Reuse Tips
In this section let’s look at some reuse tips. Most of our garbage is sent to a landfill or dump. Reuse what you can to help the environment and save money!
Many household items can be reused instead of wasting by throwing them away. Reuse tips for different common household items are included below.
Categories:
Baby wipes containers: Reuse baby wipes containers for small toys, dolls, pencils, crayons, markers, glue sticks/glue etc. Group like items together and use separate containers for each group. They are also great to sort and group hair accessories (like clips, rubber bands etc.), cosmetics, perfumes and other small toiletry items.
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Boxes: For reuse tips for boxes, read this article.
Envelopes and paper: Envelopes can be reused for coupons and bits and pieces of paper with phone numbers and other information.
I try to print on both sides of the paper whenever possible. If you have sheets of paper that are printed only on one side, cut them into small pieces, clip them using a magnetic clip and stick it on the fridge to write grocery list. You can also keep them next to the phone for quick notes or phone numbers. I also use them for my daughter’s art projects.
Jars and Food storage bags: Read this article for reuse tips for jars (jelly, peanut butter) and food storage bags (like ziplock).
Linen: There are plenty of linen reuse ideas. Rather than throwing old towels, sheets, scarves etc. away, reuse them as rags or for making quilts, pillow cases, table runners or curtains. They can also be used for cleaning tasks.
Miscellaneous: Following are some reuse tips for common miscellaneous items -
- Mesh fruit bags to store balls, play food items and toy cookware.
- Old manilla folders, notebook covers, greeting cards or similar kind of thick paper cut to size to use as dividers to separate types of coupons and recipe cards or genre of CDs and DVDs inside media drawers.
- Old magazines to organize receipts.
- Gifts bags, tissue paper and bows can be saved and reused for the same purpose.
- Used toothbrushes to clean tools, areas around faucets, window/sliding door frame grooves and other hard to reach places.
- If you have scraps of plywood left over from other projects, use mending braces to connect them together to make a shelf for garage or basement.
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Plastic grocery bags: I use plastic grocery bags to line small wastebaskets around the house like in the bathrooms and laundry room. It works great, saves money and is a good way to reuse plastic bags. I recycle plastic bags I cannot reuse, like the ones with holes, at the grocery store. Some of the grocery stores have a recycle bin specifically for plastic bags.
Storing plastic grocery bags in a tall container like antibacterial wipes container will save space, look uncluttered and save you some money (no need to buy a separate storage container).
Small containers: You can use empty egg cartons, votive candleholders, small yogurt/cheese/butter containers, tofu tubs and stained food storage boxes to store small things like thumbtacks, paper clips, safety pins, buttons, rubber bands, twist ties or for small craft and sewing supplies.
Reuse tofu tubs, votive candleholders or small yogurt containers to sort and store coins inside a drawer. Use separate containers for each designation of coin.
Reuse mugs, teapots, vases, tall candle jars etc. to sort and store makeup brushes.
As you use these tips, think about other ways to reuse day-to-day items. Be creative. Once these items are no longer usable, recycle if possible.