Organizing...part 3: the Junk Box

"To invent you need a good imagination 
and a pile of junk." 
~Thomas Edison.

Now you know why we "own" a "junk box." Before I tell you how and why I needed to organize it I'll answer this question, "So, what exactly is IN a junk box?"

A junk box is a great way to go green and have things on hand when you need them. There are lots of opportunities for kids (and adults) to reuse things around the house. Those are the things we put in our junk box.  Reusing things is really useful for art projects too.

I have to tell you something that I think is so ironic. My kids think that the JUNK box is a TOY box! They love going through it pulling containers out and filling them up and sorting things. They think it is a bit of a treasure chest-they never know what new treasure will be inside!

Here is what the Junk Box looked like before This Little organizing Project:


And here it is after:


Here are the little handies I used to organize the junk box.
They are called "Tidy Totes" (Blink brand) and I found them at the Dollar Tree in 2 different states, so hopefully you can find some too!  They come with 4 mesh draw-string bags inside.  Yup.  That makes each bag a whoppin' twenty-five cents!  That fits in perfectly with the whole junk box theory :)  PLUS, they are mesh so you can SEE what is inside them!

I used one bag for each category: paper, plastics, containers, fibers, wood.

So what exactly is in our Junk Box?  Hopefully this will give you some ideas for your own junk box (and yes, everything is cleaned first!)

Containers: yogurt cups, frosting cans, diaper wipes containers, mayo jars, baby food jars, powerade bottles, soda caps, etc.

Paper Items: cereal boxes (broken down), paper bags, old magazines, used envelopes, toilet paper and paper towel rolls, discarded paper, etc.

Fibers: worn-out or grown-out-of socks and clothes (great for puppets and other fabric scrap needs), towels, shoelaces, scraps from sewing projects, pieces of yarn, etc.

Plastics: bubble wrap, cool colors of wrappings or foil, potato bags, dry cleaning bags (these make nice drop cloths), etc.

Woods: reusables in any shape

{Little Project Tip:} For your junk box, decide how much space your junk box can take up in your house. That is all the "junk" you can keep. Everything else has to go to the recycler or be given to charity. That way your junk box won't get out of control.
Having a limit will also motivate you to use what you have already in it.

If you need more motivation, check out THIS LITTLE PROJECT that I made from reusables this week! (I'll post it tomorrow!)

So, encourage inventiveness: "OWN" a junk box. If you don't already have one that needs to be organized, you can start this Little Project today ;)

2 comments:

Be Brave, Keep Going said...

great post!

everyone needs a junk box!!

Smullin Family said...

I love my mesh bags (also purchased at the Dollar Tree- in Idaho) to organize on trips. Things I put in them: toletries/meds, snacks, underwear/socks, swimsuits, etc. They are awesome! Keeps my suitcase from becoming one big heep.

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