I did not know until I read it somewhere that recycling companies manage to salvage a huge 70% of waste from garbage skip hire. Unless you would like to work for such a company and help the eco-system, you will find that you are able to recycle the vast majority of your household waste yourself and send less junk off to the garbage dumps and skip-hire waste management.

The world is becoming overwhelmed by plastic – it washes up on the beaches, it lies around in garbage dumps for ever and very little of it biodegrades even after many years. Mothers, think about using toweling diapers instead of disposable ones. There are many new designs on the market which could mean that instead of using hundreds of diapers over a period of time, you will only need a few. These come with inner linings which are completely washable. Think of the huge amount of saving this will result in! Take those dollars and put them into an account for yourself or your baby to enjoy later or put it to better use that diapers which clog up our sensitive eco-system.

Indulge yourself by spending a relaxing time on the world-wide web finding ways in which you can recycle those soft and hard plastic containers into useful products. For example, a milk bottle can easily be altered into a scoop for a child’s sandpit. You can save yourself an enormous amount of money on purchasing toys for toddlers. Make watering cans out of plastic and toys for the bath or an imaginary shop. You are not only stimulating your child’s imagination but once again, saving money in a stressed economy.

Used tyres, especially tractor tyres make wonderful sandpits for little children and provide seating right round the tyre. Simply fill with clean river sand and add some handcrafted recycled plastic objects to use as digging and scooping tools. Used tyres make wonderful children’s swings as well and in fact, there is quite an industry in these swings by local craftsmen in the city of Cape Town, South Africa, bringing money in to needy families. Used tyres tossed into the sea and weighted down makes a haven for a variety of sea life, forming a type of rubbery coral reef as it were. Tyres should never be burned as they release heavy toxins into the air and thick black smoke pollution. In Africa, tyres are often cut into treads for sandals. All this goes to show how much you can put your imagination to good use by recycling before the garbage is taken to the dump and then taken by skip hire to recycling companies. The implications are great, creating livelihoods for crafters who do not need to lay out vast amounts of money.

Old hand-knitted sweaters can be unpicked, the wool tied into skeins, washed and re-used for knitting new garments. Frayed and worn-out clothing make wonderful rags for use in the kitchen or for your car. Sheets that have worn thin with age make great bandages once torn into strips and rolled up ready for use in the first-aid box.

Old greeting cards can be cut out and recycled into gift tags. They can also be easily re-used as greeting cards by sticking the picture onto a piece of card with a tiny square of two-sided tape. Cover trays with pictures cut from old magazines and newspapers and varnish over the top after gluing them into a pretty collage. Weave rags into rag mats for the bathroom and shower. All you need is some old sacking and a crewel needle. See how to on the Internet.

Visit glass-cutting factories and ask them to give you the scraps of glass they usually throw into their tip. If you collect them regularly, you may find they will put them aside for you. Paint them if not colored already and create lovely glass objects by gluing them together or hanging them as pretty wind chimes all over your garden. Use them to create mosaics. Do the same at tiling factories. Start a community project. The sky is your limit.

Can you imagine the feeling of pleasure you will get in seeing your recycling bring such pleasure, money-saving and earning capability and know that you have done something admirable for your town and eco-system?

To get your skip hire or waste management sorted, visit www.skiphire.org today.