As I clean, I generally have a box for recycles and a bag for garbage. I have spent a lot of time cleaning lately, making the house fresh for Spring and organizing. We travel a lot and I will dump bags and quickly repack, often leaving myself a small mess. On the most recent trip, my housesitter had accumulated a few tubes from paper towels and toilet paper as well as some bubble wrap from packges and a few other oddities. My housesitter placed them all in a clean recycle bin and when I came home I decided to reuse these items for small tasks I had simply put off far too long! These are my practical reuses for a few things you might toss out as I lavishly live life out loud and keep Mother Earth happy. Reuse, recycle and reduce waste!
Paper Towel Tubes
I think back to how many of these tubes I have just tossed into the recycle bin and can’t believe I did not think of some of this sooner. Paper Towel tubes are great for keeping boots standing tall, and keeping napkin rings together.
To put napkin rings on the paper towel tube, simply slit the tube straight down the middle and the reroll the tube. Place the rings over the tube and let the tube expand. Suddenly, all of napkin rings are together and you are not rummaging through the drawer.
For boots, simply put the tube inside the boot and if will help your boot stand straight. If your boots are wide, then take a few tubes and rubberband them together and place them inside, same concept.
Bubble Wrap
The bubble wrap is my favorite stash as it is great for packaging it also has other great uses. My favorite is in between my china dishes in the cupboard for safe keeping, just between my bowls that I use for serving.
Bubblewrap is also perfect to stash away for ornament packing in totes. I used to use newspaper but what a mess on my hands. I just stash bubble wrap in a closet for each season of packing totes and decor and I am set!
Medicine Containers WITHOUT the wrappers
First and foremost, there should be no medicine wrapper, pharmacy tag etc around the bottle if you can’t get the label off, toss the bottle. Second, I sterilize the inside of the pharmacy containers with bleach to not get any residue on anything store in it.
What Do I use the medicine containers for? These are perfect for spare change, buttons, saftey pins, staples, pencil lead, erasers, USB’s, bobbie pins and so much more. Very practical, and paid for with each prescription, so why not reuse? These are Practical ReUses For Things You Might Toss Out and they let me lavishly live life out loud!
