...you wash your plastic bags and hang them on the line...
...and save your twisty ties.
Disclaimer: It is not deemed safe to wash and reuse plastic bags that have held meat or cheese. I actually follow this rule because spending money on doctor's bills wouldn't be thrifty if it can be avoided.
I actually wash my plastic bags but don't have a line to hang them on. Does that make me a semi-Mennonite? :0)
ReplyDeleteNot Menonite but I do both LOL : )
ReplyDeleteI do the same - I do you one better - I even save empty bread bags-sometimes baggies are to spendy and not on my budget that month-all depends. bread ties come in handy so does all string ,shoe strings and other wise and no I'm not a hoarder- I use to be but when my oldest sons came home to roost because this lousy economy no-one can make it on there own not what employers are paying these days they don't make anymore than my husband did 40 years ago. now I got off on a tangent- I was saying that made short of my hoarding-I guess I agree- if I don't remember I have it -why keep it--I donate it-but now those 2 have become scrappers oh lordy--you should see the crap now!
ReplyDeleteI guess I'm Mennonite then!
ReplyDeleteHa--this is awesome because I do so many similar things:) The picture of the wash line with your house in the background is just lovely!
ReplyDeleteI'm not Mennonite but I do wash our and reuse plastic bags, save twist ties, and ask for scrap lumber and paint cans whenever I see remodeling projects. The paint cans will be crafted into cubbies for craft supplies and luminaries for summer evenings. I love seeing how we can repurpose what might be otherwise thrown out. The more we save, the more we have to give!
ReplyDeleteMy wife just gave me a strange look when I told her we might be part Mennonite.:) You know you might be a redneck from Idaho if you are still re-using bags that have the date of 2007 hand written on them.
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm, I know I don't have Mennonite background, though my parents are both from Holland. I have washed and hung my plastic bags like this. I think hubby still thinks I'm a bit crazy for doing it, but he doesn't say anything anymore. In the winter I dry them on my laundry rack!
ReplyDeleteLOL I have a half-pint jar full of twisty ties. If you don't, you can't find one when you need it!
ReplyDeleteWe've almost entirely stopped using plastic baggies, but I've been known to rinse out the one that holds bread and reuse it over and over and over again. But I've never hung them on the line.
bwah ha ha ha. I don't have any Mennonites in my family, but my Grandma has washed out and reused plastic bags for as long as I can remember. And I save the twist ties, too :)
ReplyDeleteI always wondered what my background was... Now I know... I'm Mennonite! I also save peanut butter jars, mayo jars, etc.
ReplyDeleteNope, don't do either of those! I don't use as many plastic zipper bags as I used to, when I do use them it's mostly for meats and cheeses. I did notice the clothes pins though, those I use frequently, they are awesome as bag clips, and many other uses, besides hang things on the line!!!
ReplyDeleteGiggles well guess I mustbe Mennonite too, lol I do all the above, to me that is frugal, and a way to save. Hugs have a blessed day.
ReplyDeleteHa! Me, too! Mennonite all the way (of the Canadian Prairies variety). My family's favorite Mennonite Joke:
ReplyDelete"Know how copper wire was invented?"
"Two Mennonites fighting over a penny."
We also tend to find unusual uses for single socks, plastic shopping bags, walnut shells, and worn out jeans...
This is funny. There is actually some magazine (can't remember the name) put out featuring Mennonite/Amish crafted merchandise. You can purchase a wooden "plastic bag tree" with lots of little limbs to dry your bags on :)
ReplyDeleteBec
Love this post - I'm afraid I'm guilty of throwing both away (even though I'm quite thrifty in most areas). Lovely picture - your home in the background is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteMr H's comment made me laugh... Cute post Thyhand!
ReplyDeleteI do the same thing! I am sure my neighbors think I am weird but I'm saving money! :)
ReplyDeleteI do wash those plastic bags and re-use them too...I have hung them on the line, but at the moment they would just fill with water out there! :) (P.S. I have no Mennonite blood in me...but I do love the LORD!) :)
ReplyDeleteHave a happy day!
Blessings,
Camille
My grandmothers from Kansas did this as well as wash the plastic from cheese slices, save the rind from bologna, and wash aluminum foil. You brought back memories today.
ReplyDeleteHaha! I had no idea I was Mennonite!
ReplyDeleteAn aquaintance in California, uses a wooden dowel that fits on a stand and has holes drilled in it for smaller dowels to hold plastic bags. He just might be Mennonite and didn't even know it.
ReplyDeleteI have a little plastic sock drying device that hangs from a shower rod over my dryer. It has about 15 clips on it and I hang my plastic bags there to dry after washing them. I must be Mennonite too! :)
ReplyDeleteI have an actual bag dryer, thanks to my sister who found it for sale at Lehman's! But YES I wash my bags and save my twisties and YES I am proudly Mennonite :)
ReplyDeleteI HATE washing my plastic bags. But I'm a good little Mennonite girl so I do it anyways. I know it's wrong, but sometimes I want to be congratulated.
ReplyDeleteAlso--I reuse cheese bags! I had no idea I shouldn't!
I had to laugh at all of these comments. We always saved everything because, as I told the cashier once, "we were recycling before it was cool." Because we had to! My favorite use for bread bags was in the winter. I'd inwardly groan when we got ready to go out and play, but after our thick socks were on, Mom would put bread bags over our feet. Made the boots go on and off lickety split, and our feet were always completely dry.
ReplyDeleteNot Mennonite, but I do both too :)
ReplyDeleteMennonite background, and YES, we wash and reuse our ziplocs. Meat and cheese too, going on 17 years now and no sign of food poisoning. I don't think reusing these bags is any more dangerous than reusing your cutting board, as long as you're not too thrifty with the soap and water!
ReplyDeleteNot Mennonite but have German and Scottish background so may be Mennonite there some where. I wash and hang the baggies on the clothes line. It has been so hot here I wonder if it's safe to reuse the plastic that has been in extreme heat. Love your blog!
ReplyDeleteDebbie in Oklahoma
I wish I was educated on what a Mennonite believes, I am always want to know this things.
ReplyDeleteHere is a really helpful website that may help you understand our beliefs. First and foremost, though, we're followers of Jesus.
Deletehttp://www.thirdway.com/menno/?Topic=23|Basic+Beliefs
Hurray!
ReplyDeleteI was wondering what I was. Now I know.
I also reuse my soft drink plastic cups from "C stores." Most stores will honor each others's cups at refill prices. My goal is to reuse it 5 times before I throw it away. Love the refill price as well as being as green as possible with styrofoam cups!!
Love your site.
When My daughter told me about someone who was doing this I just laughed but now I am doing it too. Lol.
ReplyDeleteI glued clothespins under my upper kitchen cabinets to hang plastic bags on. I do have some Mennonite ancestry LOL.
ReplyDeleteA Mennonite in Dhaka, Bangladesh! and yes, we do wash and dry our plastic bags! Our quick seal bags from the U.S. are quite wore out before they are discarded!
ReplyDeleteI tie a string between the cabinets one either side of the sink and hang up the bags there so they can drip dry into the sink. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only "strange" person who does this!!
ReplyDelete