12 Ways To Reuse All Of Your Christmas Clutter
Start writing a post
Lifestyle

12 Ways To Reuse All Of Your Christmas Clutter

Be festive, environmentally conscious, and politically active all at once!

Celah Convis
Jan 05, 2019
Eastern Michigan University
12
New Year popsicle
Instagram

If you're like most people, you probably did nothing useful in the week in-between Christmas and New Year's. That means your leftovers are rotting, your decorations are still up, and there's probably wrapping paper shoved underneath your couch. This year it's time to stop putting it off. Here are twelve ways you can repurpose all your Christmas-season junk.

1. Save your boxes and bags

If you save the gift bags others gave you your gifts in, you don't have to worry about spending more money next year just to wrap gifts.

2. Freeze leftovers 

It's too late at this point for Christmas leftovers (please throw those away), but if you made lots of food for your New Year's Eve party and have leftovers, freezing them will make them last longer and save you money.

3. Get creative with old wrapping paper

If your torn wrapping paper can't be recycled, try using it in crafts instead of buying new paper. Decoupage, origami, you name it!

4. Make crumbs 

Just crunch up all those old cookies and use it for a crumb crust for something else.

5. Make snowflakes with all the gift receipts 

If you haven't returned all your Christmas gifts and still have those receipts sitting around, make some use of them! Receipts are the worst kind of paper, since they can't be recycled or burned, but you're creative, right? Use them to make mini paper snowflakes. Those aren't limited to the holiday season alone.

6. Make cutting-edge hair ties with leftover ribbons

Ribbons are also difficult to reuse. But your house is probably so dirty you can't find anything, including your hair ties, so keep that festive spirit going and incorporate ribbon into your daily look.

7. Lead a scientific breakthrough 

Instead of taking down all those Christmas lights you spent way too long stringing on the outside of your house, launch an investigation into why the bulbs always burn out after one year.

8. Unwanted nutcrackers can become effigies 

You probably need to de-clutter and pare down your holiday decorations. But you also need to take a stand for political activism. You can merge the two by using unwanted nutcrackers or other humanoid figures to serve as effigies for political figures you dislike. Nothing like a little ceremonial effigy-burning to ring in the new year!

9. Use your tree as a Scylla before your doorway 

If you're one of the few left that haven't switched over to artificial trees, by now your Christmas tree has likely become a prickly nightmare. And with your bounty of Christmas gifts, now would be one of the worst times to get robbed. So, simply set up your tree in whatever secret location would most effectively deter intruders, like an ancient sailor-eating monster of old.

11. Make disciplinary tools out of branches

If you aren't thrilled about keeping your whole Christmas tree inside your house but still want to re-purpose it for violent methods, cut off a branch or two and switch your kids with it when they're acting up. Kids do get so crazy this time of year.

11. Use that Bible as a bookend

You probably still have your Bible sitting somewhere inconvenient from when you brought it out for the Christmas Eve candlelight service. And you're probably not going to open it again until Easter, so you may as well put it out of the way, perhaps using it to prop up other books you never actually read.

12. Discover the power of re-branding 

Ultimately, every leftover holiday treat, trash, and decoration comes down to how you view it. You don't have to worry about cleaning up anything if you only change your point of view! Throw some paper hearts on your Christmas tree. Bam, Valentine's Day tree. Anything can happen if you let it.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

19 Lessons I'll Never Forget from Growing Up In a Small Town

There have been many lessons learned.

Siena College
13362
houses under green sky
Photo by Alev Takil on Unsplash

Small towns certainly have their pros and cons. Many people who grow up in small towns find themselves counting the days until they get to escape their roots and plant new ones in bigger, "better" places. And that's fine. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought those same thoughts before too. We all have, but they say it's important to remember where you came from. When I think about where I come from, I can't help having an overwhelming feeling of gratitude for my roots. Being from a small town has taught me so many important lessons that I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

Keep Reading...Show less
small towns
Relationships

Grateful Beyond Words: A Letter to My Inspiration

I have never been so thankful to know you.

University of New Haven
290414
​a woman sitting at a table having a coffee
nappy.co

I can't say "thank you" enough to express how grateful I am for you coming into my life. You have made such a huge impact on my life. I would not be the person I am today without you and I know that you will keep inspiring me to become an even better version of myself.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Waitlisted for a College Class? Here's What to Do!

Dealing with the inevitable realities of college life.

Smith College
88490
college students waiting in a long line in the hallway
StableDiffusion

Course registration at college can be a big hassle and is almost never talked about. Classes you want to take fill up before you get a chance to register. You might change your mind about a class you want to take and must struggle to find another class to fit in the same time period. You also have to make sure no classes clash by time. Like I said, it's a big hassle.

This semester, I was waitlisted for two classes. Most people in this situation, especially first years, freak out because they don't know what to do. Here is what you should do when this happens.

Keep Reading...Show less
waitlisted
Swoon

Navigating the Talking Stage: 21 Essential Questions to Ask for Connection

It's mandatory to have these conversations.

National Writers Society
151030
a man and a woman sitting on the beach in front of the sunset

Whether you met your new love interest online, through mutual friends, or another way entirely, you'll definitely want to know what you're getting into. I mean, really, what's the point in entering a relationship with someone if you don't know whether or not you're compatible on a very basic level?

Consider these 21 questions to ask in the talking stage when getting to know that new guy or girl you just started talking to:

Keep Reading...Show less
single life
Lifestyle

Challah vs. Easter Bread: A Delicious Dilemma

Is there really such a difference in Challah bread or Easter Bread?

Marist College
55958
loaves of challah and easter bread stacked up aside each other, an abundance of food in baskets
StableDiffusion

Ever since I could remember, it was a treat to receive Easter Bread made by my grandmother. We would only have it once a year and the wait was excruciating. Now that my grandmother has gotten older, she has stopped baking a lot of her recipes that require a lot of hand usage--her traditional Italian baking means no machines. So for the past few years, I have missed enjoying my Easter Bread.

Keep Reading...Show less

Trending Topics

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments