I hate junk drawers. Maybe it is because I need things to make sense. And a junk drawer just didn’t make sense. Why would I put everything I wasn’t sure where it should go into one drawer where you can’t find anything, even if you tried? It never made sense to me. So we have […]
I hate junk drawers. Maybe it is because I need things to make sense. And a junk drawer just didn’t make sense.
Why would I put everything I wasn’t sure where it should go into one drawer where you can’t find anything, even if you tried?
It never made sense to me. So we have never had one.
But back when I was doing in-home organizing, I had clients with giant junk drawers full of things that didn’t need to be housed in their kitchens. And those giant drawers could be used for things that they actually wanted to store in the kitchen.
So when I asked them why they had this giant drawer of indecision, it was always because they didn’t know where to put the things.
Which is why I am going to help you make sense of your junk drawer of indecision.
Let’s break down some specific things I have found in junk drawers and far more logical places to put those things so you can actually use them!
Sauce packets always find their way into the junk drawer. But a better, more useful location could be with your spices. In your pantry with your other sauces. If you have a bin or basket for “meal prep”, sauces could be stored there as well. Or store with sauces in your fridge.
There are a few options for where to store these types of food-maneuvering items. If you have a place where you keep plastic silverware, store them together. I have had many in-home clients store these items in their dining rooms or with grilling/outdoor serving trays.
You can also store with your regular silverware, in the same drawer. I have also had people store with their plastic baggies or school lunchboxes.
Hand warmers are things I prefer to store with my winter boots and mittens and gloves. Store in a bin with all those items. Use a binder clip to hold them to the side of the bin so they don’t get lost in the bottom of the bin.
I like to store balloons with my birthday supplies like banners.
If you don’t have a place for birthday supplies, store balloons with craft supplies. Or store them with your plastic silverware and plates.
These I also store with birthday supplies.
But if you don’t have a place for those, store with your matches. Or baking supplies. Or plastic silverware and plates. All of which I store in my dining room.
Now this is one thing I can see being kept in the kitchen. In a small drawer. For office supplies like scotch tape, pens, notepads, etc.
This is different than a junk drawer. Because this drawer has a purpose…writing and note taking, and remembering things by taping them to things.
Small, narrow drawers in your kitchen make perfect office supply drawers.
I store Koozies with our plastic items.
But storing them where you keep party supplies works too.
I have also stored Koozies with grilling supplies because that is when the homeowners would use them, for outdoor events which they would grill.
Phone chargers, iPad chargers, all the electrical chargers!
If you don’t already have a charging station in your home, I would suggest making one. This is the one location all your chargers are stored and where you can easily recharge your devices.
This is the location I would store chargers. Ours is in our laundry room, which is near our kitchen. In our old house, it was in a corner of our kitchen/dining room area. I used a drawer in our buffet to hold cords that were stored in a drawer organizer.
You can also create a charging station in your office or store the cords in that area as well.
Really any seasonal or holiday items that may end up in the junk drawer should be stored with your seasonal or holiday decor.
Put those pumpkin carving kits in baggies and store with your Halloween decor. Christmas or Hanukkah items can be stored with the decor items instead of holding space in your kitchen when you only use them once a year.
My goal with this post is to help you find locations for things that typically end up in a junk drawer instead of places that may make them easier to find.
Why You Need To Get Rid Of Your Junk Drawer
