Retrieving the pot or pan of choice from the bottom of your drawer can be an olympic event. For me, it was one that usually ended in me grumbling obscenities under my breath. I am not a cook to start with, so any hurdle early in the cooking process can be very detrimental. Many years ago, I learned from Marie Kondo, the master of home organization, that I should be storing my clothes vertically in drawers for better visualization and access. So, why the heck wasn’t I doing this with my pots and pans? I scoured over store bought solutions. There were many (and I linked some below). But each one did not fit the drawer or maximize the space just like Goldilocks wanted. Nor did they fit our exact assortment of pots we had. So we decided to do a very SIMPLE DIY that took about half an hour and one trip to the home improvement store. It’s customized and was very inexpensive. I stupidly did not take a ‘before’ picture of my drawer, but as you can imagine it was a drawer filled with pots and pans stacked on top of each other. Now this is what it looks like:

Here Is What We Did:

Measured the drawer. Duh. Be sure to measure the depth, height AND length. When measuring for desired height be sure to allow for any handles to overlap. We wanted it high enough to support the pots but low enough to allow for overlap of the handles.
Measured our pots. The point of this was to figure how many slots we needed and where each pan would likely go. This was a little awkward. We emptied our drawer and simulated the pots/pans on their side and measured them this way. (this is bigger measurement because of the way each pot may sit at a bit of an angle when its on its side). We made sure to allow for the width of the divider material. We used MDF board for our dividers and it was 1/2 inch thick.
We then bought MDF board and had it cut to the size of our drawer and attached it using these 1-inch L-brackets. We had the boards cut right in home depot (this was Pre-Covid so make sure they are cutting in your area). Tip- Take a picture of you what you are trying to accomplish so the guy/gal in the orange vest doesn’t have to guess when you are looking for product.

Bonus- I bought vinyl drawer liner and cut up some pieces for a little protection between pots. I also use this liner in almost ALL my cabinets. You can’t see it and protects the wood.