There are many things within a household that can be seen as rubbish or unnecessary clutter, but are they really? The saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” isn’t just hearsay. It really does mean that others see something more in things that you may see as just clutter. There are many things you may have lying around that you can use for other purposes, here are just some of them:
Tin Cans
If you have a lot of canned goods around the house and you’re constantly recycling them, that’s good. But you could always use them for storing little trinkets and baubles you might have lying around. Wash and rinse them thoroughly and use them to house some of the tiny things you want to keep, such as buttons and pencils. You could even use them to hold your cooking utensils! They’re very versatile and they’re durable so you don’t have to worry about having to constantly replace them. If you’re big on arts and crafts, you can turn this into a fun exercise and come up with different ways to decorate your tins. Glue sequins and felt cutouts on, or paint geometric shapes onto the surfaces. Unleash your inner creator.
Binder Clips
Very useful for when you’re wanting to keep a stack of papers together and orderly, binder clips are a lifesaver at times. But they also have other uses, and one of them is for cord organising. Today, electronics rule our lives, with laptops and phones taking up a lot of our attention. It’s easy then, for cords to get tangled and knotted, and that’s where the clips come in. Simply attach the clips to the side of a table and thread your charger through the clip. This also makes it a lot easier to move the cord around, since all you have to do is just pull it from its resting place on the clip and plug it in. All of this happens and nothing gets tangled in the process so if you don’t have a lot of papers to bind, repurpose them into charging ports.
Cleaning Supply Holder
Cleaning supplies tend to take up a lot of room within a cupboard, so you might want to start looking for ways to ensure more cupboard room. One way to do this is to use a tension rod. It could be the one you used to use in the shower, but was made redundant recently. You can then just hang your sprays in whatever order you wish. You could even take it a step further and section them in terms of what surface and what room to use it in. If you want them out of the way, you can still store them in a cupboard along with the rest of the items you use everyday.
Frames
If you’re looking to replace one of your photo frames, you might be able to find another use for it so don’t get rid of it just yet. Jewellery can always go missing, since you have to account for so many different bits and pieces. For larger accessories such as necklaces, bracelets and hair accessories, you can always hang them on hooks you can screw into your old frames. That way, you can display them out in the open and pick whichever one you want to wear for the day. It’s a handy way to recycle a frame that you would typically throw away upon it outliving its use. However, this way, you don’t have to go out and purchase a jewellery box specifically for your baubles, since they can get pretty pricey.
Food Jars
When you find that you’ve bought one too many food jars, or you’ve used up all the spices or dried food in the jar, don’t leave it lying around. Reuse it as a hair accessory holder. If you’re a hoarder of scrunchies and jeweled hair ties, then your newly emptied food jar is the ideal spot to gather your things together. If you have multiple jars that have been recently emptied of all food and snacks, you can even categorise your accessories, from scrunchies, to larger hair clips, to bandanas. Don’t limit yourself to just using it for hair products, use them for other things, such as stationery, dog treats, maybe even as a thread jar.
Garage Space
People rarely think of garages when they think of storage around the house, and yet everyone uses theirs for housing little bits and bobs here and there. Some even use it to house furniture if it’s large enough. Although you can use it for storing your vehicles when you’re not using them, you could always rent it out and earn a little extra money. Otherwise, it can be set up as a guest bedroom, an office, or even a workshop. You have plenty of ventilation when you need it, and it’s attached to your home, so you won’t have to travel very far at all.
Some items might be a bit big to repurpose, such as a bookcase or large cupboard. You could always try, however you might find that it ends up gathering more clutter than it does alleviating it. Larger items can always be put into storage, so that it’s one less thing to worry about. Although many of these products predominantly have one use, they’re really versatile and you’ll find that a lot of them can be used for things you may not have even thought of. It’s up to you to decide how you want to use these products. Be creative about it and find new ways to use household items traditionally used for other purposes.
Contributed by Irene Gotley, Content Manager at Spacer.com.au and Parkhound
