Spring Bling: Spring Cleaning Tips to Save Your
Hard-earned Bling

Spring Bling: Spring Cleaning Tips to Save Your <br>Hard-earned Bling Image

Winter is officially over, the flowers are in bloom and with that comes the itch to spring clean! De-cluttering your home of all the stuff that has accumulated over the past year will help get the season off to a fresh start. Here are a few simple tips on how reusing and recycling everyday plastic household items can help clear the clutter, turn trash into treasure, and save your hard-earned money.

A Growing Trend: So you’ve collected those yogurt cups and margarine tubs and your kids don’t need any more containers for their crayons. Put those plastic containers to work in your garden. Yogurt cups are the perfect size for growing seedlings you can later plant outside. The cups also can be used to grow herbs right on your kitchen windowsill. You’ll add color to your kitchen and save on buying herbs from the grocery store. Of course, a growing number of communities are collecting these items for recycling, so it’s a good idea to check to see if recycling is an option where you live.

Put a Lid on It: Tired of digging around your kitchen for the right food container lid? Are all your plastic lids and containers mismatched shapes and sizes? It’s time to pare down your food container collection. Proper food storage saves big on grocery bills. Recycle any containers that don’t have lids, are warped or won’t seal tightly. Better yet, consider investing in a dozen identical 16-ounce containers. You’ll never run out, and you’ll never have to search for the proper lid. Even better they’ll stack neatly in the kitchen cabinet because they’re all the same size.

Milk It For All It’s Worth: The milk is gone and the jugs are piled up in your recycle bin. While recycling is always encouraged, consider this clever option for reuse. If you’ve got a traditional high-flow toilet, fill a clean plastic jug with water and place it inside your toilet tank, to one side. This will take up space in the water tank, meaning you’ll use less water with each flush. Conserving water not only saves precious resources, but will save on your water bill, too. (Low-flow toilets are already designed to save water.)

Message in a Bottle: Time to clear out those near-empty plastic spray bottles under the bathroom sink? Don’t toss them in the recycle bin just yet. Wash, label and reuse them. Fill them with water to mist plants. Mix a solution of half vinegar and half water in the bottle to clean dirty windows. And if you’ve reused your bottles and still have extras piling up on your kitchen counter, make sure to recycle them.

Recyclable plastic bottles include: milk jugs; beverage bottles (e.g., water, soft drinks, juice and beer); bottles from shampoo, toiletries, laundry detergent and other household cleaners; kitchen bottles from salad dressing, cooking oil and condiments; and food jars, such as peanut butter and mayonnaise.

Not Your Dentist’s Brush: Don’t throw out your old plastic toothbrushes, put them to work. Old toothbrushes are perfect for cleaning around faucets or the corners of sinks and bathtubs.

It’s in the Bag: Because you know you should recycle your plastic bags at the grocery store, you’ve dutifully collected them in that kitchen drawer.

Recyclable plastic bags and wraps include: bags from grocery and retail stores, newspapers, drycleaners, and bread as well as plastic wraps from products such as paper towels, bathroom paper, napkins, diapers, and cases of soft drinks. Tip: All of these items can be placed in the same bag and deposited at participating grocery and retail stores.

In addition to recycling them, don’t forget there are also many helpful ways to reuse those plastic bags, such as:

Wet umbrella cover – keep other items in your bag dry when your umbrella is wet

Suitcase savers – wrap shoes before packing them with clean clothes

Hand protectors – place them over your hands to handle messes indoors and out

Kitchen clean-up – place them under the cutting board for quick scrap removal

Trash can liners – use them in bathrooms and other household waste baskets

Doggie duty – bring them on dog walks to collect and dispose of pet waste

ADDITIONAL NON-PLASTIC RELATED TIPS:

Dish It Out: Don’t need that collection of mismatched plates you’ve had since college? Ceramic plates can make a new exciting mosaic tile pattern on an old table. Just be sure to wear your safety goggles and gloves when you break them.

Cash for Cartridges: So, you’ve accumulated a pile of old print cartridges because you know better than to throw them away. Take them to a cartridge recycling center for some hard cash.

Change is Good: Is your penny jar filling up? While cash may be a good investment these days, consider turning those coins into something you can use. Take it to your local grocery store and exchange it for bills. But beware of the fee. If you have the time, take it to your bank and do the extra work of putting it into rolls.

A Novel Idea: So you’ve read that book 3 times, but are tired of seeing on the shelf. Sell the book for cash or credit at your local second hand bookstore.

Rags to Riches: When it comes to cleaning the closet, follow the golden rule: If you haven’t worn it in a year, toss it. And you already know you can earn some cash by taking last year’s fashions to the consignment store. But if you’re feeling sentimental about parting with that old t-shirt you got for signing up for a credit card in college, consider making a quilt with those old duds. Basic quilting is easier than you think, and is an inexpensive way to add some color and warmth to your home.

Button It Up: We know the drill. Every time you buy a new sweater or coat you toss that extra button in a jar. The sweaters may be long-gone but those buttons are still taking up space on the shelf. Why not think about that button collection the next time you hit the crafts store. Those buttons are perfect for adding flare to a scrapbook album cover or picture frame.

Dog Gone It: Have a pile of mismatched socks at the back of the dresser drawer? Give those socks new life by transforming them into doggie toys. Forget those costly trips to the pet store. An old sock stuffed with a tennis ball can keep your dog happy for hours.

Pass It On: Has your child outgrown that toy from last year? Instead of throwing it away or storing it on a garage shelf, donate the toy to your local Goodwill, Salvation Army or Purple Heart. Or, hold a toy swap party with friends whose kids are of similar ages. You’ll eliminate clutter and surprise another child with a “new” toy.

¹ http://www.heloise.com/

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