Are you throwing away any of these everyday household items you could be reusing? Rethink before sending anything to landfill - could you reuse it? Here’s alternative uses for 9 household items usually thrown away…

Living waste-free can be challenging when so many everyday items are single-use or come in disposable packaging. While there are many reusable options on the market, they may not be as widely available as disposable products.

However, you don’t have to stop buying necessities to reduce your waste - where you can’t refuse, reuse! Here are some alternative ways to use household items instead of throwing them away.

1. Egg Cartons

Egg cartons may not seem like something you can use much, but you’d be surprised. There are many ways to get creative and repurpose your egg cartons to reduce waste.

You can use egg cartons to organise and store jewellery or separate paint as a paint palette. Or, you can get crafty and make a bird feeder, Christmas decoration storage or a cute holiday wreath (read more about zero waste, plastic free Christmas decorations and gifts). Egg cartons can come in handy for many crafts and storage solutions, so ensure you consider ways to repurpose them before you throw them away.

Another option, if you’re not going to reuse it yourself, is to find someone who will, such as kindergarten teachers who will get creative with them in class or sellers of eggs at farmer’s markets who will reuse them to sell more eggs.

2. Eggshells

Talking of eggs, once you’ve cracked the egg, you throw the shell away without thinking twice. What could an eggshell possibly do besides housing your breakfast?

Well, you can actually use eggshells for many things, from composting them (beginner composters head this way) or simply grinding them up thoroughly and mixing them into your garden soil to improve its condition to decreasing bitterness in your coffee. To do this, just put some eggshells in the coffee as it brews and see how much acidity it takes out of the taste.

Some say to reuse eggshells to clean your sink drains and that they will clean your drainpipes when washed down, but some plumbers warn that this can clog your drain.

Ground eggshells can serve as a calcium supplement in wild bird feed and chicken feed, and for humans (first, read the benefits and risks of eating eggshells here) and powdered eggshells can be added to baking soda (one cup of powdered eggshells: three cups of baking soda) and a little vinegar or water to create an abrasive homemade cleaner that can be used to clean pots and pans, showers, and toilet bowls.

3. Aluminum Foil

While aluminium foil can get greasy or charred in cooking, clean sheets can be reused in many ways.

Did you know you can use aluminium foil to shine your cutlery? You can also hang foil in your garden or to keep pests away, or wrap it around door knobs when painting to keep them clean. You’ll likely throw pieces away eventually, but you can extend the life of each sheet and avoid having to repurchase as often.

4. Used Clothing

Donating clothes is an excellent way to recycle them, but it doesn’t always guarantee they won’t end up in a landfill eventually. You can always sell them if they’re gently used to make some extra cash, but there are other ways to extend their life span. What if you found other ways to repurpose them instead?

You can turn your t-shirts into a reusable shopping bag (without even having to sew! - step-by-step instructions here) or even a quilt or pillowcases if you’re handy with a sewing machine. And a holey sock can be used to make a DIY reusable coffee cup (cut off the ankle section and simply use as a cosey around a reused glass jar).

Breathe new life into denim or other fabric by creating a pillow pocket for your remote controls or draft stoppers for underneath your doors and windows in your home.

5. Glass Jars

Glass jars are likely the most versatile household item you can repurpose multiple times. Glass jars come in countless forms, from candles to pickle jars, which you can wash and reuse as many times as you want.

You can use glass jars to store food items like coffee grounds or spices to keep them fresh or use them for food prep. Pop some flowers in and use them as vases, or keep one by the front door to collect spare change. The ideas are endless.

6. Shoe Boxes

Shoes are an everyday necessity that, when bought new, usually come with a disposable shoe box. While it might seem easy to recycle the box, there are so many ways you can put it to better use.

You can use the cardboard from the boxes in many ways, from DIY projects like drawer dividers to composting them. Creative shoe box DIY projects include upcycling these gems for shoe storage or turning them into cord organisers. They can also be useful for packing small or fragile items when moving.

7. Plastic Bags

You may do your best to take reusable totes when you go shopping, but we all have days when we forget or stop in a shop unexpectedly. Plastic pollution is unkind to the environment, so repurposing plastic bags is essential.

Keep some plastic bags in your car for those days when you forget to bring a reusable shopping bag. As long as they don’t rip, you can reuse them as often as canvas bags. If you’re crafty, you can also upcycle plastic bags by weaving them together and creating anything from coasters to decor.

8. Toothbrushes

Old toothbrushes make magical cleaning tools. Toothbrushes are excellent for getting stains out of clothing and getting in the tiny crevices of your kitchen sink or bathroom tiles.

You can also use them to shine your shoes, apply hair dye, create texture in arts and crafts and more with old toothbrushes. Another reuse for a worn out toothbrush is for makeup application, particularly on eyebrows, but be sure to sanitise it before using it for this purpose. So, think twice before you throw them out.

9. Newspaper

While you might only read a newspaper once, that doesn’t have to be the end of its life. You can use newspaper to get the smell out of worn shoes, protect your windshield from winter weather and wrap fragile items in your home for packing.

Newspaper also works great as a drop cloth for painting projects and is excellent for lining litter boxes or picking up your pet’s poo on walks (here’s how to make newspaper dog poop bags). You can also use newspaper to ripen produce by wrapping it up in it.

Repurposing Household Items

Avoiding waste altogether can be hard, but there are ways you can make a difference by repurposing. Next time you think about throwing away an old sweatshirt or glass jar, or anything really, get crafty and give it new life.

Guest author bio: Cora Gold is a sustainable living blogger and the Editor-in-Chief of women’s lifestyle magazine, Revivalist. Connect with Cora on Twitter and LinkedIn.

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