The Best Ways To Organize Your Messiest Drawers

As part of a Team Chatelaine Clutter-Busting Challenge, we tasked our editors with organizing their most out-of-control spaces—from an overflowing closet to a jumbled home office. Here’s how editors Maureen Halushak and Erica Lenti tackled their disaster drawers.

Disaster Drawer #1: Maureen’s Food Storage Container Drawer

When I renovated my kitchen, I opted for deep drawers instead of cupboards, but I couldn’t afford built-ins. As a result, my container drawer was a complete free-for-all. So, I asked Arlene Williams of GTA-based Bona Fide Organizing to help me get it under control.

Maureen’s disastrous food storage container drawer.

The action plan

1. Completely empty the drawer.
   
2. Get rid of any unused containers, as well as any stray tops or bottoms.
   
3. Put the remaining containers back in the drawer, nested inside one another, and assess the space: Did I have a spare bin to store the lids in? Or would drawer dividers be a better solution?
   
4. Add a grippy shelf liner so the containers don’t slide around when the drawer opens and closes—and affix it to the bottom of the drawer with double-sided tape. (“Nothing bothers me more than when the liner starts to bunch up,” says Williams, who is a woman after my own heart.)

The time commitment

To my surprise, this all took less than 30 minutes! After I talked to Williams, I bought a pack of drawer dividers with grips on the end and some double-sided tape. I already had a roll of drawer liner and a pot-lid storage rack that I repurposed for my container lids.

The biggest takeaway

Using double-sided tape to secure the drawer liner was genius! The dividers also helped make much better use of the space—I even had room left over for my food wrap boxes.

How the organized space makes me feel

I never tire of opening this drawer. And finding matching lids for my containers is a cinch. Also, the organization is so basic that my husband has no problem putting things back in the right place.

The feedback

“Fab-u-lous,” says Williams. “It’s always satisfying to see a system come together so seamlessly.”

Disaster Drawer #2: Erica’s Bathroom Vanity Drawers

Erica’s bathroom vanity drawers, post-decluttering.

At first, my wife, Arielle, and I loved how deep and spacious these four drawers were—they hold our cosmetics, toiletries and first-aid supplies and more. But the longer we used them, the more junk accumulated. We often couldn’t find anything when we needed it, which made getting ready in the morning a slog.

I reached out to Jane Veldhoven of Halifax’s Organized by Design to help me plan out a much-needed declutter session—and restore some order to our bathroom.

The action plan

1. Set aside a full afternoon to empty the drawers.
   
2. Toss out any expired, empty or unused products. Group remaining products into categories (haircare, skincare and so on).
   
3. Assign a drawer for each category and put the items back in. “You should be able to see every single thing in the drawer, with breathing space,” Veldhoven says. “No stacking.” She suggested reusing bins or baskets we already owned to group the products in.

One of Erica’s bathroom vanity drawers, before decluttering.

The time commitment

The whole process—from purge to reorganization—took Arielle and me about two and a half hours. Veldhoven says a common hitch is not allotting enough time to finish the job. “You need to fully commit to the process,” she says.

The biggest takeaway

Organizing the drawers was the easy part. The hard part is keeping them that way. Veldhoven recommends spending a few minutes every week or two re-organizing your high-use drawers. (Making this part of your cleaning routine is the most efficient way to do it.)

How the organized space makes us feel

Arielle and I couldn’t believe how many expired products were lingering under the mass of clutter! We both feel so much lighter when we open the drawers to get ready in the morning.

The feedback

“Holy wow,” Veldhoven wrote after seeing our reorg. Enough said!