The next time you have empty coffee jars, think twice before tossing them out.
Lifestyle digital creator Stephanie Larbey (@thecheshiregreyhome) shares an easy DIY hack for repurposing your jars into useful home items.
The scoop
Remove the product packaging and turn your coffee jars into cute containers for your matches with this genius trick.
Use a hair dryer to unstick the branded packaging from the glass jar. After a few minutes of applying the heat, the sticker should peel off without a problem.
Once the sticker is off the glass jar, fill a bin with warm, soapy water. Stephanie recommends adding some oil and bicarbonate soda to the bin, as it helps remove any remaining glue from the stickers. Scrub the coffee jars using a sponge, and set the jars out to dry.
After the jars are fully dry, use a pencil to trace around the opening of the jars on a piece of sticker match paper. Cut the circle piece of match paper out and adhere it to the bottom of the glass jar.
Simply fill your jar with matches, and you'll have a reusable matchbox made from old coffee jars.
"There are so many uses for these coffee jars, and this one was really easy to do," says Stephanie.
How it's helping
Stephanie's simple hack is helping Internet users find creative ways to repurpose old coffee jars. Instead of buying a new container to hold matches, Instagrammers can save money and use containers they already have in their kitchen.
By reusing and repurposing old items, you reduce the total amount of waste generated, helping create a cooler and cleaner planet. When items are not properly recycled, they end up in a landfill, releasing harmful, planet-warming gases.Â
Repurposing old items also helps decrease the demand for new products, which often rely on dirty energy throughout the manufacturing and transportation processes. As a result, the more you recycle and reuse household goods, the more you help decrease the amount of pollution entering the atmosphere.
Other ways you can repurpose old products is by sending unwanted items to organizations dedicated to sustainability, such as For Days, ThredUp, and Got Sneakers.
What people are saying
Instagram users were excited to see other eco-conscious individuals finding creative ways to repurpose empty jars.
"Great idea," wrote one user. "I reuse pots for my matches also."
"What a great idea – so simple but so useful," commented another. "Thanks for sharing."
"I use these coffee jars for Christmas gifts," wrote one user.
"So clever!" responded another.
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