DIY - Double Layer Drawer Organization

Organizing the drawers in my small kitchen is a task that's been on my to do list for years. Not having enough space to organize all the kitchen gadgets was a huge drawback, but I'm so glad I found a neat way to make the most of those drawers, which means more storage space, by turning them into double layer drawers! 

Our kitchen is very small, I've been bringing organization to it with plate racks, tray dividers, adding counter storage and many other ways, but as for the drawers, those few drawers have been a messy sight most of the time, and let's not talk about the wasted space we have in there.

Well, the tipping point was last December, when visitors were trying to find serving spoons in that messy drawer where everything goes.  Yeah, that one, ☺ I guess we all have one of those drawers.

So, a few days ago, I decided to turn things around and begin organizing one drawer at a time.

The first candidate was the largest drawer I have, the one in the kitchen island. This is how it looked two years ago when I first blogged about it, and with the kitchen island not even painted the new color.

Those plastic dividers provided some kind of organization, but I didn't like them, and besides there were wasted spaces that made things look messy.

My inspiration for this project came from my blogging friend Debbie HERE, some days ago I noticed that the fabulous Ana White HERE, also tackled this project.

This is how it went for me →

Materials and tools:

• Drawer slide
• ½" x 2" x 4' S4S Poplar Boards
• Wood  Glue
• Nailer with 1" brad nails
• Measuring tape
• ¼" Plywood (bottom of drawer)
• Sanding block
• Jig Saw
• Drill or Screw driver

NOTE:  The dimensions of the inside of the large drawer are: 16" x 20-5/8" x 3½"

              The smaller drawer was built at: 14-15/16" x 20" x 1¾"

Directions:

The drawer was emptied and I began playing with the silverware. When I was happy at how things looked, that's when I started cutting the ½" poplar divisions.
Little marks were done before taking all the wooden pieces out to set the divider.

18-Volt ONE+ AirStrike 18-Gauge Cordless Brad Nailer

Wood glue and three 1" brad nails on each joint were more than enough to secure the pieces together.

I made that black outline to better visualize it inside the drawer. Perfect fit.

That removable divider on the left prevents the entire divider from moving sideways. I can remove this entire piece for easy cleaning.

But, there was still wasted space with this configuration. Those 2+ inches were the ones to tackle next.

One more divider/drawer was built. Same ½" poplar material, but this one was given a ¼" plywood bottom. It's final dimension: 14-15/16" x 20" x 1¾" - I always give drawers a 1-1/16" slide space.

The outline of the divider was traced on the lower part of the plywood bottom in order to see the lines where to drive the nails.

After adding a line of glue all around and flipping it over, ¾" brad nails driven on the marked spots secured the two pieces together.

Sand all those sharp edges, clean and protect the wood with clear poly

Ryobi Jig Saw

The next step is to cut the back of your big drawer, so the smaller drawer can slide out of it.
I drew a line at the 1-¾" mark, and using a jig saw made the cut outside the line.

The final step is to install the drawer slides. I followed the top edge line on the big drawer.

The only thing left was to bring the smaller drawer into the larger one and WHOA, look at all that storage space!

Here you can see the back of it.

An here is how it now looks inside the kitchen island with the smaller drawer all the way back.

And out! :)

The main silverware pieces were stored in the larger drawer, those are heavier than the serving pieces that I decided to store in the smaller drawer.

Well my friends, that's my first double drawer and I'm loving it!

My final recommendation for you ... measure twice cut once. 

I now have to go and tackle three more. ;)

For more Kitchen DIY ideas check these out:

The Other Drawers + Organization Tips!

Kitchen Island Makeover

DIY - Tray Divider

*Ryobi Tools were given to me to try out, 

I love them so much so that they are the tools I use for my every day projects. 

All stated opinions are my own.*

Affiliate links were added for your convenience.

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