apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

People used to buy flour that came in sacks made of flower printed fabric and they'd make clothes out of it. At least during the depression, but perhaps even before that.

Lately some particular kind of lunch meats are sold in a brand name version of those plastic re-useable storage containers. The goal is probably to encourage purchase of even more of the storage containers, and I'm not sure how well it accomplishes that, but one purpose it does serve is making it easier to re-seal the meat, which is otherwise kind of tricky with most other kinds.

I have been using the glass containers from

Oops...someone/something ate half my comment. Well I have been using the glass containers from the Ikea Tindra containers for serving drinks, desserts etc. After the candle burns out, I just melt out the wax and give the glass a thorough cleaning in hot water. They are kind of heavy and the size is just about right for a single serving of ice cream, panna cotta etc.

I think a more useful model is re-FILLABLE packaging. Re-usable packaging is better than disposable packaging, but it's still wasteful as you get more every time you buy the product. And honestly, no matter how nice a box, tin, bottle, or jar is, I'm only going to use so many of them or it will just be clutter. However, if I could take that container back to the store and get it re-filled when I need more of the product (with perhaps, some small discount as compared to buying it with the packaging), then that would be helpful.

I have a raspberry jam jar that I use as a drinking glass and I've grown quite attached to it, it's pretty weird.

When I graduated college in the early 90's I had a friend who was getting ready to move to NY and take a job as a graphic designer. His specialty though was in packaging design. I thought that would be a pretty cool job. But I wonder how his view of packaging design may have changed? Is there a push to create smaller and more efficient packaging from environmentally friendly materials?

I know for a fact that in the restaurant industry there is a complete line of take-out packaging that is a type of plastic made from corn so it is completely biodegradable.

The majority of packaging practices are thoroughly frustrating though. Why do we need boxes for bike helmets? Why when you order two coffees do they have to be put into a box designed for 4 coffees? Although I almost fell over when somebody gave me one of these, http://www.qsrmagazine.com/awards/packaging_awards/2006/graphics/CCB_1.jpg
developed by a Chicago artist.

What ever happened to the milk man?

I agree that most packaging is over the top, but bike helmets are fragile. After a serious bump they are no longer safe and you can't usually tell from the outside that it's broken. I'd rather recycle the box and keep know for sure my noggin is safe.

Curtis, funny you say, this last weekend I was telling my husband that my grandmother used to take the flour saks and convert them into shopping bags for my grandpa. I have started using the saks 5th Ave and Bloomingdales suit bags for making shopping bags (the fabric ones not plastic)

Some of the patterns found in old quilts had made their way through the world first as flour sacks, then as dresses, and then as quilts.

I love reusable glass jars. I would become quite attached to the ones that had Disney characters that were used for grape jelly. Also I remember there were these jars that shrimp cocktail sauce came in that we would reuse for drinking glasses too. Love love that stuff. Some one should do that for highend mustard or olives. I would be totally all over that. As to bags I reuse those clothe bags for basmati for dirty socks, reuse them as small shopping bags, at the beach etc etc. I would hope that in the green craze manufacturers would think more about these things.

Also why hasnt anyone thought of using an enzyme or a dispersion method for bacteria so they could get started digesting all that trash in landfills? I envision this stuff could be poured on trash while still in the garbage truck and all the trash is being crushed and agitated. I mean some ChemE somewhere should get on this -if they havent already. I smell a patent.

One brand of german mustard comes in cute little blue-green-ish glass mugs with handles. These are perfect party cups. On second thought, this may mean I use too much mustard.

Look for Scarpetta brand spaghetti sauces in the organic section of your supermarket (like Shaw's in New England). First, it is AMAZING sauce-like homemade (I love Barely Bolognese). Second, it comes in this great, hard plastic cylinder jar with a screw top lid. We reuse ours for paint (pour a little in the jar from your gallon when working on a small project and use the lid when taking a break), cat treats (easier to store than a pouch), loose nails and screws, food leftovers- I'm sure there are a zillion things you can store in them. Plus you just put them in the top tray of the dishwasher and they don't get all warped like tupperware. It's worth the approx $6 for the sauce when you get so much out of the container. http://www.saucesnlove.com/products.htm