Smart Ways to Organize Your Desk Drawer for Maximum Efficiency

//blue and white dress // blue and white rug // spindle chairs //

Tired of rummaging through a cluttered drawer for a pen or paperclip? Let’s fix that with some simple desk drawer organization hacks.

Have you ever wondered about the mysteries of the world?

You know.

Is there really a Bigfoot?

What happened to all the dinosaurs who ruled the earth?

Is there truly life on other planets?

Should Luke have really married Laura and a zillion other things that make you ask why?

But truth? There is no bigger mystery in my world is how all the random things in the world and sublet space in my desk drawers. I clean them out. I organize them. I take everything out and put it away where it goes in the rest of the house.

And then I blink?

And open the drawers….

….and it’s back for a visit again.

But now? I think I’ve solved the problem. I think I’ve figured it out. Because?

I discovered this.

There are actually seven drawers in this desk.

Isn’t that wood so pretty? It was my father’s desk and you all saved it from being painted.

When I completed the office makeover about four months ago, I tried to organize these drawers. I cleaned them out and got some new office supplies. But within a month they were all jumbled up again. I’m not the only one who uses this office and all the chicks and my husband didn’t know where things went so they just tossed the most random of things in this drawer.

Like hair clips.

Like an ear wax candle.

Like old invitations and graduation announcements.

And I’m just getting started.

I could have produced a reality show with the stuff in this drawer.

This is what the drawer looked like when I emptied it.

That is a drawer with a life well lived.

All that history and important dings and marks and patina. Oh, the stories this drawer could tell.

And after I cleaned it out, I organized it. But instead of just placing things in there neatly? I used these amazing organizers.

And now?

It looks like this.

Please tell me you sighed.

Me, myself, and I have scrolled back and forth between the two pictures at least five times.

And it all started with these drawer organizers.

I’ve tried several different iterations of this product and these are by far the best value for the money. They come in a set of 13 and there are five different sizes of containers so you have so many combinations and ways to set them up to fit any drawer. They have these little rubber feet on the bottom that completely hold them in place and prevent them from moving around and they even fit inside each other.

You can see the drawer organizers here.

Here’s the step-by-step on how I organized the desk drawer.

HOW TO ORGANIZE A JUNK DRAWER

STEP 1: CLEAR THE DRAWER

It’s SO MUCH easier if everything is out of the drawer and on the counter in a big pile.

Don’t even try and organize as you go.

You can get sidetracked with old gift cards and notes from friends and coupons.

Just take it all out and put it on the counter.

STEP 2: WIPE IT DOWN

Yes, please.

That drawer needs a good wipe-down. There is extra gunk in the drawer left over from all the junk.

Wipe it down with a microfiber cloth.

These are my favorite.

STEP 3: ADD THE ORGANIZERS

See what I mean?

I know I already sang their praises, but these drawer organizers are PERFECTION.

They fill up every bit of the drawer and I could add them in any different combination depending on what I needed to organize.

And they fit any drawer and they are 14% off with a $3 coupon.

You can see the drawer organizers here.

Take these organizers (or any other hat you want to use) and arrange them in the drawer.

STEP 4: GROUP SIMILAR ITEMS TOGETHER AND PLACE THEM INTO THE CONTAINERS

I think it’s easier if you sort as you go.

For example, I started with my giant piles of junk on the counters and kept going until I had put everything that I thought should go into the drawer back inside.

Here’s what I organized in all the desk drawers (there are seven in all):

1. A container for pencils
2. A container for pens
3. A container for markers
4. A container for post-its
5. A container for rub-n-buff (so it doesn’t get on anything else)
6. A container for scotch tape
7. A container for zip drives
8. A container for chalk
9. A container for push pins
10. A container for scissors
11. A container for utilitarian tape
12. A container for measuring tape
13. A container for paper clips

I kept typing container in this list to make a point and share an organizing secret.

If you have a container for everything? IT WILL STAY IN PLACE.

STEP 5: TOSS OR DONATE OR FIND A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING ELSE

After you put everything in the drawer, there will still be some stuff left in the pile on the counter.

No worries.

Just make a few decisions.

Toss everything that should be tossed.

Donate anything that you don’t need anymore.

Find a new home in another drawer in your house for everything else.

(total aside: look how cute these side panels are that pull out from the top of the desk).

That’s it.

Have a desk that needs organizing?

Today is the day.

My mother used to say, “A place for everything will keep everything in its place.”

She is brilliant and it is true.

With all the individual containers and compartments in the drawer, you can use something and put it right back in its own little container so it all stays neat.

One less mystery in the world now.

This one is solved.

PS Here’s a little video I filmed of the drawer organizing process over on my YouTube channel.

You can see the drawer organizers I used here.

PPS Whitney just walked in and saw what I was posting about and got so excited. She uses these in her college apartment and loves these. I asked her for an endorsement quote and she said, “They are amazing. Definitely worth the buy. Make sure you buy enough because I’m always wishing I had more.”

disclosure: affiliate links are used in this post.

“Try these tips today and watch your productivity improve. Want to tackle the whole workspace? Check out our guide to organizing your entire home office.”