(Family Features) Have you ever beaten yourself up over a broken glass or a spill on your dining room chair? Life is full of "oops moments," which is why Glad® ForceFlex® Black Bag has teamed up with the Picker Sisters - best friends and interior designers Tracy Hutson and Tanya McQueen - to celebrate and cleanup life's wild moments, and then find ways to reuse discarded items.
"We live by the saying, 'one person's trash is another's treasure.' In fact, on our television show, we travel across the country to find reclaimed trash to turn into treasure for our store," said Hutson. "However, you don't have to travel far to find items worth transforming into beautiful pieces."
The Picker Sisters have provided a few easy tips to help you turn everyday trash into treasure:
Frame it - Are you holding onto old magazines, books or maps because they're too interesting or appealing to toss? Or, perhaps, they're items of sentiment. Instead of keeping them stuffed away in a desk drawer, showcase the items on your wall or mantel by framing them, which is also a great preservation tactic.
Don't trash the glass - Leftover wine bottles after a dinner party? Remove the labels and wash the bottles and they can quickly be transformed into a water carafe. Or cluster several bottles together with fresh cut flowers and candles and you have an eye-catching centerpiece. Keep the corks too and throw into a spare vase for a table or countertop display.
Reuse old towels - Did you buy new bath towels and don't know what to do with the old ones? Cut them into squares for dish rags or the size of a hand towel to store in the garage to dry your car after a wash. If you're super handy, you can stitch the ends with a needle and thread. Otherwise, leave them undone and they'll do the job.
Create place cards - Create color coded place cards from old greeting cards for dinner parties by cutting 4 x 3-inch sections and folding horizontally. Write guests' names in a metallic pen or add your own stickers or flare to personalize them.
Refresh key pieces - Looking to freshen up your dining room chairs because they've endured their fair share of spills? Don't throw them out. It may be easier than you think to reupholster the cushions with a fresh, new print, or perhaps something spill-proof. With just a few key tools - such as an electric staple gun, pliers and screw driver - and you can have a fresh-looking dining set.
Upcycle old luggage - Do you have old, trunk luggage you don't know what to do with? Before purging it, consider using it to decorate your home by creating unique statement pieces.
Stacking three or four suitcases to make a retro nightstand is just one of many ways to upcycle these old gems.
Keeping with the theme "trash to treasure," Glad has worked with Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanupstm across the country to collect unique items to turn into works of art by San Francisco-based mosaic artist, Jason Mecier. In addition, they've collected wild life remnants from Hollywood stars, such as actress Amy Smart, actor Jesse Eisenberg, reality star Lauren Conrad, actress Emmanuelle Chriqui of "Entourage," and "iCarly's" Nathan Kress to be incorporated into the unique works of upcycled art. The four pieces of art are being auctioned off during the Mess to Masterpiece Auction, Presented by Glad® Black Bag on eBay April 16-26, with proceeds benefiting Keep America Beautiful. To learn more about Keep America Beautiful or to find a Great American Cleanup near you, visit www.kab.org.
To connect with the Picker Sisters, Tanya and Tracy, visit www.mylifetime.com. For additional information on Glad® Black Bag and the Mess to Masterpiece Auction, visit www.facebook.com/glad.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images
