New Uses for Old Things
Fall makes me want to Martha Stewart my room and make pie. In my search for new ways to revamp my room, I came across a nifty slideshow entitled “50 All-Time Favorite New Uses for Old Things.” Most of the ideas are somewhat clever, but some are your usual design magazine suggestions (e.g. this-is-theoretically-cool-but-would-look-wack-in-someone’s-real-house). There were a couple ideas that made me go “ooh!!” so I thought I’d share them.
Favorite tip #1: “No more worries of camisoles and sundresses slipping off hangers when you wrap the ends with rubber bands.”
Genius. Usually I just flail helplessly at my shirts and hope they climb back onto the hanger, but this seems promising.
Favorite tip #2: “Make no-mess pancakes with the help of a ketchup bottle: Pour in batter, then squeeze out precise portions.”
This is such a cool idea but it totally weirds me out. I don’t know why pancake batter in a ketchup bottle seems gross to me.
Favorite tip #3: “Bridge the gap between too-short stems and too-deep vase by sliding on trimmed clear plastic straws.”
I give you… magic flowers that float in thin air! TA-DAH!!
Favorite tip #4: “Liberally apply cooking spray to both sides of a plastic or metal shovel before clearing away snow, and ice will slide right off instead of building up.”
This is especially handy for those times I shovel snow and then eat it.
Favorite tip #5: “Attach a magnet to the inside of a metal medicine cabinet, and you can promptly pluck tweezers (or nail clippers) when needed.”
This is not a good tip if you have metal hands.
And finally… my least favorite tip: “A Twister game mat makes a spot-on tablecloth for a child’s birthday party: Sticky spills and icing wash right off.”
That’s great and all but… what about all the feet that have been there? Eeeew.
And the runner-up for least favorite tip: “Rubber bands give little fingers a better grip on a chilly or slippery glass.”
Because slippery glasses kill 4.8 people a year. True story.
Coolio! I could have used the tip about cooking spray when I shoveled snow in St. Louis. But now I don’t shovel snow anymore! Waha!
I liked the tip about using cork to silence cabinets that slam shut. I’ll buy a lot of wine to get the cork and then use the box to put shoes in!
‘Cause, you know, you have to shovel all that snow in California…