Reuse, Renew, and Refresh: In the Kitchen
Body
Tired of the disposable lifestyle? It’s expensive and wasteful. Here are 10 simple ways to get longer life out of the things in the kitchen.
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- When tomato sauce turns a good plastic container pink, fill it with warm water, drop in one or two denture-cleaning tablets, wait 20 minutes, and rinse. (The tablets also work well for cleaning toilets.)
- Refresh household sponges by soaking them in cold salt water for ten minutes. You could also cut large sponges in half. This makes them last twice as long.
- If you spill red wine on a tablecloth or carpet, sprinkle the stain liberally with salt and leave it alone until the salt turns red. Then shake out and wash the tablecloth or vacuum the carpet.
- Pull a clean cotton sock over your hand to wash or dry the dishes.
- Got unsightly silverware? Polish it with the juice of a banana skin pureed in a blender.

- Go to the butcher to buy your meat or poultry; it’s wrapped in paper instead of encased on layers of plastic and often Styrofoam, plus it’s usually fresher and you can get the quantity you need.
- An old trash can or barrel makes an ideal potato garden. Make sure the can has a few holes in the bottom for drainage.
- Put those reusable shopping bags in the car so that you use them.
- Spritz any cleaning solutions directly onto a cloth or towel; this is more efficient than spraying onto windows and countertops.
- Use clean, squeeze-type ketchup and mustard containers for decorating cakes. Their spouts are great for writing and drawing with cake icing.
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