Creative Re-purposing

When we talk about green organizing, one of the biggest principles we follow is re-purposing items you already own. They might not be working in their current role, but often, just giving an old item a new role gives it new life and helps to solve your organizing needs without spending any money, acquiring anything new, or getting rid of something old.

Here are some examples of re-purposing I've used with clients recently:

1) Taking a shoe shelf that wasn't being used in the closet and putting it by the front door where shoes were sprawled all over the floor (an example of simply relocating an item to where it's more useful).

2) Using an empty tissue box to corral a drawer full of empty plastic bags to be re-used. This example also saves lots of space. If you re-use plastic bags, containing them is very important and a tissue box works wonders to contain lots of bags in a small space.

3) Using rolling mesh bins being underutilized in a toy room to contain balls and other sporting goods in the garage. The rolling feature made them much more useful in the garage where they can be rolled out on the driveway for easy play. Their larger size also made them more useful for larger items like balls and water toys, rather than small items in a toy room.

Real Simple likes this idea of re-purposing so much that they have a regular feature in the magazine, a web page, and even a new book dedicated to New Uses for Old Things. Check it out for some creative solutions to common household issues. Some of the ideas I find a bit far-fetched, but some of them are absolutely brilliant...in any case, there's no doubt they will get you thinking!

Bottom Line: Next time you're re-organizing a space, think creatively about what you already own. You just might find you have what you needed all along. And don't be afraid to use things unconventionally - if it works for you, that's all that matters! What examples of re-purposing have you used recently?

Feel-Good Footwork

If you've been working on your fall closet switch or any closet de-cluttering project, you've no doubt uncovered some shoes you're not wearing and could be better used for another purpose rather than collecting dust in your closet. Usually, I send my gently used shoes along with other clothing donations to a local thrift store or Goodwill. However, it turns out there are other outlets for your unused kicks.

One of my favorite blogs, Unclutterer.com, recently mentioned a program called Soles4Souls. This organization, created after the tsunami in 2004, collects gently used shoes and distributes them to people in need all over the world. According to their web site, we (Americans) discarded more than 300 million pairs of shoes last year alone. So consider a green outlet for your under-used shoes, such as Soles4Souls. They have collection sites and events all over the country, so check out what's available in your area.

You may also have some well-worn athletic shoes kicking around your closet that you're wondering what to do with. The good news is, thanks to Nike's ReUse A Shoe program, they don't have to end up in the landfill either. This program accepts all brands of athletic shoes in any condition and re-purposes all parts of the shoes into material for athletic fields and courts...pretty cool! I was reminded of this program by an announcement for a community recycling event. The program routinely collects shoes at local events, but you can also check their web site for a drop-off location near you.

Bottom Line: Next time you uncover shoes that have been taking up space at the bottom of your closet, consider do-good donation options - it will leave you (and your closet) feeling good!

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