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The question

My (11-year-old) kitchen drawers are getting grungy inside. How I can freshen them up?

The answer

If they are very grungy, it may be time to replace your drawer boxes. You could replace them with maple ones that have dovetail corners for strength and custom interior divisions. Meanwhile, you could also upgrade to self-closing hardware that is on the bottom of the drawer instead of the side (which is unsightly). The drawers' faces could remain unchanged.

For a less dramatic do-it-yourself fix, you could do a thorough cleaning, then put down paper or rubber drawer liners. I'm talking about removable liners, not something adhesive, like the hideous Mactac you might remember from your childhood. (My mother would Mactac everything, including cookbooks.)

Alternatively, you could consider adding removable trays. But make sure you clean the grunge before you slide them in. You don't want mould anywhere in your kitchen, and you certainly don't want to be known as the one with the drawers that are grungy.

Architect and interior designer Dee Dee Taylor Eustace's new e-book, Dee Dee's Rules, is available on iTunes. Follow her on Twitter: @ddtaylordd. Have a design problem? E-mail style@globeandmail.com.

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