50 Unusual Uses for Usual Things

So speaking of recycling and upcycling here are some ideas of things that you can do with stuff you already have. Note: I'm not saying that I have tried all of these things, but they are kinda fun.

Use tea to freshen your toilet. Save the plastic hanger from those fake smelling toilet deodorizers, but swap out the insides with a tea scent of your choice.

Use a toothpick to mark the end of tape. Don’t you just hate the time you waste trying to find the end of clear tape? To make it easier after each use, place a toothpick under the loose end. The next time you have something to seal, pick up where you left off.

Protect your hearing with these nifty tennis ball earmuffs.

Sandpaper as a scissors sharpener. When your scissors go dull, just use them to cut through sandpaper a few times and they will be sharper.

6 Unusual Uses for Tooth Paste: Stop itching bug bites and minor rashes, clean up Kool-Aid stains, sooth minor burns, clean ivory piano keys, remove smells from your hands, spot clean your shoes.

Use a candle to release a stuck zipper. Olive oil may also do the trick.

Give yourself a one-of- a-kind manicure with stamps. I like this one a lot because I like being different. Find some interesting stamps with the same or alternating patterns, trim and apply.

When you don’t have a tea ball for your loose leaf teas try a household stapler and some tissue paper.

Once that tissue box is empty you can use it to store plastic bags.

Give yourself some room on the road by installing a conventional fold-out ruler, apply something shiny and reflective and strap it to the back of your ride.

Use Spaghetti as a candle-lighter. Just light the end and put a stop to burnt fingertips.

5 Unusual Uses for Old CDS: mini hovercraft, disco ball, lamp, “q-ball” and sculptures.
28 Unusual Uses for Coca-Cola: (Really!? I’ll never drink the stuff again!) clean a toilet bowl, remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers, clean corrosion from car battery terminals, cook, loosen a rusty bolt, bake a moist ham, remove grease from clothes, clean rust in a bathtub, clean milk stains from clothes, make barbecue sauce, prevent an asthma attack, relieve constipation, prevent diarrhea, condition hair, fertilize azaleas or gardenias, clean eyeglasses, clean tarnished pennies, strip paint off metal patio furniture, get rid of fruit flies, boost a compost bin, prevent flatulence, relieve an upset stomach, kill slugs or snails, mousse hair, sooth a jellyfish sting, clean blood stains from clothes, soothe a sore throat, neutralize skunk odor.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle....Upcycle

Some call it a hot new green innovation others brush it off as a hipster moniker for recycle, but whatever you call it “upcycle” is something that deserves attention.

Upcycle is a term coined by William McDonaugh and Michael Braugart in their book on ecologically intelligent design, Cradle to Cradle. In the simplest terms, upcycling is the practice of taking something that is disposable and transforming it into something of greater use and value.
What makes upcycling standout from recycling is that it takes a bit of ingenuity. Recycling basically takes trash and completely changes it into something new. When we reuse we take the original item and give it a different purpose, like using a glass milk bottle as a vase. Upcycling repurposes materials that are not easily recycled into something useful or art.

But upcycling isn’t anything new. Marcel Duchamp took ordinary objects and turned them into what he called “found art” in the early 20th Century. Now as we find ourselves painfully aware of the amount of waste we generate it is somewhat soothing to think of new ways to use waste. Sure it’s better not to generate the waste in the first place, but unfortunately there is already so much.





TerraCycle is one of several companies striving to make a profit while helping mother earth and her inhabitants. Founded in 2001 by a Princeton University Freshman, Tom Szaky, TerraCycle upcycles otherwise non-recyclable materials to make useful items such as bags, wrapping materials and even shower curtains.


Etsy, the place for all things handmade, ran a crafty contest earlier this year to encourage upcycling.

To get your upcyle inspiration and experience some of Denver's most creative upcycle artists visit the Green with Envy:ReCycle, ReInvent, RePurpose exhibit opening this weekend at the Tactile Textile Arts Center in Tamarac Square.



images: Bicycle Wheel by Marcel Duchamp, TerraCyle bag made from cookie packaging, newspaper beads by Etsy artist janicemae, light made from soda bottles by Upcycle Art.

How to Opt Out of Phone Books

I came home last Friday to find an unwanted visitor at my front door. I chose not to acknowledge the visitor and left it at the doorstep. Later, I went out of the house and again ignored the visitor. My husband came home and walked right passed the visitor. He later went out without notice to the visitor. My son came home and stepped right passed the visitor. My youngest came in and gleefully picked it up and set it on the kitchen table with pride. Who or what was this unwanted arrival? The phone book, of course.

I guess once upon a time ago the phone book was a welcomed arrival. Today it's a waste of paper, energy and space in my house. Is there a way to put a stop to this madness?? Maybe.

Earlier this month Idearc Media LLC (Pink Sheets:IDARQ), creator Superpages.com, the Verizon Yellow Pages and SuperpagesDirect announced that Opt-Out language indicating a web address and phone number would appear on the cover of all of their publications. Well, maybe they haven't gotten around to clarifying that text in time for September distributions. I looked at my Verizon Super Yellowpages and found this phrase: Order any directory anytime by calling 1-800-888-8448. I couldn't find any specific directions for opt-out, so I called the number.

Once you dial the number choose selection #2-Question regarding the delivery of your directory.

After holding for several minutes I finally was helped. The customer service rep kindly administered my request with basic information. Of course she did her job by trying to explain the benefits of the book and suggesting other products, but was not pushy.

Another opt-out list has been created by a grassroots organization called YellowPagesGoesGreen.org.

...an organization working to educate consumers and promote the green movement to eliminate the unsolicited delivery of Yellow and White Pages books. This site is aimed at starting a national movement to solicit the White/Yellow Pages industry to proactively stop the delivery of books or to begin moving legislation to mandate the stoppage of this activity.

There is no real guarantee that these efforts will eliminate unwanted phone books. More curbside recycling services are accepting phone books. You can also check for recycling options at called www.earth911.org/. In the meantime my daughter has found use for our old phone books to add texture to her artwork.