The average New Zealander generates 3,200kg of waste every year. This comes from plastic utensils, food packaging and other items you don’t even realise you’re throwing in the bin.
While it’s true there is a growing awareness on proper waste disposal, we can always do more to help protect our environment and eco system.
If you’re looking to make some small changes to help (and save yourself some extra coins), ahead we break down how you can repurpose these 7 household items easily and effectively.
1. Cereal Boxes and Liners
Finished your favourite cereal? Don’t throw it in the bin just yet!
The inner lining of your cereal can actually be used to separate meats such as uncooked burger patties. Simply cut the inside liner into squares and place in between patties to save space in the fridge.
You can also use them to wrap baked goods like bread and buns to keep them protected in the freezer.
Ran out of piping bags? The inside liners are perfect as a DIY piping bag for your frosting! Simply rinse and dry the bag, spoon your mixture into a bottom corner, snip off the corner with a pair of scissors and start piping!
As for the cereal box itself, decorate it and use it to store items like mail, notebooks, etc. If you’re up for a DIY project, you can find out more uses of cereal boxes here.
2. Broken Jewellery
Spruce up your fridge by turning broken jewellery into fridge magnets! If you have any old brooches lying around or perhaps a pendant necklace with a broken clasp – turn it into a stylish fridge magnet!
All you need is a transparent strong-hold adhesive (or if you’re a more advanced DIY-er a hot glue gun), your jewellery of choice, craft magnets and a pair of pliers.
Check out the full tutorial by Health Home and Heart, here.
3. Tissue Boxes
Store your stash of plastic bags in empty tissue boxes to make space in your home. This clever craft by the Mad Russian Scientist on Youtube makes them pop up like tissues, perfect for grabbing with ease whenever you want to reuse them.
4. Glass Jars and bottles
The possibilities for upcycling glass jars and bottles are endless! Their sturdy material makes them the ideal household item to repurpose as they take decades (even centuries) to deteriorate.
Before embarking on your DIY project, start by cleaning out your glass jars and bottles by rinsing them and removing the labels.
For hard-to-remove labels, simply fill a pot with 3/4 of water and a squeeze of dish soap or baking soda. Place the bottles carefully and turn the stove on, letting the jars simmer until the labels come loose.
Carefully fish out the jars with tongs and let cool before washing with soap and warm water.
For the best DIY upcycled glass projects, check out this list by House of Handmade.
5. Paper egg carton
Save your egg cartons for a fun upcycling project with the kids. Not only is this an effective way for repurposing items in your home, but it’s also a great opportunity to bond with your family.
Check out this list put together by The Spruce Crafts for some upcycled egg carton inspos.
6. Socks
Give old mismatched socks a refresh by turning them into your next upcycling project. Use them for storage, DIY cleaning rags, as a sock bun and more. This list by Business Insider gives you 61 sock upcycling ideas to try!
Our personal favourite is the Aromatherapy Neck Pillow craft. All you need is a sock (long enough to wrap around your neck), uncooked rice, a needle and thread and an essential oil of your choice.
Check out this amazing Aromatherapy Neck Pillow tutorial by Adrianne Surian below for the full tutorial.
7. Toilet paper and paper towel rolls
Don’t miss out on some awesome ways you can reuse your toilet paper and paper towel rolls.
This household staple can be upcycled as a desk organizer, DIY bird feeder, as a seed starter and more!
Click here for 35+ upcycling ideas for your toilet paper rolls
Repurposing and reusing household items is a fantastic way to help reduce waste and make our homes more self-sufficient. So, next time you’re about to throw something out, stop and search for ways to repurpose it – the internet is filled with some amazing DIY-ers that have fun solutions for daily upcycling.
How do you repurpose items in your household? Tell us in the comments below!
Really didn’t think about toilet rolls being reused for seedlings . What a terrific idea. Definitely going to try this hack out especially as it is now Spring.