Woman reveals 'brilliant' way to reuse annoying grocery packaging: 'Worked amazing'

Sometimes, it's surprising how many parts of things you can reuse. 

TikTok account Brightly (@brightly.eco) even highlighted a way to reuse the plastic mesh that some fruit comes packaged in. They posted a video showing how to use the mesh to support flowers in certain types of vases. "Don't throw those net bags out!" the video's caption read. "There's something really cool you can do with them."

@brightly.eco Tired of droopy flower bouquets? 🥀 Here's a simple fix: Sometimes buying produce with plastic mesh packaging is hard to avoid (looking at you, clementines 👀), so upcycling it with this flower hack is a great way to reuse it! With this banding method, you'll be sure to have your flowers looking great just in time for Valentine's Day. Would you try this? Let us know in the comments! #flower #flowers #flowerhacks #upcycle #upcycled #reuse #produce #ecofriendly #ecofriendlyliving #lowwaste #lowwasteliving #zerowaste #zerowasteliving #sustainableliving #valentinesday #valentinesflowers #valentinesroses ♬ My Love Mine All Mine - Mitski

The scoop

All you need to do is fill a Mason jar with water, then stretch the mesh over the top of it and screw the lid on. Stick flowers through the holes in the mesh, then trim off the mesh that's hanging over on the outside of the jar. The flowers will stay where you put them and look great throughout their lifespan. 

That's it. It's really that simple, and your droopy flower problems could be gone forever. 

How it's helping

Learning how to reuse even the smallest items can help you save money overall. Using this hack, for instance, can save you quite a bit on other methods of keeping flowers upright and organized. 

The more items around your house that you learn how to reuse, the more you can save. It might seem counterintuitive at first, but using what you have before you buy something new will soon become second nature. You might be surprised at how much less you have to spend on new items. 

If you can't reuse something, maybe someone else can. Organizations like Trashie, ThredUp, or your local thrift store can help you get rid of things in ways that allow others to reuse items you can't figure out what to do with. 

This is good for the environment, too. The Environmental Protection Agency explains that reusing items helps preserve the planet, while North Carolina State University has reported that one of the many benefits of reusing instead of recycling is that it produces less pollution.

What everyone's saying

Commenters on TikTok loved this idea. "Brilliant," one raved. "Worked amazing," another shared. "Wow, what an ingenious idea," someone else added. 

Others had additional ideas for reusing this mesh. "I use them as sponges to wash dishes," someone suggested. "They're meant to scrub veggies with," another person said. 

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