Raise your glass...

Lloydminster is changing it's blue box program. Mainly in that we will no longer have boxes but bags. I'm all for this change as sorting curbside always seemed like a massive waste of time, and with the new bag system we can put all recyclable items in the bag (and not have to chase wind-blown pop boxes down the street).

What's not cool-- they are no longer accepting glass. Apparently glass has to be sorted by color and logistically it is too difficult to do that. An article in the local paper suggests discarding glass with your regular garbage.

Now, I have been known to throw away recyclables from time to time--cottage cheese containers discovered in the back of the fridge eons past their best before date; cans from salmon (as a way of containing the skin/fat I removed, and limiting the scent to the garbage in the garage vs my kitchen); random scraps of mail/cardboard; the occasional shampoo bottle (because I always forget I can recycle those); and until recently, plastic containers used for strawberries etc because I wasn't aware we could recycle those! Even amongst those many (but infrequent) discretions, I never NEVER never throw away glass. Ever.

Glass seems to me to be the most nostalgic, the most beautiful, the most reusable of the recyclable items. I remember my Baba using old pickle jars for jams and her own pickled items (like carrots!) or jarred raspberries in syrup. My Mom uses all kind of old jars to store her bulk items like dried fruits, raisins, currants, coconut, beans, seeds and grains. I've always liked how Chef Micheal Smith has an illuminated pantry full of glass jars.

So, I am going to start saving my jars rather than tossing them. I just wish I could find an attractive way to cover the old jar lids so my jars of poppy seeds don't have pickle brands on them.... suggestions? I even noticed that a jar of pizza sauce Jeff likes has little tomatoes made into the sides of it--so cute! I've also been buying Starbucks bottled frappucinos purely for their vessel--removing the labels and printing on the bottle to use them as faux milk bottles, for all those party ideas I find on Pinterest. Again, because I am nostalgic and something about this seems so comforting and special. This is cheaper and easier than trying to track down actual milk bottles and I've been using the frappucinos for a coffee creamer alternative--works well, although makes the coffee a bit stronger!



I've seen many a page on tips for removing labels, some more effective than others.

My tips for removing old labels--fill the jar or bottle with very hot water and let it sit a few minutes. This softens up the adhesive enough for it to be removed. If you have sticker residue, rub with some vegetable oil to loosen the bond, then with soap to clean it up. If you have residual glue, scrape the softened glue off with a paint scraper (or the similar tool used for scraping your ceramic stove top). Any really stubborn glue can be removed with Goo Gone.

To remove printing off the outside of the glass (usually expiry dates/lot numbers) some come off just with your fingernail or soap and water, for all others use the scraper again. I have found great success with this! This method takes about 5 minutes versus various other methods involving soaking and/or hair dryers.

I also found this neat article about jars--recommending them as the superior method for prep and storage of salad dressings (also Jamie Oliver's favorite tool for these purposes.)

What do you use your jars for?