I rearranged the painting desk this weekend. Before:

Cluttered desk with paints scattered

After:

Same desk, paints in racks, surface clear

The only thing that actually changed: I built two cheap MDF paint racks and forced every paint into one. The rule is now "if it doesn't fit in the rack, it goes in the drawer". Paints I haven't used in six months are in the drawer.

It cost me about an hour and £15 of MDF. The desk is twice as useful. I should have done this years ago.