The Bottom Drawer in Your Kitchen

The place to look when you can’t find anything.

Do you have a handy drawer in your kitchen or utility room where you store items you find difficult to categorize? Your ‘go-to’ place when you can’t find what you’re looking for?

When someone in your family asks, “where’s the grape-stem snipping-scissors?” (I’m kidding), or “have you seen any triple-A batteries?” or even “where’s the single hole punch I used last night?”, you’ll know the question for the answer.

“Did you look in the bottom drawer in the kitchen?”

Most households have a drawer that’s ergonomically too low for frequent use. It becomes a repository for items stored out of the way.

I find the style and type of items change with different generations. My grandmother kept matches and candles in case of blackouts, fake eggs to keep clucky chooks happy, and the odd spare, various sized screws she believed could come in handy one day.

My mother kept a torch in case of blackouts, a ball of string, rubber bands, a collapsible carry bag, assorted birthday cake candles, notebooks and pens, and brown paper lunch bags. Occasionally coins lurked on the bottom of the bottom drawer, but only occasionally.

My drawer has long-handled barbeque tools that don’t fit anywhere else and the pizza cutter thingy. I also have a box with instruction guides and guarantees. For example, I keep information on how to descale the espresso machine; how to change the filter for the water dispenser in the fridge. I keep these for reference as the processes are tedious, and I never remember all the steps involved.

Unlike my mother or grandmother, I don’t worry about light during a blackout. It’s an excellent opportunity with all devices turned off to sit and meditate or study the heavens (I’m kidding again. I use the torch on my phone).

Also stored in the drawer, is a box with graded size Allen keys (a Mother’s Day gift?). This is the type of valuable implement you can never find when putting modular furniture together. I know my grandmother certainly didn’t have one of these gift boxes in her bottom drawer.

There’s one shortcoming of the storage drawer. Everyone knows the items are there, or could be, or should be, but the motivation to return them to this resting place may be missing. Make it two shortcomings — sometimes items are added to the bottom drawer by people who don’t remember where the items belong.

Hence the questions to the keeper of the kitchen.

I also kept the odd business card, especially when I lived in the country. Have you noticed how running the comforts for the home are different in the country?

Electric or diesel pumps move water from the tanks to the house, and they require maintenance. Septic systems are more complicated than swimming pool pumps and the chemical requirements they need. The effluent spray area must be kept clear of any planting other than grass.

My kitchen bottom drawer held the most critical piece of information.

Critical because anyone may need the information ASAP and would know immediately where to find it.

A business card and information pamphlet from a local snake catcher.

I had to contact the snake catcher one weekend. He took a long time to arrive, and when he did, I understood why.

I was pleased to see he was particular in his preparation for the job.

He drove an elevated, elaborate looking ute, with large spotlights and rods balanced along the frame on the back of the vehicle. This young man, dressed in camouflage shirt and cargo pants, with bulging pockets down both sides of his legs, was a sight destined to frighten any snake. The trousers tucked into calf height high-heeled boots. He wore matching elbow-length leather gloves. The guy’s logo impressed, as it was unmissable with an image of a brown snake poised to strike, on a vibrant yellow background.

The back of his shirt, his hat, and his ute were emblazoned with the logo. A real-life, super-snake hero.

Apologies, I got a bit carried away remembering the image.

If you’re still with me this far, I can explain how these guides, guarantees, and instructions will benefit your home’s next owner, will save them a lot of time on Google searches, and they’ll think kindly of you.

You may not be thinking of selling right now, however as a frequent homeowner, I guarantee this handy information will be appreciated.

You may not meet the new owners in person when you sell; however, your agent will be able to provide you with relevant information. For example, are they new to the region, do they have children, do they need information on schools, parks, bike trails, bus routes, garbage pick up days, local shopping centers?

My recommendation, as I did when I left my Country Home (always wanted to call it a Country Home, in caps), is to make a folder of local and household information for the new homeowners. You can provide them with the necessary information for the appliances being in the home. For that reason, it’s wise to keep these guides in good condition for the new owner. For example, the cooker, rangehood, air-conditioning, or heating. Include information on purchases and whether the guarantee applies to the purchaser of the product, or the product itself. You may find some guarantees aren’t transferrable.

I sold my ride-on mower to the new owners and included the manual with the dealership information and service record. I left business information on the local pool shop, who will help if there are any problems with the pool. You get the general idea of the folder’s information.

I was very discreet about the information about the snake catcher as I didn’t want to jeopardize the sale.

What does the bottom drawer in my kitchen hold now? The same type of items, albeit with additions. I’ve included the information tags for reference, from plants and shrubs I’ve added to the garden. I keep tourist maps (big picture destination person) to guide my journeys in this new countryside, visiting near and far neighbors, restaurants, vineyards, and beaches.

We all know how moving and relocating is a stressful time. However, feeling welcome and settling in quickly can alleviate a little of the anxiety. Household information has an impact on shortening the length of time it takes to settle into changed living circumstances. For example, does the kitchen benchtop need special treatment? Will spills damage it? How do I set the delay start for the dishwasher?

You may never hear about it, but your thoughtfulness may help the new homeowner settle in and feel welcome by leaving reference items in the bottom drawer in their kitchen.

You may also enjoy this story about my Country Home.