It is important, no matter who you are, that you have a junk drawer. Junk drawers are necessary to the sanity of any person. They are the places (the one and only) in any home, where you can throw your stuff and be fine without it. If something is, at one point, important to you or something that you think you will use again (like a funky kind of makeup) throw it in the junk drawer and you are sure to be able to find it again someday when you need it.
Junk drawers, by nature, are not meant to be organized or tamed in anyway. They are wild, brutal and entirely authentic. To try to maintain and tip-top junk drawer would be impossible, as there are simply too many ways you can mess up a junk drawer – and should. In fact, some people are so adamant about ensuring a messy junk drawer that they never even clean them at all!
If you must clean out your junk drawer (most people do at some point or another) keep in mind that no matter how messy it is, you are simply not allowed to feel guilty for letting it get out of control. In fact, the only reason you should feel guilty is if your junk drawer is easily navigable.
To clean and organize your drawer, you will need to first throw out the things that no longer have value to you. These things include one-time sentimental items like old movie tickets. Sometime-used products like hair spray and all those bad CDs that you hung onto but will probably never find their ways into your CD player again.
Once all of the crap is out of your junk drawer, spread it out on your bed or carpet. Try to classify items into those that truly belong in your junk drawer and those that you can put elsewhere, but are still junk. These items might include mini tissue packages that you put away to use someday, but never remembered where you put them. Put items like this where they belong like in your purse or car.
Next, classify the items you kept into items that you really need or items that you can give away and still be fine – at least knowing that they are doing someone good. These might include that really funky shade of eye shadow that you always wanted to try, the nail polish that was meant for a certain holiday – but that you always forgot about when the holiday rolled around, etc.
Of the items that are left, they will all have varying value to you. Some will be sentimental. Others will be practical and functional. Separate them into categories. If you think you should keep the sentimental items in the junk drawer, do so. Many people, however, put these items in another place in their homes, such as an old photo box or special keepsake drawer.
Finally, put the remaining items back into the drawer in categories and positions of usefulness. You’ll find that the deep cleaning will result in fewer items considered junk and will allow for more space in which to collect future may-be junk items.