how to organize a junk drawer

How to Organize Your Junk Drawer in 3 Simple Steps

/15 Comments/in , /by Mary Hunt

If your kitchen junk drawer has become a chaotic mess, you’re not alone! But reclaiming that cluttered space doesn’t require a trip to The Container Store or a full-on Pinterest-worthy makeover. With just three simple steps—dump, divide, and categorize—you can transform that drawer full of randomness into a tidy, functional Help Drawer.

how to organize a junk drawer

I’m going to go out on a limb and assume you have a junk drawer. Most of us do. And I don’t know about you, but I’m not giving mine up. After all, where else would I stash twist ties, rogue screws, birthday candles, and that one key we can’t identify but might be important?

Not long ago, a reader emailed me in desperation: “I can’t find anything in there, so I keep re-buying all the stuff I bought already!”

That hit a little too close to home. So I decided to look into it and see what the experts say about conquering the infamous junk drawer.

Emilie Barnes, author of More Hours in My Day, insists the secret is simple: dividing containers. But hold on—don’t dash off to buy fancy organizers just yet. Emilie suggests using what you already have: muffin tins, silverware trays, ice cube trays, coffee cans, small boxes, even egg cartons (although, let’s be honest, that last one feels a little iffy to me).

Then I turned to Marla Cilley, better known as The FlyLady and author of Sink Reflections. Her advice?

“You can’t organize clutter.”

She’s right. The only real way to reclaim any space—junk drawer included—is to empty it out, clean it thoroughly, and then return items, placing each one in a proper home. It’s so obvious it almost feels profound.

Step 1: Empty and Clean Your Junk Drawer

Before I could give advice with a straight face, I knew I had to face my own junk drawer. So, armed with intention, determination, and a pinch of dread, I did it—I dumped the entire contents right onto my kitchen rug. (Fair warning: this part can be both deeply satisfying and slightly horrifying.)

To my surprise, I discovered the drawer was lined with some rather charming vinyl paper. I hadn’t seen the bottom of that drawer in years! Who knew it had a personality under all that chaos?

With everything out, I took a few minutes to wipe down the drawer and clean the lining—it was overdue for some TLC. A quick clean goes a long way here, and if your liner’s looking tired or sticky, this is the perfect time to replace it with something fresh and cheerful. You’ll be amazed how a clean, empty space gives you the motivation to keep going.

Step 2: Find Creative Dividers You Already Have

Once the drawer was clean, I went on the hunt for something—anything—to serve as dividers. I wasn’t about to run out and buy a set of Pinterest-worthy organizers. Instead, I rummaged through my kitchen and office cabinets like a woman on a mission. I found an old muffin tin (still with cupcake liner residue), a silverware tray, and a desk drawer organizer that I honestly don’t remember acquiring. It was buried in what I can only describe as my “junk cupboard.” Yes, that’s a thing—and it might be my next project.

Just for fun (and fairness), I gave an egg carton a second chance at life. One quick coat of spray paint later, and it was surprisingly… not hideous! I ended up cutting the egg carton into smaller sections to nestle around the larger tray, creating a patchwork of compartments that actually works.

The goal here isn’t perfection—it’s function. Use what you have. Ice cube trays, ramekins, jewelry boxes, shoebox lids—get creative. As long as each item has its own little “parking spot,” you’re on your way to junk drawer bliss.

Now, the real test: tackling that mountain of stuff I dumped on the floor…

Step 3: Categorize and Tidy Up Your Items

Once I had my little compartments in place, I started sorting. First up: cords. If it had a plug, a USB, or anything resembling tech, I wound it neatly and secured it with a rubber band. Then came the hardware parade—screws in one pile, nails in another, and tiny tools and pencils marched straight into the long, narrow slots of my desk organizer.

The egg carton turned out to be perfect for the itty-bitty stuff—tacks, washers, mystery keys, and those round things I always hesitate to toss but never quite know where they belong. Everything else got grouped into like-with-like categories until all that remained was—let’s call it what it is—trash.

I was genuinely surprised by what I uncovered. There were batteries (still good!), scissors I thought had vanished forever, and yes, like my reader-friend, several items I had definitely re-purchased simply because I couldn’t find the originals. But the best discovery? The missing lid to my beverage vacuum pump. That alone made this whole junk drawer makeover totally worth it.

All told, it took me about two hours to wrestle our kitchen junk drawer back from the brink. And now? It’s neat, functional, and dare I say… kind of beautiful. In fact, it’s earned a promotion. I no longer have a junk drawer—I have a fully upgraded Help Drawer!

