Upcycle those unwanted items
Our Cost of Living Campaign – Price Watch
AS INFLATION continues to rise, many are seeking ways to save on household items and reduce waste at home.
Confectionary experts at Wholesale Sweets are offering their top tips when it comes to saving cash with everyday items.
Although recycling is becoming more common in homes across the country, there are clever upcycling hacks which can save items like egg cartons and toilet roll tubes from being chucked away after one use.
Recycling these items into handy and practical storage solutions, home decor items or cleaning materials give them a new lease of life, while saving money.
Kathryn Hague, from Wholesale Sweets, said: “We want to find easy ways for those feeling the effects of price increases to save money in their homes.
“Taking something as simple as an old jam jar and finding new uses for it can help those pinching the pennies to look at the things in their home differently.
highlights the impact of rising bills on our readers
It is all about seeing those single use products and thinking about how you can use them in a new practical way.
MUGS
Dated coffee and tea mugs can be upcycled to become a brand new decor piece. With a lick of paint, turn your old mug into a brand new planter for herbs and small succulents. Alternatively, use them as storage for makeup or hair brushes.
CANDLE HOLDERS
Candle holders are often very pretty and large enough to store a good amount of trinkets.
Save money on essential work from home items such as pen pots by cleaning out your old candle holders.
Alternatively, reuse your favourite candle holders by popping in a new candle. Small pillar candles and tea lights are much less expensive and can be used as refills.
One way to get rid of stubborn wax is to pop the candle into your freezer for several hours.
Once removed, the wax should pop out in one piece, it may need a bit of encouragement from a butter knife. Wash with warm water and soap to remove and residue and you have a brand new storage space!
OLD T-SHIRTS AND TOWELS
Avid cleaners can save lots of money on cleaning equipment
by reusing old clothing items and towels as cleaning cloths.
This is a super simple hack which takes no prep, just adding any old garments into your cleaning stash and use for
mopping up spills, buffing your car or wiping down glass.
GLASS BOTTLES
Create beautiful home lighting decor by reusing some of your favourite glass bottles.
Wine, gin and rum bottles often work well for this, simply wash out the bottle and feed in a string of battery operated lights into the opening at the top.