I don't know about you, but I've got a box of clothespins sitting in my storage room and I have no idea what to do with them. My grandmother used to use them on her clothesline years ago, and now I've somehow ended up with them. The problem is, I don't have a clothesline!
I don't want to throw them out, because they're perfectly good, but I also didn't know what to do with them. Luckily, there are some household uses for clothespins that most of us probably wouldn't even have thought of!
1. Clip Coupons
Grocery shopping with coupons is a great way to save money, but keeping them all together can be tricky. Couple that with trying to keep track of your list and it can be a lot more disorganized than you want it to be. There's nothing more frustrating than getting home and realizing you have a coupon for something you bought, it was just stuck at the bottom of your purse!
Use a clothespin to keep everything together so that when you're out and about, you know everything is where it's supposed to be and you have easy access tow hat you need. It's also a time saver when you're standing in line!
2. Paint Partner
When you're done painting a room, or if your paintbrush has become too saturated, you have to clean the brush and let it dry. It can be tricky leaving the brush to sit in solvent without it falling in, and finding a place to dry them can often lead to a mess.
Using a clothespin, you can stop the brush from falling over and make sure it drips dry! Minimize the mess and optimize your results.
3. Chip Clip
This one may seem obvious, but clothespins are a great way to keep your chip bags closed, which can help keep them fresh! You can also use them for cereal bags, crackers, or anything else without a resealable package!
I find it's a lot easier to stop snacking when you have to go through a clip of some sort rather than having an open bag right in front of you.
4. Recipe Clip
Call me old fashioned, but I love hand-writing my recipes on cards so I can keep them all organized. But whenever I take a card out, I find it hard to keep it clean on my counter as I bounce around the kitchen making the meal.
I recently discovered that if you prop up the recipe card on two clothespins, it will stay dry AND you can easily find it during your cooking adventure!
5. Steam Solution
I know that when I'm boiling something on the stove, it's always a struggle to balance the pot lid juuuuust right to make sure the steam can escape. Sometime you THINK you have it balanced, but you look away for one second and it falls. Then you have a mess on your hands, and it's a pain to clean up.
A clothespin is a simple solution to your problem! Just clip it to the lid if your pot and put the lid back on as usual. There will be a gap left between the lid and pot, and the steam will escape, which means no more boiling over!
6. Magnet Magic
If you have kids, or even if you just love cute things, that pile of clothespins you have lying around can come in handy! With a little paint, a couple of magnet strips, and a lot of imagination, you can make clothespin magnets that can important notes on the fridge, or pictures of your favorite people.
You can also use pre-designed scrapbook paper if you want less of a mess. This is a perfect craft for a rainy day.
7. Nifty Nails
I can't count how many times I've gone to hang a picture, tried to hammer in the nail, and caught my finger instead. It happens to pretty much everyone, and it's one of the most frustrating things in the world.
But if you have a clothespin hanging around, you can end the struggle! Take a clothespin and clip it to the nail. Hold the clothespin, not the nail, when you're hammering. This way, even if you miss, your fingers are safe!
8. Gap Gauging
Planting a garden involves a lot of planning, something only people who garden truly understand. One of the most frustrating things about gardening is when you spent a ton of time planting your bulbs into a beautiful pattern, and then some spots don't bloom. You end up with gaps that take away from the beauty of your garden.
You can avoid this with clothespins! Straight clothespins work best for this, but any clothespin will do. Push a clothespin into the soil where your plants didn't grow. The next time you go to plant bulbs, you'll know where the problem areas in your garden are. You can work your new plan around these "dead spots" and hopefully avoid any major gaps!
9. Glove Guru
The amount of single gloves I have hanging around is out of control. I always tell myself I'll be more careful next winter and keep them together, but that lasts about four days and then it's a mess again.
Using clothespins to keep gloves together is a good way to make sure you always have a set and keep that bin, drawer, or whatever you use to store your winter clothes nice and tidy! This same concept can also be used for socks or anything else that comes in pairs which you'd like to keep in pairs.
10. Headphone Helper
This one takes two clothespins. I know. It's intense.
Anyone who has headphones will tell you they get tangled at a moment's notice, even if you haven't used them. But by gluing two clothespins together, you can create a little headphone holder to take with you wherever you go. No more knots!
11. Match Maker
Okay, so not a match MAKER, but more of a match holder. If you're lighting a candle that's deep in the jar, or you often find yourself getting burned when using a match, this is the tip for you!
Hold the match vertically with a clothespin and you'll not only gain some reach, but also avoid burning those fingertips!
12. Travel Tips
If you spend a lot of time on the road, you know that hotel curtains aren't always the best. They usually don't stay closed too well, and that can be an issue if you want your privacy. By bringing along a couple of extra clothespins in your suitcase, you can clip the drapes together and ensure you have privacy and darkness (if that's what you want).
13. Stem Support
Getting your plants to grow straight can be a hassle, but clothespins can help! Pass the stem through the clothespin hole (making sure there's still room for it to grow) and watch your plants and trees sprout perfectly!
