The Parchment Paper Hack That Makes Organizing Kitchen Drawers So Much Easier

Are you dreading opening your kitchen utensil drawer? You're probably not the only person who struggles with disorganized and downright chaotic kitchen drawers filled with your forks, knives, spatulas, measuring cups, and everything in between. Of course, finding the right way to store everything can also be a hassle because sometimes it's hard to know if an organizer will truly fit your drawer until you finally get it home. But Instagram user Payton Leihgeber, a.k.a. @paytonleihgeber, has an ingenious hack for repurposing parchment paper as a way of visualizing the drawer space that you can actually take with you to the store. So, no more guesswork.

For this hack, you need some parchment paper, measuring tape, scissors, a pencil, and a drawer that's in desperate need of organizing. In her post, Leihgeber lays out the parchment paper inside the empty drawer, cuts it down to size so it lays flat at the bottom, and writes down any measurements that she needs to remember (including the depth of the drawer). After she was done, she essentially had a blueprint of her drawer. Then, she was able to take her paper to the store so she could try out different organizers and see what size or configuration she needed to keep all her utensils tidy. You can also use wax paper, since that is a common alternative if you don't have any parchment paper lying around.

Leihgeber emphasized in her video that you need to remember to mark the depth of the drawer for this hack to truly work. After all, the parchment paper is only a two-dimensional representation of a three-dimensional drawer, so you don't want to do all that work just to purchase organizers that are too tall or too shallow. It's also important to consider the types of utensils or other items you want to keep in this drawer, so it is a good idea also to mark the size and shape of each section of the drawer so everything fits. From there, you get to play with the space like a puzzle until every inch is filled up. Think of how oddly satisfying it will be to place all your sections in the drawer perfectly. Now you don't need to shudder at the idea of finding a butter knife.

Consider buying individual IKEA drawer organizer products, shopping for dividers on Amazon, or going to the Container Store like Leihgeber does in the video. You can also make your own DIY kitchen wooden drawer organizer using craft planks for a more customized final product. You can also use this hack in other areas of your home too –– essentially any space that you'd like to break up and organize based on your individual needs. And when you're done, you can reuse the unmarked part of the parchment paper for cooking or even to rub away hard water stains from your faucets.