Plastic Lids from Coffee Jars

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

The lids from glass coffee jars of the instant coffee variety, such as Nescafe, and others, which more often than not are of plastic, and of a kind of plastic that, so I understand, is not easily recyclable via local authority recycling schemes, for instance, can be easily re-purposed and recycled into nice and useful little dishes for a number of different uses.

Once the paper seal, that is, invariably, found stuck, by one means or another, in the top, is removed and the lid cleaned such lids can be used for a number of tasks, from holding paper clips, rubber bands, or drawing pins on the desk, to be used as individual serving dishes for peanuts, raisins, or other small snack of this kind. They also make great “small change” trays and such like. With some lateral thinking, I am am sure, we can all come up with a lot more uses for them.

The lids from the larger glass jars are, obviously, better suited for the use as serving dishes, though all sizes, I am sure, can be recycled into some use around the home and office and even the workshop.

The jars themselves, with lids, also have their uses, as our grandfathers and grandmothers sure could tell us. I am sure that many of us will have seen grandpa's workshop with those glass jars full of nuts, bolts, screws, nails, or whatever else, or grandma's button collection in jars. Other uses of glass jars shall come to be mentioned in another little article, with and without lids. Here the main issue, is and was, the plastic lids, and this primarily because they cannot, in most cases be recycled and even if we would send our jars to recycling the lids would still end up in landfill sites. Aside from the fact that it would be a shame of them filling up those sites it would be a shame to waste them.

© M Smith (Veshengro), August 2008
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