Tippy Tuesday: Reduce, REUSE, Recycle

I have a love hate relationship with where I live.  But one thing I love is how EASY it is to recycle!  We don't have to sort anything or even remove labels.  Just a quick rinse (to be kind to the workers) and toss it all in one provided recycle barrel.  Who WOULDN'T recycle with that set up?  I'm not a tree-hugger, but it does feel nice to be able to play my part in taking care of this beautiful earth God has allowed us to live in.

One of my favorite challenges in the process is figuring out ways to reuse containers rather than buying new (good for the planet and the budget).  Here are a few things I've done:

GROCERY BAGS:  Use for everything!  Small trash cans, carrying items up and down stairs when straightening your home, carrying small things when you have multiple things to give back to people (staple a paper label to each so you don't even have to go through it), double bag leftovers you have to throw out and tie it up to keep smell/liquids out of your trash....

DIAPER BOXES: Cut the flaps off for easy, sturdy bins.  I use them to collect clothing I plan to pass on, one for girl clothes and one for boy clothes.  Once it's full or the time has come, just give the whole box to your friend.  Much easier to tote around than flimsy (overstuffed) grocery bags.  Then they have a box to use or ditch!  I also recently used one to hold snacks and drinks on our road trip -- it fit perfectly on the van floor between seats!  A diaper box is also good for collecting garage sale or good will items.  Sure, some people get all fancy-nancy and cover them.  Looks cute -- but really adds extra cost and precious time.

SHOE BOXES:  Kid shoe boxes are amazing for organization, especially for crafting and sewing!  Paints, brushes, collecting similar fabrics in one place to create a "quilt kit" over time...  I love watching how shoe boxes fit so nicely together in small spaces.

CREAMER BOTTLES:  So I just discovered that using vinegar in laundry as a pre-wash (especially for towels) does wonders for turning out fresh clothes and linens!  You don't need much.  I pour about a quarter cup or so in the pre-wash section of my detergent loader along with detergent in the detergent section.  Gets smells out and really revives towels.  But the one issue is having to lug around a big bottle of vinegar!  I was contemplating what kind of container I was going to have to buy in order to have a manageable bottle of vinegar in the laundry room and leave the big one in the pantry.  I was rinsing out a creamer bottle to recycle, and bam!  Problem solved.  Peel that label off, wash, and fill with vinegar.  Beautiful!

SALON PUMP BOTTLES:  How lovely they are!  So quick and easy to pump out bathtime products rather than turn slippery bottles over and shake out what you can manage to get... all the while munchkins are squirming around in the tub.  Do you know how easy it is to peel labels off of your empty salon pump bottles?  Super easy!  When one of our Dove shampoo bottles was empty, I couldn't find the right size I wanted with a salon pump.  So rather than just throw it out, I peeled off the label and rinsed it out.  Then I took my kids' Suave coconut shampoo/conditioner and emptied that into the salon pump bottle.  Peeled off the Suave sticker and put it on the Dove bottle.  Viola!  Salon pump kids' hair wash...with the proper label!

ICE CREAM BUCKETS:  I wash out gallon buckets of ice cream and use them to store side walk chalk, bubble accessories, etc.  I also plan to use them to create the previously mentioned "quilt kits."  Now if only I could figure out a time to quilt again...