Yes, even professional organizers have junk drawers.  We are not perfect… just recovering perfectionists!  I do practice what I preach and to prove it here are the steps I took to organize my junk drawer.  It’s rather elementary but I thought the photos would be interesting. And who knows, it just might motivate a few of you!

1. Before

This drawer is beneath my printer and has been a catch all place for office tools.

2. The Stuff

Here is what is in the drawer.  The top half of the photo shows the essential office supplies. The cords at the bottom left were also essential. The rest… how did that get in there?!

3. Bonus tip

If you have cords that sometimes need to go with you, store them in a zipper pouch for easy transport.  This pouch contains my cell phone and iPod chargers as well as a car adapter. When I am at the office they are in the desk, if I think I may need them, I just throw them in the bag that I am taking along.

4. The Configuration

For my drawer the six components fit like this.  I love that there are many ways to configure the interlocking pieces to fit any drawer!

5. The Result – ahhh, organization!

Now I bet that’s what you thought my junk drawer would look like!

Do you have a junk drawer that needs organization?  Rubbermaid has given me an extra set to give away.  There are 2 ways to enter to win:

1. Post a photo of your junk drawer or a comment about it on my blog. OR
2. Sign up to receive my monthly ezine by registering at www.organizedhabits.com.

Do this before midnight on March 5th and a winner will be selected at random and notified by email. (So be sure to include your email if you post a comment.)

Recently, I received some fabulous products made by Rubbermaid.  this set of drawer organizers come in many shapes and sizes. There are many ways to configure them to fit virtually any drawer in your home. They have an interlocking “lip” on one side to hold onto the next organizer, so no more separations where things are likely to disappear in the cracks!  They are black with a tan bottom.  Some of their components are featured in this photo. I used four different size organizers in my desk drawer and it fit perfectly. Really a well made product with great flexibility. I highly recommend them.

Using these organizers I was motivated to clean out my junk drawer…. See my next post for a blow by blow of that project.