and put it somewhere else. We do have a rule that creations will get taken apart after a while and go back into the bins.

Plastic drawer units and small screw-sorting or fishing-tackle containers from a hardware store (something like Plano brand if you are googling).    Measure your drawers and buy inner sorting containers  that fit well in the drawer, and that are a standard brand so you can buy more of the exact same containers over time.  Our drawers have loose lego in them,  Some drawers have a sorting box or ziplock bags in the drawer, on top of the lego.   Having a supply of mini-ziplock bags is also helpful for this (Daiso, the Japanese dollar store, is a good place to buy the mini ziplocks, or you might check Berkeley Ace Hardware). 

For mixed random lego, Always sort by function, not by color.    The easiest way to get started with this is the 5 basic categories: Bricks, Plates, Technic, People/Special and "Everything else". Or even Just pulling out bricks and plates as a first round is quick and satisfying.  You can always tune these larger groups into subcategories later if your collection grows and it seems appropriate.  No matter what, you will still have an "everything else" category and an unsorted bin.  If you want to add more categories, try: Clear, Circular, Printed, Vehicle Parts, Hinges, Slopes, Tiles, Favorite Pieces, House&Garden etc.    Keeping clear pieces like windows and windshields separate from the rest can help to keep them from getting all scratched up.   

Also you will have sets or themes that you want to keep together-ish.   The easiest way to do that is to have a stack of bins or shoeboxes that are sorted not necessarily by set, but by by theme - like Harry Potter or Star Wars, Superheroes, Vehicles, Friends, City, etc.     Doing this makes it more likely to rebuild a set, and gives you a good category for important themed pieces. 

If you want a good laugh, do a google search for the classic Lugnet article, "The evolution of LEGO sorting"  2001, by Remy Evard.  

I just posted separately about our organizing system, but for "cleaner building space"  find a tablecloth or a throw blanket that works well with whatever surface you play on.  Use that as the dumping-out spot.  It will keep the lego cleaner without all the hair and stuff from the floor, and when you want to clean up, just pick up the corners of the blanket and pour everything back into the bin.    Also, if you regularly buy yogurt or soup or deli items or something in plastic containers, wash and save them so you will have a good stack of uniform-sized containers for pre-sorting Lego.