Many of the simple things our parents and grandparents did to save money have been forgotten in this modern age of waste. Trying to be a sustainable person, always, I recycle…but reuse is an even more important concept if you are not just trying to be sustainable but a (thrifty) sustainable survivor.
As a result, I have begun incorporating the wisdom of my mom and grandmom, both of whom grew up in hard times, by saving and reusing as much as possible. Here are some of the things I have been re-using lately:- The wrappers from sticks of butter: I keep these in my fridge to use for greasing pans and have had to spend far less on things like olive oil and cooking spray.
- All seal-able plastic containers, such as the tubs for butter, sour cream, and yogurt: Why buy Tupperware when you can store your leftovers in something free?
- Paper and plastic bags from the grocery store: The plastic bags can be reused as trash bags for small cans. The paper bags can be used for a multitude of storage purposes, one of which is using them to store potatoes and onions in (this prevents them from rotting as quickly).
- Milk jugs and other containers used to store liquids: I like to use the milk jugs for storing iced tea and the smaller containers for storing the liquids from canned foods (I use these to make soup stock).
- Gift bags & bows: who says you can't tear off the tags and use these over and over again? After all, it’s the gift inside that counts.
- Technically, if you open your presents carefully, you can save the wrapping paper as well. If you, like me, have a five year old who loves to rip open their presents, though, I say just use something cheap (like a paper bag or the Sunday comics) to wrap them.
- Old tires: Why pay the disposal fee to a mechanic? Take them home and use them as tire swings, bouncy yard seats (bury the tire on its side, halfway in the ground), or planters (just lay them on their side and fill them up with soil).
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