I’m Putting a Vintage Glass Ashtray by My Kitchen Sink (It’s So Pretty!)
There’s something very satisfying to me about repurposing an older or unwanted object into something useful for your home. For example, I sometimes buy yogurt that comes in little glass containers, but instead of just recycling the glass when I’m done with them I realized I could use them around my house to store things like paintbrushes, bathroom toiletries, or even travel-sized hand creams.
Most recently, I came across a video that proved that a vintage crystal ashtray can also serve a very practical purpose … next to your kitchen sink.
Why You Should Put a Thrifted Ashtray by Your Kitchen Sink
Content creator Donna Flowers recently showed off an ashtray she got from a thrift store. It’s small, round, and made of cut crystal in a mid-century modern style. In the video she places the ashtray on the ledge of her kitchen sink, and then places a Scrub Daddy sponge in it; it fits perfectly inside the circular crystal. “Scrub Royalty,” one commenter proclaimed. “Crystal Daddy,” said another.
This isn’t the only way people are repurposing round crystal ashtrays in clever ways. They “also work perfectly for tealight candles,” one commenter says. “I use one as a spoon rest,” writes another, adding that the notches along the perimeter of the ashtray “hold the handles perfectly so they don’t touch anything.”
Where to Find a Vintage Ashtray
The ashtray in Flowers’ video came from a thrift store, so you can’t technically get that exact one, but part of the fun of this hack is that you’re giving a vintage item new life. Plus, thrifting can feel like a treasure hunt. You’ll want to bring your Scrub Daddy to this particular treasure hunt to make sure it fits in your dream ashtray, and maybe measure your kitchen sink area, lest you end up with an ashtray that’s too big or too small for either.
If you don’t want to embark on a thrifting journey, there are ashtrays aplenty on Etsy, like this clear crystal ashtray with a geometric starburst pattern ($13) or a vintage ashtray from the ’70s ($20.98) that the seller says includes “about every glass-cutting & etching technique that exists.”