This one has no life’s lesson, no comparisons of carting in
plastic milk jugs from the van to carrying heavy loads in life, nothing
deep. Totally random. Hard for me to pinpoint why I even
jotted this down. I was
cleaning out my desk drawer with Bronwyn and I thought how lucky I am to have
so many implements at my disposal, so I made a list. You know I like a good list.
One of my favorite items I’ve used the past few years has been a
huge old dictionary that was falling apart. I started tearing out its pages to
recycle them and felt guilty, all that useful paper, still glued to its binding
for easy tearing out. So
I’ve used the pages for wrapping gifts, as a mat in my picture frame and as a
liner for my desk drawer. I’m
thinking scrap paper, you’d just have to use a Sharpie to make your message
show up. I also use maps
from our trips as background for our scrapbook pages and to wrap gifts. I know, I might be the type to file
them according to what part of the country they describe. And yet I’m really not.
We use Alfredo jars as glasses. Pint-sized jars for kids’
drinks. Perfect size. Quart bottles for Todd and other men who come
to dinner. No need for quite as many refills. I’ve also never owned
one of those cool glass cups that measure liquids, although I’ve always
secretly wanted one. I just grab a quart jar and can estimate pretty
accurately after so many years; lines are on the sides if we need to be sure.
An over-sized red tool box acts as our first aid kit. Large metal-framed hiking backpacks
from garage sales work as our 72-hour kits. We’ve also found regular old school
backpacks at garage sales for $.50-$1.00 for the kids’ kits.
My sister used to make and sell frames using scrapbook
paper. We have a huge
apple-type box full of all sorts of odd-sized scrap bits she saved for us that
is pulled out weekly for some project, whether a science fair tri-fold board,
gift tags, holiday pennants, shelf paper, liner for my desk organizer or
collages to cover composition books. A
true treasure box!
I still have four wooden placemats from our wedding—folk art
scenes—that I’ve always loved. They
became our backsplash above our cabinets; we’ve used them that way ever since
we moved into our first home 14 years ago.
Shoe boxes are a rare find in our house, and they’re
cherished. They hold
flashlights and batteries. Bronwyn
uses them to make lockers for her babies’ school days. I use them on the high shelf in my
kitchen cupboards to hold large spice containers and cupcake liners and for
corralling all the random objects we find when we’re cleaning up (Legos, Nerf
bullets, hair bobbles, you know the culprits). Like most parents, we recognize the
value in an especially large box and milk it for all its worth. They don’t sell toys that versatile.
Twine works well to hang Christmas cards with clothes pins on
either side of the hall, as well as kids’ artwork during the school year. And of course to wrap gifts. It’s like $1.38 at the farm
store. I hang hand-knit
baby sweaters and socks in our laundry room, same way. I also use clothespins to hold bags of
cheese or chips shut. I’m
sure most people do.
An ugly tiny address book that somehow ended up in our house
guards our passwords. Hated
to just give it away.
I have four push pins in my closet wall for my necklaces. If you read my post about my wardrobe
you’ll understand that I don’t own that many necklaces and why this works like
a charm.
Our Basmati rice used to come in these cool burlap bags with
handles. They are perfect
for gardening gloves, so I hang two by the back door in the garage. I have two others hanging in our mud
room closet: one for plastic shopping bags and another for my bread bags. Since we’re talking about burlap bags,
I’ve found huge ones for $.50 to $1.00 each at the local farm store. Cut to size, they make excellent place
mats and runners.
The socks and plastic containers and their lids have made some
sort of secret arrangement because no matter what I put in the dishwasher or
clothes washer, rarely do matches come out. So we use the left-over socks for
school whiteboards and to make rice bags. And for a grown-up version of the
matching game. For the days
when I can’t think of anything else to do. We use the lone containers to corral
nail polish and makeup in our bathroom drawers. Leftover lids are perfect plastic plates
when small guests come over because they’re just the right size and come with a
ledge. (You’ve probably
gathered I hate using paper products.) Like
most of you, we keep our Costco-sized sour cream and cottage cheese containers,
perfect for taking soup and a fruit salad to a sick friend; no dishes to have
to think about. Todd has
his screws and nails organized in those Costco nut containers with the
screw-top lids. I’ve asked
my friend to save her baby food containers (those little rectangle ones with
lids) for me. They are
perfect for lunches. They
hold peanut butter to dip apples, Ranch for carrots, or salad dressing for
Avery’s salads. We also
keep one in our mudroom especially for box-tops. No need to recycle these containers
quite yet; they all still have several good years of use in them.