The American Junk Drawer

Ah, the classic junk drawer—an unofficial staple of American households! It’s that one catch-all spot (often in the kitchen) where small, oddball items go to hide. Think: rubber bands, takeout menus, paperclips, and keys with no known locks. These drawers may hold little monetary value, but plenty of sentimental weight—like that lone earring you’re sure you’ll find the match for someday.

Interestingly, the term junk drawer appears to be a uniquely American phrase dating back to the early 1900s. And while they often live in kitchens, you’ll find junk drawers in home offices, garages, workshops—even in some workplace breakrooms. Anywhere there’s a drawer, there’s potential for a little organized chaos.

Maintaining Your Organized Junk Drawer

Is it actually possible to keep a junk drawer organized? Well… maybe if you live alone and are currently on a six-month yoga retreat in Bali. For the rest of us—with families, kids, spouses, roommates, pets (who knows?)—a junk drawer is going to need some routine TLC.

That’s the beauty of this system: when things start to slip, you don’t need to start from scratch. Just circle back to Steps 1-2-3. Dump. Divide. Categorize. Done.

The Junk Drawer Two Years Later

It’s been over a year since I first tackled our junk drawer. Did I take a before photo? Absolutely not. I didn’t even think about taking one. As much as I live and breathe writing, I don’t walk through life with a camera in one hand and blog post headlines in the other. Honestly, I was hoping no one—ever—would see the chaos that once lived in that drawer. It was up there with The Chair in terms of household shame.

But when I shared this post originally, my inbox was flooded—tsunami-style—with requests, questions, and even desperate pleas to see the before-and-after transformation. And here’s the truth…

That “before” photo you saw up above? Stock photo. It’s not mine, though it’s a dead ringer for what I started with. Recreating that drawer in all its horror just for a photo? Not going to happen.

But here’s the good news: the photo below is my current drawer, snapped just 10 minutes ago. No styling. No touch-ups. I opened the drawer, took the shot, and that was it. Turns out, once you give everything a proper home, it really is easier to keep it tidy. Much like a closet that’s been truly decluttered, maintaining a well-organized junk drawer becomes nearly effortless—because now, everything actually has a place.

an organized junk drawer

 

Question: What’s the most creative thing you’ve used to organize your junk drawer? Any tips or tricks you’d swear by? Share your organizing hacks below!

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15 replies
  1. Robbye Meaders says:

    Score! I just cleaned out two drawers that desperately needed it! This was before I read this great advice, but now I know more than I did! I learn something new every day. Thanks, as always.

    Reply
  2. Sharon Wood says:

    I utilize empty pill containers for paper clips, fold back clips and push pins. Helps since I use all three regularly.

    Reply
  4. J.T. says:

    Hello EC! I wanted to contribute to your Junk Drawer article by saying we moved to a place that didn’t have a junk drawer so after numerous attempts I went to Harbor Freight and purchased a small tool box. It has dividers in it for nails and any other small hardware. That has totally kept the junk drawer dilemma from EVER happening. A basket for tools and tape etc is next to that. Just an idea for the readers.

    Reply
  5. Ann L says:

    Everybody’s essential are different, but some are basics that are needed in “the heart of the house”, like staples, rubber bands, scissors, tape, and dividers mean everything is in its place and quickly findable. With the dividers, you aren’t going to need to the big dump for a long time.

    Reply
  7. Chris Norlund says:

    Ok, Mary —
    Your people have spoken!
    Indulge us in an AFTER PHOTO of the notorious Junk Drawer, please?
    The great article, and your experience is so helpful, but incomplete without that triumphant After Photo! We’re not expecting it to look magazine perfect, afterall there is an egg carton that is functional, if not picturesque.

    Pleeeezz?

    Reply
  9. Amy T. says:

    I too, like several others, want to see a pic of Mary’s completed organized junk drawer. I love that Mary found organizers around her home and recycled an egg carton. I purchased some interlocking plastic containers in various sizes to tame my junk drawer, but the containers were a good investment for me ’cause no matter what I do to an egg carton, it always still looks like an egg carton that was decorated by a kindergartener!!!

    Reply
  10. Doris Schrier says:

    I too wanted to see the finished, organized “junk drawer”! Especially the spray painted egg carton!

    Reply
  12. Kate Machinski says:

    Had to laugh at the “junk drawer challenge”. Our 7-year-old granddaughter referred to the drawer as “the handy-dandy drawer” and we’ve called it that ever since!

    Reply
  13. Mary Davis says:

    I love Emilie Barnes! And her “More Hours In My Day”. Years ago, with some church friends, we visited her place in Riverside, California. Such a memorable experience. Now, off to re-name my junk drawer.

    Reply
  14. Janet says:

    I want to see the finished product. Your junk drawer completed I want to know what you did with egg carton??????????

    Reply

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