10 Surprising Things You Can Recycle

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By Heidi Drake

We all know to look for the little triangles on the bottoms of plastic containers when we’re done with them, and more and more of us are trying harder to regularly recycle paper and aluminum too. But did you know there are a lot of other things around your house you can recycle or reuse? If we think of recycling as something beyond tossing a few things into designated bins for curbside pickup, there are a lot of ways the items we no longer have use for can find new homes or be reincarnated altogether. 10 cool and unusual things you have laying around that can be recycled:

10. Clothing. This one may not seem so odd, but many of us don’t utilize resale shops as much as we could by donating items we’re done with and purchasing gently used apparel. Keeping clothes that still have life left in circulation as long as possible just makes sense! Now, that may be easy when it comes to kids’ clothing and practical items, but ladies, what about those bridesmaid dresses and other formal frocks gathering dust in your closet? Make a high school girl’s prom night dreams come true by donating your old dresses to Operation Fairy Dust, a group that makes sure that girls who can’t afford a new dress get a chance to go to the prom in style.

 9. Cell Phones. Speaking of technology that can be hard to dispose of, raise your hand if you have an old cell phone or two laying around that you don’t use anymore. Just what we thought—that was a lot of hands! Sure, they do make good, cheap kid toys, but did you know that you can donate your old phone to a domestic violence agency? Now you can make your old phone a tax-deductible donation and most donations help fight a worthy cause.

8. CDs and DVDs. Those of us who still remember vinyl records and cassette tapes (OK, 8-track tapes too…) might have a hard time believing those high-tech discs that replaced them all are becoming obsolete themselves. But, the reality is that with MP3 and other digital formats, even CDs and DVDs are seen as “bulky” these days. Plus, what to do when one gets too scratched to use anymore? Don’t’ toss ‘em—they take over a million years to decompose! Send them to an electronics recycling company that also will destroy unwanted data for you.

7. Boxes and Gift Wrap. The holidays are coming sooner than you think, and if you’re anything like us, the thought of all that paper and plastic packaging makes you cringe. Avoid buying new gift boxes by keeping all those shoe boxes from school clothes shopping, as well as any others you think might hold a gift. (Feel free to flatten them to save space; you can always tape them back together later.) Then take the gift wrap you’ve saved (you don’t just throw it away, do you?), grab some glue sticks, and help your kiddos create their own fancy gift boxes. Let them cut shapes or strips, and mix and match paper for a unique box.

6. Holiday Lights. While we’re on the subject of the holidays, most of us have a bunch of lights boxed up in the garage somewhere, and each year we drag them out and find some that don’t work anymore. Now you can ship ‘em off to Holiday LEDs and receive a 15% discount on the purchase of new, energy-efficient LED lights.

5. Eyeglasses. When your prescription changes or your frames just aren’t the latest fashion anymore, don’t throw your unwanted ones away! Somebody somewhere can use them, and New Eyes for the Needy is committed to providing corrective eyewear to people who need them in the U.S. or elsewhere on the planet, in developing countries. They also accept hearing aids, giftware, and jewelry, or you can make a cash donation if you want to get involved but don’t have anything to send.

4. Crayons. Since this is a kid-oriented website, let’s start with one every parent battles. (C’mon… there aren’t really parents out there who don’t let their kids have Crayons, are there?) If you’re anything like me, once those little waxy sticks got too small or there were just too many on the floor, into the trash they went. But did you know this wax doesn’t exactly break down in our landfills and just sits there? Not a pretty thought. Now you can box up all those annoying little pieces and sent them off to be melted down and reshaped into fun-shaped, recycled crayons.

3. Towels. What to do with the stained towels and tattered baby blankets cluttering your house? Clean them up and donate them to your local animal shelter or humane society, where they can use them to dry wet critters after a bath or make cozy beds for them. Be sure to call first to see if they are accepting donations and find out how you can help.

2. Foam Peanuts. They may protect your fragile package, but foam peanuts have to be one of the most annoying things ever once they escape from the box! You can get rid of them without filling up your garbage can (or our landfills). Some are now made of vegetable starch and are non-toxic and biodegradable: if you put it in water and it disintegrates, you’ve got the earth-friendly kind. If they don’t, you can call The Peanut Hotline at (800)828-2214 for a list of places that will take them off your hands.

1. Trophies. We know you were really, really proud of that soccer trophy when you were 10, but how much do you need it taking up space in your closet? Make a kid feel like a winner by donating your old acrylic awards and trophies. Many organizations will create new art with them, to be donated to great organizations like Special Olympics. They accept any type of acrylic, and also use reclaimed wood and metal for their projects.

Think outside the recycling box! Type “Can I recycle…” (and whatever item you’re thinking of tossing) into your Google search box and find out if it may have a new life waiting for it somewhere.

Comments

[The Campfire Blog]

@IT-Green recycling,

Thanks for your comment!
I understand because I've been storing a shoebox full of old cell phones; the thought of just throwing them out was awful. So glad there is a resource to pass them along now!

The Campfire Blog

[The Campfire Blog]

@The Simplistic Mom,

Thank you for spreading the word because the more people that recycle, the better!

The Campfire Blog

[The Campfire Blog]

@Jen,

Here is more information to participate in the crayon recycling program: http://crazycrayons.com/recycle_program.html
We agree that it is a fantastic idea, thanks for your support and enthusiasm!

The Campfire Blog

[Jen]

Can you tell me where I can send the crayons for melting down into new crayons? (I'd also like to buy some!) Thanks

[The Simplistic Mom]

Great post, thanks for the info! I've posted a link so my readers can benefit as well. http://simplisticmom.blogspot.com/2009/10/great-recycling-ideas.html

[IT-Green recycling]

There's some interesting items in that list. I have to admit that it's taken us 4 years to get to the stage where we're in a position to recycle items 7 through 10.