I Tried The Container Store Drawer “Paper Trick” from TikTok

I pick up random home organizers at yard sales, and they’re never exactly right — which means every drawer in my kitchen has at least a few inches of wasted space. I don’t love it, but I also do not possess the patience to measure each drawer and then take my measurements to The Container Store and puzzle out exactly what will and won’t work in the space, and then (inevitably) return the items I buy that don’t fit. Isn’t that why professional organizers make the big bucks? Because everyone else loathes the minutiae of that task?

But pro organizers better watch out because TikTok just showed me a trick that is changing my whole world (or at least the state of my kitchen drawers). 

In this TikTok video, content creator Marisa (@mddesigns16) lines a kitchen drawer with packing paper and trims it to size. She then takes that handy piece of paper to The Container Store and sets organizers on top of it until she gets the perfect fit. I was immediately blown away by the brilliance of this simple hack, and I’m not the only one — her TikTok currently has 9.2 million views and counting. 

I don’t have packing paper, so I used a paper grocery bag instead. Then I called my local HomeGoods store because I couldn’t even drive by The Container Store without accidentally spending $200. Unfortunately, the honest employee answering the phone told me I would have better luck finding drawer organizers at The Container Store, so off I went with my husband to spend half my paycheck.

We tried every line of drawer organizers in the store (we’re still married, don’t worry). The plastic ones — this cutlery organizer and deep drawer organizers — were the best fit, but we ultimately went with bamboo ones — these drawer dividers, drawer organizers, and silverware tray — since we both loved the look of it instead. We somehow managed to spend less than $100, but just barely. 

It’s hard to overstate the efficiency of the paper trick. In less than an hour, we worked our way through all the stock, and The Container Store is not a small place. One commenter wrote, “How am I 52 years old and have never thought of this? Brilliant!” I’m today-years-old and I feel the same. Marisa has forever changed the way I shop for organizers; now there’s no guesswork, no inefficiency, and no returns necessary. 

No paper on hand? No problem. You can follow the lead of the commenter who wrote, “I literally just take the entire drawer into the store.”