Our safe not only holds our precious items, but also things like
Andrew’s gas money (he has very little self control), as well as the cord that
can link Mitchell to the internet. He
bought a computer for his room, but we guard his internet access. I know safes are generally for jewels,
but you know how many jewels I care about. Our precious items include our birth
certificates. Nothing too
crazy.
We use small flower pots for our toothbrushes and for silverware
when we have large gatherings. Saves
me setting the table. Speaking
of toothbrushes, I stick them in the dishwasher, along with everything from
sponges to the filters under our microwave. If I’m using all that hot water and
soap, might as well be efficient about it. No use scrubbing unless you have
to. Another thing about
toothbrushes. Just the
right size scrubbing brush to clean the toilet seat hinges, window sills, the
filter in my washing machine, and the cracks in my wooden table.
We were hiking behind King Henry apartments years ago in Provo and
happened upon an old tractor seat. It
and two seatmates hang on our entrance-area wall. Todd bought two outdoor lanterns that
he hung in our dining area. I
love the added dimension of rusty items that stick out a few inches. He also found an old rusted plow disc
that we used on our table filled with fall sticks and dried potpourri stuff,
later small boughs for Christmas. Now
it’s in the backyard screwed into a Christmas tree trunk from a couple years
back as a birdbath.
We get several boxes of apples and peaches from Utah every
fall. Most are plain white
and really sturdy, so I store all my gifts in my closet. Labeled of course: Friend Gifts,
Birthday Party Gifts, Family Gifts, and Baby Gifts. I love having an extra set of
“drawers.” We also use them
for our toy closet, so tidy with them all the same size. Larger cardboard boxes are for all the
bigger toys to keep them separate and labeled: puzzles, Duplos, baby clothes,
wooden train, baby toys. They’ve
lasted for years.
Todd’s parents inherited quite a large backyard of junk when they
bought their resort in Northern Minnesota 15 years ago. We loved hiking through the woods and
coming back with treasures. Our
favorite finds were old broken out windows. Todd put mirrors in about three that
we have hanging in our house. One
is cream-colored and still has glass. I
put scrapbook paper in old-fashioned browns behind the glass with pictures of
us and the temple and a quote for our bedroom. One we painted white for the bathroom;
the others are still peeling and chipped with brownish-reddish paint. We have one with no glass that gets
awesomely dusty and cobwebby hanging out in our garage all year, always in perfect
condition for Halloween decorating.
We especially love old wooden boxes, perfect for nightstands and
book shelves. Large rusted
cans hold magazines or plants. I
used an old soda bottle box for my spices; the slots were the perfect size.
I know it’s a little unconventional, but I guess I just can’t see
the point of wasting. And just because something is advertised to be used
in a given way shouldn’t limit its potential. So we keep our eyes open
and our items in case we find a way to use them down the road. Of course
we re-use plastic spoons and forks, even the ones from DQ Blizzards or Café Rio
meals. And the containers lunch meat comes in. And bags of all
kinds. Obviously bread bags are perfect for storing my homemade bread.
I wash out large zip-lock bags. I take my lunch in gift bags that are too
wrinkled to use again. I also have a small (used check) box that holds
used twist-ties and bread tabs. I suppose that’s all a little
over-the-top, although I’m not sure why everyone doesn’t. I’ve ironed
ribbon to use again. Printed paper napkins too. But I guess that’s
more than I needed to share. At least until we get to know each other a
little better. I’ll just let you get on with your day, perhaps leaving
you to scratch your head, wondering how on earth a girl could be so weird.
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