One of the many ways we save money is by repurposing things we already have laying around the house. Whether it has outlived its intended purpose or might normally be considered trash, you can squeeze more value out of things you already have — and avoid spending more of your hard-earned money — with a little creative thinking. A few of our favorites follow.
1. Glass candle containers: Once the last of the wax has been removed — I save these small bits to create other candles — and the jar is cleaned, I use them to store q-tips, cotton balls, and other small, hard to organize items on my bathroom counter.
2. Lunch meat containers: These get used for leftovers, to pack items to put in a lunch for work, to send food home with others, and to store small objects such as paper clips and rubber bands.
3. Bread bags: We use these in so many ways including cushioning for shipping packages, sandwich bags for lunches, to cover shoes for packing, and as animal waste bags.
4. Plastic mesh fruit bags: I bunch them up into a ball and use them to scrub dirty pans. When I have gotten all the scrubbing I can out of them, I toss them out.
5. Old greeting cards: I tear off the covers and, if there is not writing on the back, I reuse them as postcards. Postcards are much cheaper to send and it’s a great way to brighten someone’s day for less.
6. Broken flower pots: I break them down into smaller pieces and place them in the bottom of other pots before adding soil to help with drainage.
7. Newspapers: Although we do not pay for a subscription, we do receive a free weekly local paper. We have used these freebies for many applications but our favorites are to start fires in our fireplace, tear it into strips and put into our compost bin, or to wrap up items that need to be protected during shipping or storage. Newspaper also makes a great insulator for transporting food!
8. Shredded paper: after I am done shredding personal information, all paper is then put in our compost bin that will eventually turn into free soil.
9. Glass jars: We love glass jars and use them as drinking glasses, flower vases, and food storage containers. I have also used them to hold buttons and rocks for display on a shelf.
10. Old clothes: Clothes that are in too bad of shape to be donated are cut up and turned into rags. We use these instead of paper towels.
We would love to read your favorite items to repurpose, please share in the comments.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and stay frugal!