Frugal Cures for Junk Drawers: My Latest Column in the Miami Herald

My desk is a beautiful antique with a scary feature. For instance, whenever I slide open the main drawer, I expect rabid dust bunnies and crazed paperclips to attack me. It's a surreal 3-D version of the child's game: rock-paper-scissors-shoot. Frankly, I've been shot down by clutter.

After endless papercuts, I've found several frugal solutions for organizing my junk drawers. Those solutions sparked my latest column in the Sunday Miami Herald.

Here's a snippet of the column.

A common indoor pest plagues many homes in South Florida, namely the ''junk drawer.'' Our catch-all drawers contain everything from old pay stubs to misshapen paper clips. And like ants on a countertop, junk drawers multiply in kitchens, home offices and recreation rooms.

Fortunately, there are many simple and frugal solutions to the junk drawer problem. Here are some suggestions from Susanne Phelps, a Hollywood-based professional organizer (www.cluttertamer.net):

By using small boxes from around the home and the sectioned trays from jewelry boxes and tool kits, it's possible to organize the clutter. Phelps offered wonderful suggestions. My favorite part: I don't have to spend a lot for fancy containers and boxes to get my house in order.

• Say goodbye to the junk drawer. You're setting yourself up for disorganization by even calling it a junk drawer. Every drawer in your home should have a specific purpose.

Here's the link to the full column.

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