Re-purposing everyday household items

(WTNH) - Organizing expert Lisa Lelas, owner of Life Styling in Guilford, shows us how to find alternate ways to use products ahead of Earth Day. Lisa says repurposing items is one small way to help the Earth stay environmentally cleaner.

Here are Lisa's tips:

Baking Soda

Clean lawn furniture (dipped with wet sponge), use as plant food for all alkaline loving house plants (1 tbsp in 2 quarts water), sprinkle on walkways to keep weeds from growing in cracks.

Dental Floss

Because of it's strength, use floss to hang pictures (instead of string or wire), secure buttons on more strongly (especially jackets, coats and heavy shirts), slice cakes and cheese blocks with a taut piece of floss.

Aluminum pie pans

Use as craft trays for messy kids projects, poke holes in one for an instant colander.

Aluminum Foil

Line paint roller pans so you can re-use it often, wrap paintbrushes in it to keep it wet, polish metal chrome to keep it shiny & rust free.

A tennis ball

Fluff down-filled clothes & comforters by throwing a couple into the dryer, cover your trailer hitch to keep rust away, float a few tennis balls in your pool to absorb body oils from swimmers, bike kickstand protector to keep it from sinking into soft grass, sand or mud, store your valuables in one for your gym bag (slit top with an 'X" and insert keys or cash), parking marker in your garage (dispend on string from ceiling so your windshield just hits it).

Cold cream

Erase temporary tattoos from kids arms, remove old bumper stickers on your car (rub on/let it soak in/peel it off!).

Vegetable peeler

Sharpen your pencils in a pinch, peel off a thin layer of decorative soaps to re-activate fragrance.

Toothpaste (non-gel version)

The mild abrasion works great for cleaning scuffs from shoes & sneakers, polishing a diamond ring, cleaning piano keys, the bathroom sink, removing crayon from walls.

Newspaper

For washing windows, deodorize luggage & storage containers, Dry wet shoes (stuff with crumpled newspaper to absorb moisture).

Coffee Can

Bake cylinder shaped loaves of bread (use can instead of a loaf pan), hold kitchen scraps & peelings while cooking, make a bank for kids, keep paint brushes soaking (slit lid with a 'X' to insert brush), use as a basement dehumidifier (fill a can with salt and place in corner-replace salt monthly), keep toilet tissue tucked inside while camping, make a bird feeder (hang can sideways from a tree limb, filled with seed).

Duct tape

Temporarily hem your pants or skirt, remove lint from clothing, make a bandage in a pinch (fold a tissue over the wound, then cover with tape), keep a secret car key affixed to the undercarriage of your car, repair a vacuum hose crack, reinforce book bindings, tighten shin guards, repair a leaking tent.

A dollar bill

Lingering in most people's wallets, this serves as a quick measuring tool. A dollar bill is exactly 6" long and can help you in a pinch when you need to measure something, such as the depth of a shelf you're thinking of buying at a store.

For more information, visit Lisa's website.