by Kate McKee

Created on: February 14, 2010   Last Updated: April 06, 2010

The junk drawer. Every home has one, and its contents can be many and varied, but it's probably a safe enough bet that yours has got some batteries in it? At least ballpoint pens, the majority of which are beyond use? Some cell phone chargers, maybe? Takeout menus? These are some of the things which seem to be common to every junk drawer, but the llist goes on and on. You could almost see junk drawers as little works of art, like windows into the souls of their owners.

But, occasionally, there's nothing for it but to clean them out, especially when you get to the stage where they're full to the brim, and you're tempted to start up another one.

Here are some tips:

1. Empty the entire contents out onto a table. Never try to take out and sort one item at a time: you'll be there all day. Clean the drawer with a damp cloth (use something stronger if your junk included any mysterious throat lozenges or other inexplicable food items).

 2. You'll be able to pick out at least ten items that can immediately be put in the trash. No questions, no indecision, no sentimental sighing. These ten items will scream 'dump me'. Do just that.

 3. Now it's time to pull out anything that has another logical home in your house.Tools fit into this category. They need to get back to the tool box. Hair stuff can be re- housed in the bedroom or bathroom, the batteries need to go into a box for recycling: don't hold onto any of them to check if they work, because none of them will.

 4. Look at what's left. Still got lots of stuff? You bet you have. You've reached the categorizing stage. Make piles: stationery, gadgets, garden stuff, kitchen equipment: use whatever categories you need. It's at this stage that you might make a few important finds: things that you thought were lost forever might just turn up. But don't ever hope to find money. For some inexplicable reason, junk drawers never have money in them, not even a single cent.

 5. Now, go through each pile, and be ruthless. Anything duplicated? Give one away, or recycle it. It's at this stage that you might have to overcome your inner magpie: try not to hold onto stuff 'just in case'. If it's been in there for five years, and you haven't found a use for it, then let it go. If it's got bits missing, let it go. If it's really got to be kept for sentimental reasons, put it into a box to be sent to the attic. It'll do just fine up there.

 6. Time to think about putting what's left back into the drawer. If you haven't reduced the contents by at least half at this stage, go back to step two and repeat the whole process. If you have, then it's time to decide whether you want to try to impose a bit of long term order on your junk drawer. If you want to try this option, then get some little boxes, or some drawer dividers, and sort your drawer this way.

7. If, on the other hand, you decide that a junk drawer will no longer be a junk drawer if you impose too much organization, then put everything that's left back in neatly. The neatness will last for maybe a day or two, until someone comes looking for something, but never mind.

Everybody needs a junk drawer. And now yours is empty enough to start the whole glorious process off again, happy in the knowledge that, if only for a day, you got the better of it (and sure, you can go right back to putting the old batteries in there again).

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