Junk Drawers: Friend or Foe?

When Katie posted this picture to this post, I laughed out loud. her junk drawers (YES, there are plural) look like this for maybe a week’s time. Then they devolve into utter chaos and bleed into more drawers.  Today’s tips from Family Circle allude to the benefits of junk drawers and I agree.

 “Avoid ‘my house is a mess’ panic when unexpected guests drop in. Leave an empty storage ottoman or basket out for quick cleanups — make sure it’s big enough to stash toys, magazines, and throws.” – Alicia Rockmore, founder of Buttoned Up, Inc. I laughed when I read this because for some personality types (ahem, Organic Freedoms) this empty basket will eventually become two baskets then a closet then your house (see title of Katie’s Blog). But, today I’m here to suggest that a junk drawer can actually be your friend.

There were other tips similar to Alicia’s in Family Circle: “If you don’t have sufficient closet space, try a pretty chest in the entryway as a catchall for items like hats, gloves, and wrapping paper.” – Mary Ostyn, author of A Sane Woman’s Guide to Raising a Large Family (Gibbs Smith) Obviously, neither of these women are explicitly recommending that you create a junk drawer. But, c’mon, we all know it’s implicit! No matter what your type, when one bin houses multiple categories of things, it becomes a junk bin.   

And while catchalls can be dangerous for some types, junk drawers can work with you to keep clutter at bay– especially Classics and Funs who once they’ve set up an orderly house will be very specific about which is a junk drawer. Here’s why they’re helpful: random thingamajigs. No matter what life stage you’re in, they always turn up in your house and often there’s no specific, obvious home for them (no matter what your type). The other day I found the stabilizer to a bookshelf (screws into the bottom so depending on your floor, you can stabilize the shelf). I’d just put the bookshelf into storage and had noticed one of the stabilizers was missing and was bummed. But there was no obvious place to put it and now I can’t find it because … I lack a junk drawer (don’t get me started on my lack of drawer space in my new apartment! It’s driving me crazy as a Classic!)

Now, junk drawers can be dangerous for Organics and Smarts. I’ve known many that end up creating multiple junk drawers when given enough time. But, Organic Structures and Smart Structures can behave closer to Classics and Funs when they’ve created a system. Organic and Smart Freedoms tread carefully with this idea.

Originally published on March 26, 2010.