Blogs | Makeover Tool | Share Slow-Cooker Recipes | Subscribe
Links We Love
  • Oatmeal with blueberries
    Kitchen Daily: 7 Hot, Homemade Breakfast Cereals
  • Woman sleeping in bed
    Stylelist Home: 7 Helpful Tips for Buying a Mattress
  • Winter gear
    ThirdAge: 5 Ways to Make the Most of the Winter
|
Real Simple | Life Made Easier, Every Day
       
make us your homepage
  • Food & Recipes
    • Browse All
    • Enhanced Recipe Search
    • Recipe Collections & Favorites
    • Cooking Tips & Techniques
    • Shopping & Storing
    • Tools & Products
    • New Uses For Old Things
    • Guide to Ingredients
    • Share Your Slow-Cooker Recipes
  • Home & Organizing
    • Browse All
    • Organizing
    • Cleaning
    • Decorating
    • Home Improvement
    • Gardening
    • Green Living
    • New Uses For Old Things
    • Decorating With Color
  • Beauty & Fashion
    • Browse All
    • Clothing
    • Shoes & Accessories
    • Skincare
    • Makeup
    • Hair
    • Makeovers & Tips
    • Clothing Care
    • New! Beauty Makeover Tool
  • Holidays & Entertaining
    • Browse All
    • Holidays
    • Weddings
    • Birthdays
    • Entertaining
    • Gifts
    • 50+ Creative Valentine’s Day Gifts
    • Digital Holiday Cards
  • Health
    • Browse All
    • Nutrition & Diet
    • Fitness & Exercise
    • Mind & Mood
    • First Aid & Health Basics
    • Preventative Health
    • Stay Healthy on the Go
  • Work & Life
    • Browse All
    • Money
    • Family
    • Life Strategies
    • Technology
    • Travel
    • Etiquette
    • Entertainment
    • Saving and Budgeting Basics
  • Magazine & More
    • Browse All
    • Inside the Magazine
    • Inside the Website
    • Newsletters
    • Real Simple Products
    • Real Simple Rewards
    • Books & Back Issues
    • Simply Stated Blogs
    • Subscribe
    • Give a Gift Subscription
    • Enjoy Real Simple on Your Tablet

New Uses for Old Things Hall of Fame 

  • PRINT
  • SAVE
  • COMMENT
  • SHARE:
  •      
  • Pin It
Shower cap used to protect shoesThayer Allyson GowdyPage 15 of 56

50 All-Time Favorite New Uses for Old Things

A giveaway shower cap becomes the perfect wrapper for shoes when traveling, preventing them from dirtying clothes packed in your suitcase.


Next: Brand anything as yours―books, binders, Tupperware, a stapler―with a return-address sticker.
Skip to Daily Finds slides.
Picture framed used as a vanity tray
Twister mat used as a party tablecloth
Toothbrush removing corn silk
Orange colander holding ice
0705water-tap-bangles
Coasters used as gift tags
Dinner set on a table.
Vegetable oil and patent leather shoe
Matchbox filled with sewing supplies
Six-pack box used as a condiment holder
Headphones in a cassette case
Cupcake with a candle held by a LifeSaver
Tissue box filled with grocery bags
Shower cap used to protect shoes
Book labeled with return address label sticker
Pitcher and glasses decorated with window decals
Camera in soap case
Mitten as a sunglasses holder
Paintbrush wrapped in plastic bag resting on open can of paint
Rubber bands wrapped around the ends of hangers
Binder clip as a key chain and money holder
Lampshade decorated with ribbon
Mouse pad protecting a kitchen counter
Foil-covered doorknob protected against paint
Straightening iron and dress shirt
Woman wearing plastic bags as knee pads
Pills stored in a contact lens case
Towel rack used as a toiletry organizer
Hair elastics binding flowers in a vase
Ketchup bottle as batter dispenser
Juice glass with rubber bands
Box packed with popcorn and gift
Manicure kit in a glasses case
Extension cord stored in toilet paper roll
Shoes stored in a wine bottle carton
Woman cleaning a cutting board with lemon
Cookbook protected by a plastic bag
Bobby pins bolding pleats in place while ironing
Play-Doh holding sparklers
Vase of flowers and a turkey baster
Kitchen cabinet with wine cork cushion
Snacks stored in plastic Easter eggs
Flower pot stuffed with plastic bag as filler
Bills organized in a napkin holder
Paint chips as place cards
Bouquet of flowers in a vase
Purses hung from shower curtain hooks
Can of cooking spray and a shovel
Tweezers in a medicine cabinet
Lollipop in cocktail

