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JUNK DRAWER DO'S AND DON'TS

A mysterious gremlin lives in my home. That's why we have a junk drawer now.

While we are sleeping, this creature magically removes all clutter from our counters and tabletops. He stows these items in unimaginable places, such as inside water glasses in the kitchen cupboards, behind figurines on the family room ledge and inside the piano bench. We used to hunt for days for missing puzzle pieces, poker chips, school field trip permission slips and even lunch money.

"We really need a junk drawer," I groaned, one morning, as the children rushed for their ride to school.

That evening, a covered bin suddenly appeared at one end of our kitchen counter. This lidded box became our junk drawer. Our compact kitchen simply could not spare a drawer, so the clutter-busting gremlin purchased a free-standing solution instead.

INTO THE ABYSS

The junk drawer, or bin, has become the repository of all unclaimed items. If an object rests too long in one place, it is tossed into the junk drawer. When mail stands unopened on the kitchen counter for more than a few minutes, it goes you-know-where.

In time, the family has become retrained. When we hunt for misplaced goods in our home, we now look inside the junk drawer first. Our junk drawer has become a treasure box of car keys, theme park passes, favorite hairclips, dog collars, cellular phones and other stuff. Occasionally, we even uncover cash in our junk drawer.

DO-IT-YOURSELF JUNK DRAWER

How can you create your own junk drawer? First, pick a convenient spot. Most likely, you will want your junk drawer located in a high-traffic area of your home, such as the kitchen. By consolidating your silverware or your kitchen linens, you may be able to clear out a drawer for collecting your valuable junk.

Organize your junk drawer with a multi-compartment tray, or partition the space by adding small boxes. Empty bank check boxes usually fit inside a junk drawer quite well. These will help you to keep your junk drawer items separated and collected. One box may hold loose keys, thumb tacks, coins and other small pieces. Another may contain pens and pencils. A third might keep lip balms, a comb and a tape measure. As you collect items in your junk drawer, you will be able to determine where they best fit.

Remember, the purpose of a junk drawer is to keep and consolidate unclaimed items in your home, while making these things readily accessible and easy to find.

HOW MANY JUNK DRAWERS?

Does a household need more than one junk drawer? In some families, each individual has a private junk drawer in his or her own room. Perhaps the center drawer of a study desk or a small drawer in a personal dresser serves as a junk drawer.

When each family member has a personal junk drawer, then loose items in the home may be distributed to each bedroom, rather than accumulating in common areas, such as the kitchen.

In the home, the junk drawer is something like a toy box for people of all ages. When things get a little cluttered, it can be nice to have somewhere to toss stuff in a hurry. The junk drawer is just such a place.

Learn more about this author, Linda Ann Nickerson.
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