In some of the 50 states, plastic bags at grocery stores are a thing of the past. Many stores encourage reusable bags, but some shops have swapped the usual plastic out for paper bags, which are sturdy enough to carry your various food items but reusable in ways that make them worthy far beyond the supermarket.
Twelve states have regulations that limit single-use plastic bags, and in various cities, such as Boston and Seattle, there is a plastic bag ban. However, if you don’t have reusable bags and end up taking those paper ones home from the grocery store, there’s no reason to create waste by throwing them out; there are various ways to use them around your home. Reusing them as garbage bags, repurposing them as gift wrap, and even wrapping school textbooks with them are just a handful of obvious alternatives, but it turns out there are quite a few surprising ways you can put these leftover bags to even better use.
Fit them in drawers as liners
Drawer liners are often used to keep cabinetry in good shape; they act as a protective layer against the wood. The liners can also prevent utensils and holders from shifting around too much if the solid surface is slippery. Plus, if you choose a fun shade or pattern, they’re a creative way to add a little color to your kitchen without overwhelming the space, since the pops of color are only visible when you open and close your drawers.
Take leftover grocery bags, and measure them to fit perfectly inside of your kitchen drawers. You can leave them plain as-is, or use some nontoxic colored pencils or markers to create fun designs on the paper, mimicking the vibrant patterns of contact paper or liners. The end result is a sturdy, attractive drawer liner that didn’t cost you a dime. And the best part: You can change the liners as often as you want by just replacing the cutout grocery bags with newly-designed ones.
Crumple them up for odor removal
Did you know that newspapers prevent smelly plastic containers? They’re great for removing odors in general, potentially due to the carbon in their ink or their porous, absorbent nature. Paper grocery bags work for this purpose, too, especially if you add activated charcoal inside them, making them a cheap, easy way to prevent unwanted scents from wafting throughout your home. Specifically, they’re great at helping block odors in places like refrigerators.
Just crumble the grocery bags into balls, and place them in the drawers and on shelves in your refrigerator. Leave them to absorb scents over a few days, and you’ll be surprised at the difference they make. You could try them in garbage cans as well; place the crumpled paper at the bottom of the bin, or directly in the garbage bag, to help absorb smells that make their way to the surface.
Put fruit in paper bags for fast ripening
You might have heard of this trick, but if you’re not using paper bags to ripen your fruit, then you’re missing out on one life-changing kitchen and food hack. Nothing is more frustrating than going to the grocery store to purchase a fruit you need that day or the next, only to find that none of them are ripe enough to use as soon as possible.
Instead of throwing out the paper bag, add your fruit to it, roll the bag up to seal it as best as possible, and leave it be. Many fruits produce a gas called ethylene as they ripen, and when ethylene has nowhere to escape, it causes the fruit to ripen quicker. Paper bags are great because they trap the ethylene but still remain breathable, so they don’t trap as much rot-hastening moisture as plastic bags. This trick works especially well for fruits like avocados, bananas, and tomatoes, and it’s one of the greatest foodie hacks for ripening fresh peaches fast.
Gets crafty with them and make storage baskets
If you’re in the mood for an art project-meets-DIY activity, then try turning those brown paper bags into adorable storage baskets. The sturdy paper weaves together nicely, and while it does require some attention to detail, the end result saves you plenty of money on small storage baskets.
This is best done alongside a video or image tutorial, but the concept is fairly simple. Cut the brown bag into even-sized paper strips, and line the strips up in a row. Then, cut the same number of strips, but place them in the opposite direction of the first set. Weave the strips in and out of each other, which forms the outline of a weaved basket. Repeat this on four sides to create the four basket walls, then underneath, there should be a solid piece of paper. Pro tip: This is a great way to occupy kids while getting their creative juices flowing.
Cut them up for kid-friendly placemats
If you like taking the kids out to dinner because you know they’ll love coloring on the placemats, then just bring this tabletop activity right into your home. Cut the brown bags to take the shape of placemats, and while your young ones wait for dinner, keep them occupied by letting them draw pictures on them.
This encourages creativity, but it also means that the person cooking the meal can do so without constantly being asked, “Is dinner almost ready?” — a question perhaps all of us were guilty of asking as kids. Since the activity is meant to have a quick cleanup due to dinner being served, limit the coloring to just three or four basic crayons, so nobody has to spend time picking up the loose Crayola 64-pack when trying to serve a meal. Then, just crumple the placemats and toss them out or hang them on the refrigerator, depending on how the drawings came out.
