In the past I've used them to store thin plastic bags, like the kind grocery stores used to give free (before the plastic bag ban here) or flimsy produce bags. Tissue boxes really do well for storing the thin plastic stuff. You can continue to cram more and more in, and then they are still easily pulled out one by one, as you need them. But I can only use so many plastic bag dispensers in the house.
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| corralling my socks |
Here's what I've been using them for in this past one to two years -- organizers for my dresser drawers. I have three boxes for socks, organized into white socks, black socks, and assorted socks, one box for bras, one box for undies, and one box for tank tops.
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| tanks rolled up neatly and easy to find |
All of my "inner wear" are stored in one large drawer in the dresser. Previously, I'd try to keep the socks all together, the tanks in a stack, and undies and bras in their spots. But in real, everyday use, the socks and stacks got knocked around, and I spent way too much time each morning searching out a clean tank top. (I wear tank tops on all but the hottest of days as a base layer.)
So I made quick conversions of the tissue boxes into dresser organizers. This is such a game changer for my morning dressing and decisions on laundry timing. I know in a instant if I need to do a load pronto, and I can grab exactly what I need in seconds every day. I also think I'm getting just a little more into each drawer. For instance, rolled up tank tops store very compactly compared to folding and stacking. Ditto with undies.
The bonus is, I can transform the tissue box into a storage box in a minute, simply by pulling out the plastic opening stuff, cutting to each corner on the diagonal, then bending in each flap.
I tape down the flaps when I feel fancy, or leave them untaped if I want to just get the box formed and into the drawer. Boxes loaded with socks sort of hold the opening open.
Anyway, just my organizing tip for the day. What do you do with those empty tissue boxes?
Great use of the tissue boxes! We don't usually have them to re-use because we rarely buy tissues and instead just use toilet paper. But if we did, I like your plan.
ReplyDeleteHi Cat,
DeleteTP works. It's what we did for many, many years. And it never shocks me when I'm in someone's home and I ask for a tissue and they tell me they use TP. I now use a combo of handkerchiefs and tissues. I actually prefer the handkerchiefs, as they don't shed lint onto my face. But they do need to be washed really often.
My drawers are organized differently than yours, so I don't need the tissue boxes there, but they could be useful in other places. I will have to keep that thought in mind. I usually just recycle the empty boxes.
ReplyDeleteHi Live and Learn,
DeleteWhatever works, right? No sense fixing something that isn't broken.
Thanks for the idea! We recycle our tissue boxes.
ReplyDeleteHi Kris,
DeleteIf you keep a home compost bin, you can also tear the tissue boxes into pieces and compost them. Those boxes are usually very thin cardboard and break down fairly quickly.
Wow! I love this idea. My sons have pet rats and we save all cardboard boxes for them to cuddle up in and play with but now I may save some aside for my own use!
ReplyDeleteHi Amanda,
DeleteWow, you win "mom of the year" by okaying pet rats! My best friend in childhood had a pet rat, and she was surprisingly cuddly. I had a pet mouse about the same time. Anyway, using the tissue boxes for the rats is another good use.
I save boxes too! Nylons, socks, even as a drawer organizer for pens, paper clips, sticky notes, binder clips, rubber bands. All contained in an envelope box (the kind from work that contain 250 #9 envelopes). They fit nicely in a drawer and will close well. I might add a tissue box to my cupboard leaving the top dispenser on and pushing gently used ziploc bags inside because I need a place where they don't scatter all over. What good hints!
ReplyDeleteAlice
Hi Alice,
DeleteIt sounds like we're on the same wavelength. I had to look up what kind of box you're using for organizing. I can see how they would work well for organizing supplies in a drawer.
Another type of box to keep your eye open for is the shallow box that canned veggies are in on the grocery store shelves. They're big enough to hold 12 cans, but only about 1.5 to 2 inches tall. Those shallow boxes make great makeshift shelf drawers. I load them up with various cans in the pantry and pull the whole box out several inches to get just what I want.