DAY 3: How to Declutter & Organize a Messy Junk Drawer in 15 Minutes
Community Manager
It's day three of Apartment Therapy's Decluttering Cure! Today, we'll be decluttering one messy junk drawer in just 15 minutes. Share with us below how your day went! Did you find anything interesting in your junk drawer?
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You'd be surprised what you can accomplish in 15 minutes ⌛
Think of today's task like speed dating for your junk drawer. Who's getting a second date, and who's going home (read: to the donation bin)? Set a timer and find out! Now the real question is, which junk drawer to choose? 😅
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I've decided to devote my entire Cure this year to my desk and file cabinet, so the whole 14 days will be about decluttering drawers (and dealing with sentimental stuff like old letters). So far, I have decluttered my 3 file cabinet drawers. To my surprise, they were relatively easy. I guess that's because the contents are all the same kind of thing — paper records. As Marie Kondo says, paper records will never spark joy, so do your best to chuck 'em all! I was actually able to consolidate two drawers' worth of files into one drawer (mostly due to reorganizing, with some chucking). Moving on to the desk for the rest of the Cure (8 drawers plus the desktop), I expect it will get harder — lots of sentimental stuff, and miscellaneous items and stationery supplies that might or might not be useful. We'll see.
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Would you believe that I don’t actually have a junk drawer because my house has such limited storage? All the kitchen drawers are full of kitchenware, flatware, cat food, and one big one is used for bookcase overflow.
Don’t get me wrong, I still have decluttering to do. I just technically don’t have a junk drawer.
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Whoever thought this would take 15 minutes was dreaming. It took me more than 15 minutes just to collect all of the batteries in my junk drawer and put them into a container. It took me all morning to do the whole drawer. And since the first step is to take everything out of the drawer, you can’t really stop after 15 minutes.
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Awesome job already decluttering multiple drawers!! The sentimental stuff can be tough. If you need to chat through any piece in particular as you go through, feel free to share. I know I will probably need some advice when I get to that part as well 💛
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Hi Leti! If this is taking you longer than intended, try not to focus on the time as much as the task itself. The important part is that you're doing it, and that's worth celebrating! Bit by bit is better than nothing at all
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My junk drawer had been organized not too long ago so I hit some of the drawers in my bathroom- took more than 15 minutes but I could listen to an audiobook and then chat with my brother online. Filled a paper bag half full of stuff to throw away!!!
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That sounds so productive! Love a good audiobook or podcast to power through a cleaning session
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This is my third year on this cure and each time, I've found things in that junk drawer that have no place in my home. How about 10 pairs of extra shoelaces? A piece of broken pottery? Fresh eyes help!
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Love that you've made it habit to be here! The things I've found in my drawer haha — old chargers I had been looking for, expired gift cards (😩), etc. A good reminder for me to tackle this more often
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I declutter our kitchen junk drawer once a year during the January Cure, so I chose to tackle our medicine drawer. So much expired product 🙈 but at least I now know what inventory we’ll need to stock up on to brave cold and flu season!
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Omg yes, so many expired products over here too!
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I tackled my office supply drawer. This one becomes a catchall for random items. I was able to relocate craft items to my crafting box, and throw out a ton of junk!
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Bravo!! Also I need that "Song to Make Dogs Happy" CD 😆
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