Many people have had the frustrating experience of packing for the airport only to discover they have no appropriately sized containers for carry-on liquids. Thanks to one woman's "awesome idea," however, that may no longer be an issue for travelers.
The scoop
TikToker No Waste Coffee Shop (@nowastegirl), who has more than 39,000 followers on the social media platform, shared how to turn old pill bottles into cosmetic travel bottles.
@nowastegirl Reuse pill bottles for travel bottles! be sure to not get paint inside the bottle or cap! #reuse #reusejars #sustainability ♬ Lofi - Domknowz
"First, start by removing the labels and making sure you wash everything out really, really well inside and out," she explained before beginning to sand the outside of the bottles to ensure they were smooth for spray-painting.
"You don't have to paint these if you don't want to. This is just my way of trying to make it look cute when you travel," she added, noting that she taped the top of the bottle and put tissue paper in the lid to avoid getting any paint inside.
This TikToker chose gray and white as the color scheme for her bottles.
"Put a label on it, and you're good to go," she said.
How it's helping
Avoiding a potentially stressful last-minute run to the convenience store is reason enough to get on board, but reusing the bottles also helps reduce plastic waste, which can trap or kill marine life and potentially ruin the vacationing experience at otherwise beautiful beaches.
According to the U.N. Environment Program, the bulk of plastic is made from dirty energy — the main factor causing the overheating of our planet — and less than 10% of the material gets recycled.
Pill bottles are a big part of the problem. Cabinet Health estimates that 165 billion bottles are thrown out every year, which is "roughly equivalent to filling over 3,300 Olympic-sized swimming pools," as reported by Business Wire.
Luckily, there is more than one innovative way to repurpose the pill bottles. Another TikToker uses them as ice packs, for example, while some organizations accept them as donations and get them to people in need.
What everyone's saying
The TikTok video received more than 800 likes, and commenters seemed keen to try the hack. Some suggested they'd love more ways to reuse the bottles, and others shared their own tips.
"I literally always feel terrible when I throw them away," one person wrote. "I wish we could reuse prescription bottles more."
"We use them for screws and nails, and so much more!" wrote another.
"AWESOME IDEA!!!" someone else added.
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