When it comes to innovative ideas, I'm full of them! Recycling, re-using and re-purposing in the kitchen can be easy and even exciting. Be creative and you can turn scraps and trash into projects that help run a fun and functional home. Here are some of my top tips for the heart of the home, the kitchen...
Save olive oil bottles until the last drop. Add a bit of water and shake it up. Use as makeup remover.
Save wax from cheese packaging to melt down and make your own candles in small jars. Use a piece of hemp string that has been waxed as the wick.
Cut an old cereal box or rectangular box at an angle. Store appliance manuals in it.
Save lemon scraps or old lemons to scrub surfaces or dishes. Wipe down with water after a few minutes.
Put a blank piece of card stock the size of a postcard on the refrigerator. Over time, add stickers from produce to it. When it is filled up, you now have an eclectic postcard to send someone.
Forage wild fruits and herbs and learn to preserve them through drying, canning, pickling, jamming.
Save glass jars and bottles. Wash them and use them for food storage, water storage, organization, vases, gifts, decorations, and more. The possibilities are endless. Use a copper or steel wool scrubber under hot water to get the labels off.
Fill an empty spray bottle with water and lemongrass oil. Spray down surfaces, sinks and trash cans with the mixture to repel insects.
Save paper bags to make notebooks covers and staple blank paper inside. Or make into wrapping paper. Stamps or stencil designs on the paper.
Save cardboard food packaging to make covers for books and notebooks, bookmarks, and storage.
Save coffee grounds to dye paper for the notebooks to make them look old-fashioned. Or give the coffee grounds to houseplants.
Keep coffee filters on hand. Not only are they good for filtering, they can be used for crafts projects.
Use baking soda and vinegar to create a paste to scrub stubborn burnt-on food from dishes.
Wash popsicle sticks and save them for crafts projects. Store them in jars. Smaller popsicle sticks also make great knives for spreading jam or soft cheeses served on charcuterie boards.
Use wooden clothespins instead of plastic food clips for keeping chip and cereal bags closed. They also come in handy for children's crafts to keep them busy at the kitchen table while cooking or cleaning.
Make an alligator by coloring a clothespin green and gluing on paper teeth. Make an airplane by placing a clothespin over a popsicle stick and draw stripes on it.
Re-use produce packaging to set up a seed-saving station in the kitchen. Save the seeds to replant (pepper plants are easy to grow) or take them to fields and scatter them to give them a chance at life.
Save orange peels for cleaning or simmering on the stove.
Save eggshells in gallon milk jars and fill with water. Use this to water outdoor plants.
Scrub wooden cutting boards with lemon, baking soda and salt then rinse with hot water to keep them clean.
Save rubber bands from vegetables like green onions. Place a hook on the wall to store them on. The colored ones are sometimes fun to use for hairstyles that require small rubber bands.
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