Last week, I wrote about avoiding junk to keep your house tidy. Today, I want to talk about turning some of that clutter into green assets. Here in the junk hauling business, we often find that our customers’ junk is full of useful and repurposable items.
Fresh from the internet, I present to you several ways to turn old household stuff into something exciting.

1. Windowfarms: www.windowfarms.org/buildyourown
We all love fresh herbs and greens in our food. With a Windowfarm, you can grow them easily inside your home or apartment. All it takes is a free window and a little effort. At the Windowfarms website, you can choose to purchase a completed farm, or to build one on your own out of scavenged materials. In the interest of managing the total level of stuff in your home, I’d recommend building a Windowfarm yourself. This way, you’ll also learn a bit about vertical farming in the process!

2. Jars, Jars, Jars
We love jars in my household. Whether they come from a pasta sauce or some pickle spears, jars are incredibly useful items. They can be used to drink from, to store leftovers, as a vase or candleholder. And if you’re feeling really ambitious, you can make a stained glass window or a string of lanterns!

3. Build A Compost Bin
I like compost bins built from repurposed materials. This way you extend the life of some wood or plastic objects while creating a source of useful compost for garden projects. Compost bins can be made from chicken wire, wood slats, or an old garbage can. There are many resources online for building your own, but you can get started quickly with this guide from WikiHow. Or, if you live in a small apartment, you can always make your own worm bin.

4. Think Bagless
There is a bit of a war going on between people who want to give you more bags and people who want to make it illegal. In the San Francisco bay area, new bag bans are currently going into effect. So what can you do?
Well, it’s important to use the bags you already have in your home. Plastic bags can be used for pet droppings. We use our paper bags to haul compost out to our green bins.
Secondly, you can stop receiving new plastic bags by arming yourself with a fleet of reusable ones. But before you head out to buy some bags, remember that it’s very easy to make your own. Totes and grocery bags can be easily made from towels, t-shirts, extra fabric, jeans, yarn, and more. If you’re curious about the different patterns and methods of making a tote, here’s more than 50 examples.

Remember that buying green products sometimes means throwing away old stuff. Before you buy something with a green label, think about reusing or repurposing something you already own. This alternative will always be the greener option.