Happy Earth Day!

Even though we only celebrate our planet once a year, it’s important to think green every day. I’m guessing your home is filled with stuff you’d normally throw away or toss in the recycling bin. Well, it’s time to change that way of thinking, and take a fresh look at your cast-offs to see how they could be reinvented in useful ways around your home.

For example, many first aid and health supplies come equipped with packaging that’s every bit as useful as the product itself (though in different ways, of course). Here are some examples of potential trash you can turn into treasure:

• Boxes from bandages and gauze. Save these boxes until Christmas rolls around, then wrap them like tiny presents and hang them from the tree. You’ll have one-of-a-kind ornaments for free!

• Cardboard rolls from gauze. Dismantle the nests of rubber bands in your junk drawer, and snap them around the reel.

• Plastic and metal boxes from throat lozenges. Use them to corral all kinds of tiny odds and ends, like buttons, nails, needles, paperclips, stamps…the list goes on and on.

• Reels from adhesive tape. Or any other kind of tape, for that matter. Wrap aluminum foil around them, attach a string, and hang them in your fruit trees and berry bushes to discourage fruit-eating birds.

• Any of the above. Turn it into dollhouse furniture. Just cover the box, reel, or roll with fabric or decorative paper, and presto! Depending on the size and shape of the object, you’ve got a bed, coffee table, dining table—or whatever your little interior designer desires.