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How to Organize A Junk Drawer: The Quick and Easy Guide

Why You Should Clean Out Your Junk Drawer Today

Junk drawer for what is a junk drawer

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What Are Junk Drawers

While most of our homes, cities, and states are different from one another in so many ways, somehow we all seem to have one thing in common from coast to coast, and that one thing is a junk drawer.

So what are junk drawers anyways?

Junk drawers are the one spot in most people’s homes that hold many of the random household items for which you don’t have a better storage solution. The purpose of junk drawers is to hold all of these random items together in one place so that you can easily find them whenever you need them.

But here’s the thing, most people’s junk drawers are entirely out of control. You won’t be able to find anything in there.

To be honest, I feel like throwing my hands up in the air just picturing all of these overstuffed, clutter traps that so many people have in their homes.

Listen, we all do it at some point in our lives, and some people will even tell you to get rid of your junk drawer entirely. But I have a better solution — just clean and organize it.

Junk drawers are actually really convenient, and there are real benefits to cleaning and organizing your junk drawer.

And I’ll show you the secrets to cleaning and organizing your junk drawer in the quickest and easiest way possible so that you can find everything you need whenever you need it most.

Why You Should Clean and Organize Your Junk Drawer

You should clean and organize your junk drawer just like you would any other space in your home. Having a clean and organized junk drawer is convenient, it helps your home function properly, and it can actually save you money.

Here are 4 reasons why you should consider cleaning and organizing your junk drawer today:

1. Your Junk Drawer Will Slide Open Easily

When you clean and organize your junk drawer, the drawer will slide open easily. And it feels so good when that happens.

I mean, just picture how it feels when you pull on a drawer and it suddenly stops just short of opening. You can tell that a large gadget’s gotten stuck somewhere. So you reach your arm in slowly, but your arm is just too big to reach it and set it free.

You twist and turn your arm, but all you manage to do is scratch your skin on a million other tools in the drawer.

You wonder to yourself what on earth you even have in this drawer anyways. Every item feels like a razor blade against your skin. Your frustration level rises exponentially and you start to wonder when you had your last tetanus shot.

Thankfully, once you eliminate the mess in your junk drawer, this won’t happen anymore. Problem solved.

2. You’ll Be Able to Find What You Need

When you clean and organize your junk drawer, you’ll be able to find whatever it is that you need when you need it.

No more digging around, pushing items from side to side, or yelling at your significant other asking where such and such is. An amazing thing will happen. You’ll need something. You’ll slide open the drawer. You’ll look inside the drawer. And the item you need will be sitting right there like a beacon ready to be used in the way it was designed.

Just think about how good that will feel. Your happiness level will increase immediately.

3. You’ll Find Lost Items

When you clean and organize your junk drawer, you’ll find all kinds of lost items that you gave up looking for a long time ago. And that works out great for everyone in your family. Just think of how much time you won’t waste blaming the kids for losing the scissors yet again.

You’ll know exactly where they are when you need them.

A clean and organized junk drawer is a win-win for everybody in the family.

4. It Will Save You Money

When you clean and organize your junk drawer, you’ll be able to see exactly what you already have and what you still need.

Unorganized chaos in your junk drawer causes you to buy things you already have simply because you either can’t find them or it’s just too stressful and time-consuming to look. So you just pick up another doodad when you’re out at the store.

This leads to even more stress when you get home because now you have less money, and you have yet another item to smash into an already full drawer. And the cycle repeats itself.

You don’t want this to happen again, trust me. And once you clean and organize your junk drawer, it won’t.


Brooke’s Top Picks For Storage Solutions


How to Organize A Junk Drawer

Organizing a junk drawer can be a simple and easy task. By cleaning everything out of the junk drawer, removing any items that you no longer want or need, and using storage solutions, you can have a clean and organized junk drawer in no time.

These 8 tips will help you organize your junk drawer quickly:

  1. Take everything out
  2. Put like items in piles
  3. Throw away anything with little value that you no longer want or need
  4. Donate anything with value that you no longer want or need
  5. Inventory all of the items that will remain in the junk drawer
  6. Measure the junk drawer
  7. Purchase budget-friendly storage solutions that will fit within that space
  8. Place like items into each storage solution so that they’re easy to find

I just saw a lightbulb brighten over your head.

You mean less clutter in my junk drawer will make it easier to open the drawer, easier to find things, and easier to save money?

Oh my gosh, you’re a genius!

It sure will. And yes, I am. Tell the others.

Seriously though, clutter increases stress, anxiety, and depression. And being in a cluttered home can actually trigger our fight or flight responses.

So it’s important for your physical and mental health that you live in a cozy home that brings you happiness.

Cleaning and organizing your junk drawer may seem like the least important item on your home’s to-do list. And like I said, everyone seems to have one anyway so why bother?

But it’s the little things like organizing our junk drawers that make the biggest impact on our homes over time. And once you complete your junk drawer makeover, you won’t regret it.

Sources


Photo link to an article titled "Home Decluttering: The Quick and Easy Guide"
Photo link to an article titled "Creating a Minimalist Home: The Beginner’s Guide"
Photo link to an article titled "The Perfect Minimalist Yard in 8 Easy Steps"
Photo link to an article titled "How Cozy Minimalism Can Transform Your Home"
Photo link to an article titled "Minimalist Cleaning: A Simple and Easy Guide"
Photo link to an article titled "How to Make a Happy Home Your Entire Family Will Love"

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What does your junk drawer look like at home? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Brooke
the authorBrooke
Brooke Ressell is a lifestyle expert and the Founder of Blue to Bliss. She is passionate about helping others live their best lives through the practice of intentional living.

16 Comments

  • I actually have one of these at my house, I literally just put everything in there but when it comes to it the draw sometimes ends up being to fall and I have to tidy it out.

  • I thrive on organization! I didn’t think I had a junk drawer but I guess I do. But it’s still organized and I know exactly what’s in it!

  • Yes! The junk drawer… I think I need to organize ours every other week! Thank you for the inspiration, heading to my kitchen junk drawer now!

    • I hear you. I did mine frequently too until I involved my kids. Now they take pride in keeping it organized. Good luck!

  • I totally agree. The energy we lose each time we see a ‘problem area’ is more than we think it is. I had a bunch of drawers that I had organized in the KonMari method and each time I opened them, I felt badly about it. When I changed my system back to what I knew was more in keeping with what I was taught to do by my grandmother, it felt so much better. I felt connected to my Nonna each time I opened my dresser!! Thanks for the inspiration to keep going!

    • Great point. It is important we stay true to overselves and do whatever makes us feel at peace. And thanks, I’ll check it out.

  • I thrive on organization…it makes me feel good! Thanks for the tips and pictures of before and after. 🙂

  • I like the assortment of individual trays you used as opposed to the one silverware type tray that is used most often. The individual containers offer so much more flexibility. My junk drawer needs some of those 🙂

  • It is so interesting that everyone has a junk drawer. You’ve given me the urge to go organize mine. Thanks!

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