As much as we hate 'em, plastic in all its forms is a great candidate for home recycling: Plastic lighter than glass bottles; and won’t shatter if you accidentally drop one. It’s easy to see what’s inside, if the container is clear; if not, you can easily write the contents on it with a marker.
Despite all my best efforts, I seem to accumulate plastic bags more than any other type of plastic. Why this is so I'm not sure, but I do work hard at recycling it. Here are some of my ways of dealing with plastic bag.
When I bring home any produce in plastic bags, I wash and dry these and bring them with me when I go shopping for my veggies, fruit and nuts and beans. A lot of produce now comes in resealable plastic bags. Once these are empty, you can reuse them in countless new ways after you’ve washed and dried them; for example, to store your silver cutlery to reduce tarnishing. This also works for your silver jewellery. Or you can organize your embroidery threads by colour in separate resealable bags.
Plastic milk bags are strong and great for reusing. Just cut off the tops and wash them. Then reuse them to store food or sandwiches. Send your college kids their favourite soup and cookie ingredients in these bags as they are very strong and will survive mailings.
It’s easy to turn plastic grocery bags into beads. You use the same technique that you would use to make beads from paper. Cut a triangle out of the plastic bag and roll this triangle up from the broad to the narrow end over a wooden toothpick or skewer (this leaves a space for threading a string through). Do the first roll up without applying glue; then unfurl the bead, apply the glue (white craft glue) and roll it up again. Like paper beads, you can leave the bead like that or apply a layer of lacquer.
You can turn a bunch of plastic mesh produce bags, the ones that hold potatoes, onions and oranges, into instant pot scrubbers that last forever (not surprising!!). Scrunch a few of those mesh or net bags together with a recycled elastic band to make an scouring pad that won’t scratch your pots and pans. You can also use these to scrub out your bathtub and sinks without leaving a scratch. You’ll never need to buy another pot scrubber again. If you only have one or two of these mesh bags, insert a kitchen foam sponge inside one for scouring pots and pans.
These mesh bags also make excellent exfoliators in the bath. Stick in a bar of soap inside one, tie with a pretty ribbon, and scrub away!!
Mesh bags can also be used as storage bags for the bathroom and other areas. Use the bags to store bath toys, or use them to carry toiletries to the gym. Put a bar of soap in a mesh bag and hang it near an outdoor faucet and use it to wash up after dirty outdoor jobs.
Save the plastic zippered packaging that blankets and mattress pads come in and use it to hold seasonal bed blankets and linens.
Why waste money on plastic sandwich bags when you get them free from various purchases? Clean and dry then reuse these plastic bags for luncheon sandwiches and snacks.
Years of working for a hi-tech company provided me with loads of large, tough, zip-lock plastic bags (from computer parts) for storing seasonal sweaters and footwear and almost anything small that needs storage.
A fun idea - turn dry-cleaning bags (you'll need about 4 of these bags or you can use plastic grocery bags - around 8) into wreaths during the holidays. They’re weather-proof, light weight, easy to store, your can reuse them over and over, and your friends just love getting them. Great classroom activity, too.
