Turn An Old Shoe Box Into A Clever Storage Solution For Your Dresser

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Repurposing a shoebox for storage is hardly revolutionary. Most of us probably have one on a closet shelf filled with tax documents or something equally fun. But shoeboxes might serve you better by storing daily essentials inside a drawer. Pop one, two, or more into your dresser drawer, and you've got compartments for small clothing items, jewelry and watches, or any other wearables. With all the sizes of shoes out there, there are options for long and narrow, extra wide, and kid-sized boxes that you can use solo or cut and combine with glue into a handy unit.

Find boxes that will both fit your drawers and fill an organizational need. If the sides are too tall for your drawers, bring out the scissors, cut them down, and make them fit. For jewelry, cut the sides extra low to turn a shoebox into a tray that corrals the goods while also making them easy to see and reach.

Smaller sized boxes might allow you to squeeze at least two into an underwear drawer for designated sock, undies, and handkerchief sections. Or perhaps you could reserve a boot-sized box for the items that take up the most space. (Have a large collection of novelty socks?) Scarves, t-shirts, shorts, and other undersized garments all have a place in a DIY shoebox drawer-ganizer. Tidy packet-like folds for these guys are nice, but people are also ditching folding their clothes and simply tossing them into boxes that make items easier to find without the fuss.

A drawerful of mismatched boxes with jaggedly cut sides will help you stay organized, but they aren't particularly pretty. It's understandable to want aesthetically pleasing drawer organizers, even if you're the only person seeing them. It's not hard to DIY stylish storage containers, and for boxes that will stay hidden, contact paper or Mod Podged decorative or repurposed paper can go a long way in making unique upcycled organizers.

If you've used empty boxes as drawer organizers in the past, you may know the annoyance of the "wandering box;" sitting alone, boxes tend to move at will around the drawer as you open and close it. This is even more frustrating if you have several boxes in the same drawer. An easy fix is to glue a few boxes together at the sides to make a cohesive unit. Connect boxes to each other with a good adhesive for cardboard, like Elmer's Clear School Glue. Once dry, your made-over organizer may even fool someone that it was store-bought.

If the no-fold clothes storage method doesn't work for you, create a DIY shoebox accessory made from more cardboard. Cut four cardboard slices that are as wide as the shoebox is deep, with two as long as the width of the box and two of the same length as the box. Make cuts about halfway through each piece widthwise where the pieces will intersect. Slide shorter pieces onto longer pieces perpendicularly into a grid form and place it in one of your boxes. Roll small garments and tuck them into their own easy-to-see cubbies.