As far as common household items with creative-reuse potential, old coffee cans top our list. They're adept at holding stuff—duh—but with their corrugated-metal composition, they offer a stylish, industrial aesthetic that can be left in plain view. Redefine what "the best part of waking up" means to you with one of the following uses:
- How our garden doth grow! Turn a collection of used coffee cans into a garden indoors or out. Plant small flowers or herbs; leave on windowsill or shelving.
- Use the plastic lids as sauces: Place under house plants to protect carpets and flooring from moisture.
- Create a piggybank: Place in entry hall and toss spare change in. When it's filled, tote the change to the bank to be redeemed and start all over again.
- It's a vessel, so it can store any number of things: small toys and cards; hair fasteners; pens and pencils; small tools and more.
- Keep it in the bathroom and stuff travel-size soaps, shampoos and body washes inside for house guests.
(Image: Flickr member Happy Sleepy, used with permission)
10 No-Fail Decor Tricks & Tips for Small Spaces
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Shaw's Original Fir...
How to Cook Rice on the Stove
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
So cute. But I never buy coffee in a can.
I use metal and plastic coffee cans from work, cleaned thoroughly to remove the odor, to store bulk beans, grains, sugar, etc. They could also be saved and used for shipping gifts of homemade cookies and brownies - which might benefit from being impregnated with the coffee aroma!
A note on using the plastic lids as saucers: coffee can lids are very shallow, and you have to be careful not to overwater the plant if you're watering it 'in place'. I find that for small plants, plastic tofu boxes and styrofoam mushroom containers are much better saucers.