Thursday, April 14, 2011

Be Green + Be Cute {Recycle Your Lovely Jam Jars}

  I'm guessing I'm not the only one who opens a box of crackers or pretzels, puts it back on the shelf, forgets about it, and then goes back a few weeks or a month later to find the contents of the box have gone stale.  Well, food goes bad a lot faster here, so I have to be extra vigilant about not being wasteful.

I'm semi-obsessed with Bonne Maman raspberry jam, mostly because it tastes amazing, but also because of the packaging. I'm a huge sucker for packaging.  (It also happens to be one of the less expensive brands of jams and jellies here- you can find it at Westside Markets throughout the city for $2.99 a jar!)

I started saving them, and recently put them to use storing food because they are:
  1. cute
  2. air-tight
  3. recycled (and that makes me happy)
My jars look absolutely gorgeous in my cupboard (I have about 12 now), and I love that I can see exactly what I have in front of me. I put as much of the food item in the jar as possible, and then I put the rest in a cupboard with my food storage. When my jars get low, I fill them back up. I waste less, and I love that I can open the cupboard or fridge and Ella knows exactly what her options are at snack time (the really sugary items get put in the back so she can't see the mini marshmallows and meringues).

I also use them in the fridge for cut-up healthy snacks. Again, when they run low I cut up more fruit or veggies so that we always have quick, healthy snack options.

I'm totally a snob when it comes to how things look in my home, so I will only use Bonne Maman jars in my cupboard, though I did save a large Mason jar with a plain lid for our mini marshmallows.  Now I look for glass-jarred food items that are not only yummy and healthy, but that have the potential to be recycled in a lovely, subtle way that doesn't scream SMUCKERS!
 









8 comments:

erin said...

You are very clever!

Alisha said...

BRILLIANT! And I happen to have a jar of Bonne Maman in my fridge right now. It's by far my favorite jelly. It's expensive here, though. Just slightly less than $4. Oh, well. Worth every penny. I'll be saving my jars from now on!

Unknown said...

what a great idea!

Anna said...

I love when i find a use for something like this. And I love the idea of ready to go cut snacks for the toddler to choose from. You are so smart.

Lorrie said...

I've converted over to glass as well, but I'm recycling my glass canning jars. Wide mouth pint jars are perfect for leftovers, and again, you can see what's there. The fact that they are more upright saves tons of room. Do you know that Ball sells white (plastic)screw on lids for small and wide mouth jars? They're awesome. I even send Kirt to work with lunch in a jar. It fits perfectly in your hand!

stacey said...

Ok I love this post. You are so dang clever! Thanks for inspiring me to have fin reusable containers that aren't plastic and to have more snacks for the wee little bubs. You rock.

Melanie said...

I want to be Lesley Colvin when I grow up.

Morgan said...

that's our favorite jam too! it's the only kind we buy, so i should have lots of these lovely jars just like you... i will have to start collecting them because that all just looks so cute! i love it!