The $1.25 Dollar Tree Find That’s So Good, I Immediately Bought 6

Now that I test products and kitchen gadgets for a living, a standard cutlery tray no longer works for me. I have a lot of cutlery and kitchen products, and, like most people, I also live a busy life. So, I need to be efficient when I'm in the kitchen.

That means everything has to be in its rightful place. When I'm looking for a rasp, a whisk, or even the less-frequently used offset spatula, I want to be able to find it in a fraction of a second. Otherwise, it feels frustrating and inefficient.

With my husband traveling more for work in the last year, it's been much harder for me to keep up with day-to-day things. This was reflected in our cutlery and utensil drawer, among other places, and even my daughter noticed, asking if we could spend half of the day organizing. She was thrilled when I said yes, and honestly, so was I.

I let her pick what we would work on, and she chose that drawer as our main project. To prepare, I went looking for some baskets to help facilitate the task and remembered a colleague telling me about Dollar Tree's plastic rectangular slim slotted baskets. They're perfectly designed for drawer organization, and at $1.25 each, I bought six on the spot.

Why I Love Dollar Tree's Slim Slotted Baskets

Unlike some other organizational tools on the market, these baskets are undoubtedly affordable, making the whole process of getting organized feel achievable. I also appreciate how, at 10.5 x 2.5 x 4.5 inches, they're ideal for most drawers, making it a breeze to switch things around as my kitchen habits change.

Plus, they're plastic, so a quick wipe-down is all it takes to keep them clean. On that note, if anybody can tell me why I always find mysterious crumbs in my cutlery drawer, I'd love to know the answer.

How I Use Dollar Tree's Slim Slotted Baskets

I have an Ikea system for my cutlery, but I've been using the baskets to create distinct zones for the rest of the drawer. I've dedicated one for measuring spoons and cups and another for small gadgets I use daily or weekly, like a vegetable peeler, garlic press, rasp, citrus squeezer, can opener, rice spoon, and food thermometer.

Others hold the gadgets that I use slightly less regularly but still frequently enough, like bench scrapers, kids' knives, wine stoppers, cocktail spoons, and more. I also keep an area in my drawer for non-specific kitchen items I reach for daily while in the kitchen, like hair elastics when cooking and cleaning, rubber bands, Sharpies, chalk markers, and more!

Beyond the kitchen, I keep a few others in my junk drawer for batteries and charging cables, and I even use one in my car's center console to keep small items from sliding around. I'm partial to more neutral, monochromatic colorways, so I chose the clear baskets, but they are also available in a few different colors.

As someone who evaluates products for a living, I can tell you these baskets rank super high on the "genuinely helpful" list. Consider this your friendly nudge to tackle that unruly drawer. Perhaps your kid will even be up for some fun, Type-A teamwork, and bonding time, too!

_{To learn more about our approach to product recommendations, see HERE.}