5 packaging materials that can be reused

What do you do with all the cardboard boxes, bubble wrap, packing peanuts, newspaper and plastic bags laying around your house after you have unpacked? Reuse them. With little to no cost, you can reuse the most popular packing materials, turning transport protection into decorations, cushions and more!

Reusing Cardboard 

• Decorate the outsides of the cardboard container and then sit it on its side and store books and magazines in it, creating a small stand alone book shelf perfect for any room.
• Use as a chemical waste receptacle in the garage, storing oil and paint in the box to avoid staining your garage floor.
• Send gifts to loved ones in both small and big boxes, and evade paying package fees at the U.S. Post Office.
• Sell online or advertise at a local college for students who are always moving in and out of their dorms.
• Give to your child who can make a fort with the boxes, becoming lost for hours in their imagination.

Reusing Bubble Wrap

• Waterproof material, bubble wrap is perfect for wrapping wet plants.
• Use the plastic air-filled material to ship food since it will keep fruits and vegetables from getting bruised.
• Relieve stress by playing with it! Popping the individual bubbles can help you relax after hours of unpacking.

Reusing Packing Peanuts

• Create a cushion for your pet by filling up an old pillowcase with the material and sewing it closed.
• Use as a drainage system for your plants, putting the white foam in the base of the plant so water slowly seeps in.
• Decorate with packing peanuts, painting them and using them as stamps or gluing them to a table cloth.
• Paint them different colors and then spray them with your favorite perfume, and create a potpourri jar of peanuts.

Reusing Newspaper

• Save on paper towels and use the paper to clean windows or glass.
• Get creative and wrap gifts with it. There is nothing better than getting a present wrapped in comics!
• Burn it in the fire place along with fire logs to keep warm in the winter.
• Use it as a liner in your refrigerator drawers since it will absorb liquid and odors.

 Reusing Plastic Bags

• Place a plastic bag in your glove box in the case someone you are traveling with becomes car sick.
• Use as small trash can liners, keeping your receptacle free of any sticky residue you throw away.
• Wrap your paint brushes in a plastic bag after you have washed them, letting them dry in the bag until you use them again.
• Go green and reuse plastic bags when you go shopping. Why come home with more plastic bags that are bad for the environment when you can simply reuse the ones you have?  

With so many other ways to reuse packing materials, there is never an excuse to toss them to the curb, which is bad for the environment. If worse comes to worse and you don't know what to do with them, store them away for your next move and save yourself money in the future from having to purchase them again.