Most Popular Galleries

  • Ketchup bottle as batter dispenser

      50 All-Time Favorite New Uses for Old Things

  • Real Simple March 2002

      16 Before-and-After Room Makeovers

  • Heart to Heart Bow Tie

      Unique Valentine’s Day Gifts for Him

  • Verso Design Silmu Tablemat

      7 Decorative Trivets

  • Cheese Souffle

      Easy Recipes for Two

Hot Topic

What do you think about this article? Share your own solutions and ideas

View Earlier Comments
Advertisement

What's Hot

Halibut With Citrusy Tomatoes and Capers

5 Cool-Weather Dinners

Warm up with these quick, healthy, delicious dinner ideas.

  • How to Host a Swap Party
  • Stylelist Home: 10 Smart Organizing Ideas
Computer deskNew on the Web
Lindsay And Ed Battle For A Place In The 'Top Chef' Final Four
...
from Kitchen Daily on Huffingtonpost
FDA panel votes against wider use of Amgen drug
An advisory panel on Wednesday recommended that U.S. health regulators reject t...
from FOXNews.com
How About A Wig?
  Almost everyone in entertainment rocks some kind of fake hair, and ...
from ThirdAge
Jessica Cumberbatch Anderson: Is DIY Dead?
New year trends are picking up steam and what was deemed "so 2011" is moving fur...
from Stylelist Home
6 Tax Season Don'ts
A fifth season exists, and it's one that isn't defined by the weather....
from SavvySugar
Houzz Tour: Tahoe Ridge House (20 photos)
The name Tahoe Ridge House concisely sums up what the design by David S. Wilson...
from Houzz
Real Simple Newsletters To receive any of these free e-mails, check the boxes below and enter the required information.
  • Weekly Tips Newsletter
  • Daily Finds
  • Daily Thought
  • Wedding Newsletter
  • Daily Recipe Newsletter
  • Ask Real Simple
  • Keep It Together Checklist
Home & Organizing:
  • Organizing | 
  • Cleaning | 
  • Decorating | 
  • Home Improvement | 
  • Gardening | 
  • Green Living | 
  • New Uses For Old things | 
  • Clever Organizing Solutions | 
  • Speed-Cleaning Tips & Tricks | 
  • New Uses for Everyday Items | 
  • DIY Decorating Ideas | 
  • Unexpected Natural Cleaners | 
  • Top Cleaning Checklists | 
  • Go Green | 
  • Painting Tips | 
  • Home Gardening Tips | 
  • 40 Decorating Tips for Your Living Room | 
  • Quick Weekend Projects | 
  • Simply Stated: Decorating & Organizing Blog


More from RealSimple.com:
  • Food & Recipes | 
  • Beauty & Fashion | 
  • Holidays & Entertaining | 
  • Health | 
  • Work & Life | 
  • Magazine & More
  • Real Simple Magazine:
  • Subscribe | 
  • Give a Gift Subscription | 
  • Tablet Edition
  • On The Go: 
  • Get Ideas Daily | 
  • Become a Fan on Facebook | 
  • Follow Real Simple on Twitter | 
  • Real Simple Mobile Apps
  • Contact Us | 
  • Customer Service | 
  • Privacy Policy | 
  • Terms of Service | 
  • Print Media Kit | 
  • Digital Media Kit | 
  • Real Simple Rewards | 
  • Site Map
  • Ad Choices
Copyright © 2012 Time Inc. Lifestyle Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Real Simple Home and Lifestyle Network