Paper bags! Ugh

[Hot Lava Mama]

So, our grocery store now uses only paper bags. We used to have plastic bags, which were great because we used them to line our bathroom garbage cans. Now, I don't know what to do with all these paper bags. (I have to "buy" plastic now for the garbage cans.)

 

Any suggestions on interesting things to do with the bags? Don't suggest crafts. I'm just not good/don't enjoy that kind of stuff. Also, NO to the reusable bag thing. Just, gross. Not my thing.

 

So, does anyone have any good ideas on what to do with all these paper bags?

 

Thanks!

Hot Lava Mama

[Dandelion]

Oooooh boy. Here we go. :tongue_smilie: (just kidding OP - I can't help but think back to the recent bag threads)

 

In terms of ways to reuse paper bags, you could:

- use them as packaging material if you send packages for birthdays and holidays (you could even use them as wrapping paper for gifts if you like that look)

- keep a few in the car as trash bags

- tear them up into pieces and compost them along with vegetable peels, etc. for use in your garden

- use them to store newspapers, etc. for recycling

[peachskittles]

Take them back to the store for recycling?? I know with plastic bags here we can take them back and shove them in a can that is supposedly for recycling them. Maybe your store has something similar for paper bags.

[NotSoObvious]

We don't line our bathroom trash can. We just wash it every so often.

 

Do you have recycling? Recycle the bags.

 

You can wash reusable bags.

 

There was also just a thread about this. There are some good ideas on there.

[magnificent_baby]

Make lots of puppy chow? :D

[KungFuPanda]

You could just get lightweight, washable reusable bags and avoid paper and grossness altogether. Getting your non-food household items at Target or Walmart should keep you stocked in plastic bags for other uses.

 

I use my brown paper bags for recycling and to start fires in the fireplace or fire pit.

[edelweiss]

I would just recycle the paper bags.

[athena1277]

I use paper bags to put our recycling in. I put one next to the kitchen trash can. When it's full, it's easy to carry out to the recycle bins.

[aggieamy]

What about getting a reusable bag for certain foods and then you'll have significantly less paper bags to deal with. I find it hard to believe that a reusable bag that has carried a few cans of beans, a loaf of bread, granola, a bag of sugarn, and cheese can be that gross.

[Cinder]

I find it hard to believe that a reusable bag that has carried a few cans of beans, a loaf of bread, granola, a bag of sugarn, and cheese can be that gross.

 

:iagree: And I have washed reusable bags in the washing machine. I do have a front loader, though; they might not do so well in a top loader. Maybe gentle cycle would do it. I also pre-bag my meats in plastic produce bags. They expect it around here; they stock bag dispensers around the meat dept.

 

I encourage you to give the reusables a try. I use them a lot and I *still* have too many plastic grocery bags.

[justasque]

-- Use sturdy canvas tote bags for cans, bags of pasta, bottles, chips, cereal boxes, and other foods unlikely to contaminate the bags.

Wash them in your washer now and again as needed. This will cut down on your bag accumulation.

 

-- If your paper bags get contaminated, recycle them.

 

-- Use your clean paper bags to hold your paper recycling until you put it outside for pick up (or take it to the recycling center, or whatever you do with it).

[courtney.byrum]

Around here there are no plastic bags AND you have to pay for paper bags. We use reusables but for anything messy I would get paper bags.

 

Recycle the paper bags, use them underneath painting projects or other kid craft to protect the table/floor, donate them to a food shelf, or give to libraries for use in book sales.

[Orthodox6]

We place our recycle items in paper bags.

I wrap packages for mailing in cut-up paper bags.

Family Nativity gifts have been wrapped in paper bags, some years.

 

The plastic bags are annoying. Everything falls out of them while driving home from the store. They accumulate like dust mites.

[Amy in NH]

 

So, does anyone have any good ideas on what to do with all these paper bags?

 

 

Put a paper towel on top of a folded bag and use it to drain bacon. Paper bags absorb grease very well.

 

I also use clean ones to catch the popcorn from my hot-air popper. I pour in a little butter, salt, and sugar between batches, fold over the top and shake it up!

 

Also use them to mail books/packages.

 

And we keep one as our recycle bag. When it gets dirty we just recycle it.

[KungFuPanda]

 

 

Yeah the difficulty is finding "washable" bags. The ones I've bought weren't all that washable. Meaning I can't just throw them in the wash more than once without them falling apart.

 

That said, I prefer paper. At least I can put that in the recycling bucket.

 

Do you have any sturdy plastic bags? I'm talking reusable plastic, not what you get at the store? Something like Ikea bags or plastic insulated totes? You can just spritz them with a disinfectant and wipe them down. I use a 1:10 bleach:water mix, but I'm guessing lysol would work too.

 

There are folks who just take their laundry basket to the grocery store. That might suit your needs.

[Ellie]

I don't line the bathroom trashcans, either.

 

We used to use paper bags in the kitchen. I had a rack that hung on the inside of a cabinet door, and a paper bag fit in it perfectly.

 

I almost never reuse the plastic bags from stores, so I avoid them as much as possible.

[vonfirmath]

Personally I prefer paper bags. We had a cowboy party and I couldn't find enough paper bags for the kids to make cowboy vests :(

 

I prefer paper bags in my car

 

I'd happily line the bathroom trash cans with paper instead.

 

And they can hold paper recycle and then all go out together (we can't put plastic bag in our recycle container)

[milovany]

Haven't read other replies yet, but I'm the opposite. I use paper bags plenty in our home, but don't really have a use for plastic; we recycle them. I use the paper bags for our undersink food garbage (using a plastic bin as a holder, which we wash out). I also use them for packing up and mailing books that I've sold online. For the bathroom garbage, I just use a small plastic garbage bin; we just dump it out into the main trash and wash it out as needed.

 

I hope you can find a use for your bags!

[LucyStoner]

Reuse them (ie, take them back to the store for another go or two) or recycle them. We used to use them for our recycle bin as others have stated.

 

I am totally scratching my head on the reusable bags being "gross". I can get that they aren't your cup of tea or whatever but I totally fail to see how they are grosser than us all collectively using 1000s of plastic bags every single second and the resulting 1000 years in a landfill. To say nothing of them being one of the top ocean garbage items, harming marine life. My bags get washed if they need it and compress to fit in my bag or pocket. They carry more and are easier to carry because I can put them over my shoulder and walk home with them without them ripping or tearing open.

 

No one used plastic grocery sacks 35 years ago and people seemed to do just fine without them.

[LucyStoner]

 

Yeah the difficulty is finding "washable" bags. The ones I've bought weren't all that washable. Meaning I can't just throw them in the wash more than once without them falling apart.

 

 

I give about 6 of these a regular beating (groceries, books, picnics, catchalls, you name it) and wash them and they have lasted forever with no visible signs of wear. Those $1 bags from the grocery store do seem to fall apart and are hard to impossible to wash. Bonus is that these scrunch down to nothing so I can put one in my pocket or throw them all in my tote bag to use as needed. I find these so much more economical and usable in the long run. I scoffed at the price for a long time, but when I saw a 40% off sale, I went for it and have never regretted it at all. 10ish years of trying to make the cheapies work and struggling with net bags that got unwieldily when very full made me see that cheap is expensive in this area. The IKEA bags are a nice, large capacity and cheap alternative, but you can't throw them in the machine. You can wash them down with cleanser though. I have 2 for costco and other big jobs.

[Unicorn.]

They make great wrapping paper! It's fun to let the dc decorate wrapped presents w/ crayons, markers, stamps, paint, etc! Oh, and google paper bag floors (or walls).