by Gail Kavanagh

Created on: March 06, 2009

To save money, don't throw anything away if you can recycle or reuse it. Waste not, want not worked for your grandparents, it will work for you too.

Every time you buy something, ask yourself if the container or the packaging can be used for something else. What can you recycle? Almost anything, but especially plastic. Plastic drink bottles can be cut in half and the top used for pouring funnels that you can keep in the kitchen, the garage and the car, while the bottom half can be used for drink cups, plant pots or decorated for candy containers at parties.

Polystyrene boxes or packing have many uses. Packing beads can be used for stuffing bean bags, toys or cushions; large sheets of polystyrene can be used for yard sized decorations such as snowmen at Christmas, gravestones and skeletons at Halloween and for doll houses, castles and other toys; polystyrene boxes can be used for under bed or closet storage and growing plants.

Storage is easily taken care of if you save jars and dairy food containers. Used and cleaned jars will store dried foods like pulses, rice and pasta, and margarine containers with lids can be used to store foods in the freezer. Baby food jars will keep beads, pins, drawing pins, nails, screws and other small items under control. If you nail or screw the lids to the underside of a shelf, they will also be easy to access. Dried herbs and spices can be stored in baby food jars, cream cheese containers with lids and of course, when you empty a commercial jar of dried herb or spice, don't throw it away - refill it!

Kitchen waste can be recycled into good rich compost, so you can save more money by growing your own vegetables, but be careful what you tip into the compost heap. Only the cleanest, greenest left overs should be used, like the outside leaves of lettuce and cabbages, vegetable peelings and tea leaves. Do not use leftover meats, fish or greasy scraps of food unless you have a food waste digestor.

Rather than buy new clothes, recycle old clothes as patterns. Take them apart neatly at the seams and you have a durable pattern to make new versions of your favorite styles. Recycle old woollen garments by unpicking them and using the recovered wool to make new items such as squares to sew together for blankets, cushion covers and children's garments. Don't throw worn sheets away, use the good parts for pillowcases, cot sheets, bags and pot holders. Tear sheets into strips, plait the strips together and sew in a coil for handy floor rugs.

Our grandparents used to save buttons, zips and hooks and eyes from old recycled clothes to use for repairs or making clothes. This is still a good plan. While the shirt may be good for nothing more than a duster or oil rag, the buttons are usually still good and can be reused elsewhere. The same is true for bits of lace and trim which should not be discarded, but carefully removed and used in another project.

Look around your home and you will be surprised at the news uses you can find for waste items. Bind empty drink cans together with duct tape to form a square or round shape and cover with waste polystyrene sheeting and fabric to make a seat or footstool. Soak old newspapers in hot water to make papier mache and form into fruit bowls that you can paint in bright colors. Fill egg cartons with soil and start your seedlings. Cut the top and bottom off cans use them for cookie cutters.

Recycle, Reuse and Rethink - it can save you money, and save the environment as well.

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