Ah, the dreaded “junk drawer”. We all have one (or maybe 2...or a closet...or a room) and if there’s one thing we can all agree on, is that junk drawer is a hot mess! It’s time to clean that drawer out and make it useful! Not sure where to start, or maybe just need some inspiration? Look no further!
1. Give It a Purpose
What do you want this drawer to be? And the answer can’t be "everything"! Here are some examples: a place for general office supplies, a place to store coupons and receipts, or maybe even a drawer for foil, plastic wrap, baggies, etc. Once you know the drawer’s purpose, you can move on!
2. Clean Out That Drawer Method 1: Toss It!
We’re sharing 2 different methods to help you clean out that junk drawer. The first one is pretty self-explanatory - toss it all. I mean, you probably haven’t looked at anything in there in a year (or haven’t been able to find anything in there in a year!). So just toss it!
3. Clean Out That Drawer Method 2: Take It All Out
The second method is easy too - take everything out of the drawer and organize it. Toss out anything that is just garbage and organize the rest into categories. Also, think back to your drawer’s new purpose and sort out anything that will go back in that drawer. Anything that doesn’t fit in your drawer’s new purpose, put it where it belongs.
4. Go Digital
When you were cleaning out the junk drawer, you probably found a few menus, coupons, and receipts. This is the perfect time to go digital! Most menus can be found online, as can coupons. With receipts, there are a TON of apps that allow you to scan and sort your receipts. This way, you won’t get bogged down by a ton of paper. If you absolutely must keep that menu, give them a special place, like in a folder. This way you can easily find them when you need them!
5. Organize It
Whatever your chosen purpose for your drawer is, make sure you organize it. For our example, we will say our drawer is for various office supplies. Once we’ve gathered up our pens, paper clips, stapler, tape, etc, we need to place them in organizers so they won’t just go all loosy goosy in the drawer. If that happens, there’s a good chance the drawer will revert back to being a junk drawer again - and we don’t want that! You can go out and buy fancy drawer organizers, or even head over to your local dollar store to pick some up. However, you can also upcycle any old boxes lying around! Great ones are old cell phone or tablet boxes: they tend to be strong and the perfect size for a drawer. Get creative!
Once you have your drawer organized, make sure to remember its purpose and only put things in it that fit with that purpose. Do you have any tips or tricks for your junk drawer? Let us know in the comments below!
XOXO,
Your Squeaky Green Team