Searching for my missing iPod charger, I yanked open the junk drawer in my kitchen, hoping to end the five-minute quest that took me from my desk drawer to my nightstand to my glove compartment.

There it was, smugly looking up at me amid disheveled piles of novelty writing utensils, rubber bands and refrigerator magnets. Tucked in the back were packages of plant food, X-acto knives, flamingo swizzle sticks, matches, Super Glue and dozens of other random items.

In honor of spring cleaning, consider using these tips from professional organizers so you don’t make the mistake of using precious drawer real estate as a dumping ground for domestic life’s miscellaneous misfits.

Assessing the damage: “There are three reasons why something is homeless,” said Barb Gould of Bright Start Organizing in Batavia. “One, you don’t know where to put the thing; two, it’s too hard to put away in the right spot because the storage area isn’t easily accessible; or three, you haven’t established any rules on what you’re going to keep.

“That last one is the most common,” she said. “It’s why we accumulate all of those sauce packets from Chinese restaurants — because we haven’t resolved or committed to tossing them and sticking with the soy jar that’s already in the fridge.”

Brown thinks it’s perfectly acceptable to have a space designated for assorted odds and ends or extras — such as batteries, extra sets of keys, a flashlight or scissors — as long as it doesn’t get out of control and you leave things in neat, categorized compartments.

“The basic things you need to grab really quick in the course of daily living — that’s fine for a junk drawer,” she said. “But once it becomes hard to even open the drawer because it’s stuffed to the max, it ceases to become useful to you. When you get to that overflow point, that’s when you’re going to start finding expired gift certificates and game pieces you’ve been searching high and low for.”

Then it’s time to take action, Brown said. It’s important to have a mental inventory of what’s in there, even if it is a little bit of a hodgepodge.

Criteria: Develop a strict theme for your drawers and cabinets. Rather than stocking two or three miscellaneous drawers with no method to the madness, categorize items by use. One can be devoted to school supplies and another to tools and home repair supplies.

“Why would you have one place with electric tape, a calculator, crayons, tacks and lined notebook paper when you can separate them into classifications?” said Kim Cosentino, owner of The De-Clutter Box in Westmont. “If you keep like things stored by shelf or drawer, you’re not rifling through the contents as much. This is especially helpful when you’re keeping track of multiple people’s possessions.”

She lives by the stocking/filing motto: “broad but specific.”

“You don’t want to pigeonhole stuff too narrowly so that you end up with a drawer just for Scotch tape or a shelf just for notebook paper because you’re not likely to maximize that space. But your goal is to stay away from the anything-goes attitude,” Cosentino added. “So the happy medium is a place for all paper products like printer, construction, tracing, Post-its, etc. Or a cabinet for fix-it stuff like a hot glue gun, a measuring tape, a screwdriver.”

One good trick of the trade is to take birthday candles out of the junk drawer and put them in a mini-chest or container, Gould said. The new party box can be a home for streamers, balloons, party plates and holiday napkins. Or create a space just for electronic chargers, hands-free wires and power strips.

According to Brown, developing a litmus test and adhering to it is key.

Sorting: Gould uses a five-step process for any organizing endeavor. Just remember the acronym STEPS:

n Sort and identify categories.
n Throw out the trash.
n Earmark a home.
n Put away in containers.
n Stay on top of things by repeating the procedure twice a year.

During this process, you can take stock of what you have. Filter through things to find anything that’s expired, passé or not working. Don’t be a pack rat — get rid of them.

“Maybe you didn’t realize you had five half-used glue sticks. So this can be a good opportunity to try them out, get rid of ones that are dried out and condense,” Gould said. “This is going to help you avoid having to rummage through a bunch. A study conducted by a Boston marketing firm found that the average American spends an hour a day looking for something they can’t find, and that adds up in a year.”

Containerize: Brown usually opts for The Container Store, with locations in Oak Brook, Schaumburg, Northbrook and Chicago. For my project, she used a divider from the office department that cost $9.99 and some Rubbermaid snap-together pieces with lips that are $1 or $2 each and allow you to build your own drawer system.

Target, Linens ’n Things and Wal-Mart also have inexpensive compartments. But for less costly alternatives, Brown recommends small jewelry boxes, tins or check register boxes as good makeshift dividers. For supplies like rubber bands, paperclips or glue sticks, Cosentino uses Ziploc bags.

Also be sure to dust off those labelmakers because everything should have a descriptive title to encourage other users to replace an item in the proper location.

Psychology: “This area can’t be a catch-all, so don’t get in the habit of tossing anything and everything in there,” Brown said. “You have to be specific about what belongs.”

This works especially well with children, who tend to hang onto Happy Meal toys, vending machine junk and other tchotchkes.

“They’re allowed to have a place for mini Barbies, bouncy balls and goodie bag trinkets. You don’t want to see stray Legos in there when there’s a home for that,” Brown said. “If you call it a treasure drawer, this will help them classify what’s appropriate to put in there and be more discriminating about what they keep.”

Rather than mixing these toys in with your fireplace turnkey and hole punch, keeping these items in a play room or bedroom will help you stay organized.

“The name you give something influences how you think about it,” Gould said. “Once you label something, it’s a no-brainer.”