Use a Dresser to Organize

Find a Dresser

If you don’t have an old dresser at home that you can repurpose for storage, there are plenty of outlets for finding one. Check classified listings in the newspaper and online or visit garage sales for great deals. You may also find inexpensive dressers at second-hand stores or flea markets. Don’t worry about how it looks because you’re going to give it a great new appearance.

Spruce it up

Give your old dresser a new look by adding a fresh coat of paint. Then make sure it’s functioning correctly with new or tightened drawer pulls. Just because the dresser will be in your garage or basement doesn’t mean it can’t look great! You can paint it in one neutral color or get creative with bright colors, stripes or designs. Here are some tips for painting wood furniture and fixing up drawer pulls.

Painting Wipe down the dresser inside and out to start with clean surfaces. Sand until smooth with fine-grit sandpaper. Brush off excess sawdust residues. Apply a coat of primer (white or gray) and let dry for 1 to 2 hours. Add another coat if necessary. Gently scrape the surface with a 3-inch putty blade to easily remove small bumps that may show up after primer has dried. Add a coat of water-based paint in even strokes, following the wood grain. Allow the first coat to dry, and apply a second coat if needed. Or add different colors, stripes or designs. For easy organization, you can color-code the drawers.

Drawer Pulls To make your drawer pulls look and work better, remove and shine them with steel wool if they’re metal. Or you could re-paint them in a fun color. Use new screws and tighten the pulls when you put them back on. To replace with new pulls, measure the width of the current pulls before heading out to your local home improvement store.

Organization Ideas
Once your dresser is updated and ready to use you’ll need to decide what to organize and how to do it. Try to designate each drawer for only one category of supplies or items and use some of these tips as guidance.
What to Organize

• Seasonal Décor:Use each drawer to safely store your seasonal decorations so they’re easy to find each year. Use a different drawer for each season or holiday.
• Outdoor Items:If you have large drawers, use the dresser in the garage to store outdoor toys and sporting equipment such as bats, balls, gloves, helmets and safety pads. Organize the drawers by family member so each person knows where to look for his or her toys and equipment.
• Household Supplies:Try using the drawers to organize common household needs such as cords, light bulbs, batteries, and craft supplies. To keep your cords from turning into a tangled mess roll them up and secure with rubber bands or twist-ties. Separate different types of cords by creating dividers with cardboard.
• Tools and Hardware:Sort out tools, loose or miscellaneous hardware and home repair or gardening materials. Store your most used tools in the top drawer and items you don’t need frequently in the bottom drawer. Use some of the tips below for organizing loose items.

How to Organize
Utilize desk drawer or silverware organizers to create several organized compartments. For larger pieces use shoeboxes or plastic tubs to create bins for storing. If you want to collect small hardware items like screws, nails and hooks try this unique tennis ball storage idea.

Tennis Ball Storage

1. Using a utility knife, cut a small slit in one side of a tennis ball, squeeze the ball to expand the split and drop your screws or nails inside.
2. These portable storage solutions can be organized easily inside the dresser. Drill screws into the bottom of a drawer, and then drill small holes in the tennis balls to fit onto the screws in the drawer.

After you’ve decided how to organize, add labels to your drawers so items can be found easily. Get creative, by attaching custom labels or painting on the drawers.

You’ll love how well your dresser storage solution keeps these tough areas organized. Just make a commitment to keep your drawers clutter-free and your dresser will be a great organization tool for years to come.