Lots more Sneaky Ways to save the pennies

SeaVixen

I've noticed that Lush sells fabric scarves as reusable wrapping paper. I'm considering getting some (probably from a fabric shop rather than Lush) for OHs birthday, that we can reuse when we give presents to each other. 

wondercollie

SeaVixen said:

carolinerunner said:

And if you live with anyone who insists on squeezy bottles eg honey instead of jars, a 900ml jar of honey is under £3 and fills up 3 bottles of honey which cost about £2 each. I use a funnel to minimise the mess. I know, they could use the jar but can you imagine the mess when they add honey to a smoothie?!

Has anyone ever tried this with condiments? Thinking about mayo specifically.
Trying to cut down on plastic as well as cost. We use mayo to go on top of salads etc so being able to drizzle it from a squeezy bottle works better than a dollop from a jar. 

Mayo comes in squeezy bottle here in North America, along with ketchup, relish, and mustard.

Sallygirl

I was given a third of a bucket of mayo (catering size bucket) and have been refilling my last squeezy mayo bottle. I prefer jars of mayo because I can recycle the jar and the metal lid if I don't want to reuse them myself but I like being able to drizzle mayo on some things too. I am just wondering how many times I can refill my squeezy bottle before it gives up : )

PipneyJane

SeaVixen said:

carolinerunner said:

And if you live with anyone who insists on squeezy bottles eg honey instead of jars, a 900ml jar of honey is under £3 and fills up 3 bottles of honey which cost about £2 each. I use a funnel to minimise the mess. I know, they could use the jar but can you imagine the mess when they add honey to a smoothie?!

Has anyone ever tried this with condiments? Thinking about mayo specifically.
Trying to cut down on plastic as well as cost. We use mayo to go on top of salads etc so being able to drizzle it from a squeezy bottle works better than a dollop from a jar. 

 FWIW, I use a funnel to fill pump action bottles with hair conditioner and body lotion, both of which are about as thick and viscous as mayonnaise.  Just make certain a) that you have a spoon handle or similar that can go all the way down the length of the funnel and b) you have a bottle brush to clean the funnel afterwards.  

When you first dump mayo into the top of the funnel, it may just sit there and not slide down.  Use the spoon handle to break the surface tension of the mayo that is in contact with the hole and it should then start sliding down into your bottle.  If it doesn’t then you can resort to pushing it down the pipe.  I find that once it starts dripping down, gravity takes over and the rest will slowly follow.

HTH.

- Pip 

Naomim

Eenymeeny said:

Wombatchops wrote: »

Thank you Aesop and Anne_Marie.

Jackie O, can I ask a daft question? Will any vinegar do for ketchup, or should it be a particular variety? By the way, I'm with you on ensuring that every last drop possible cones out of this, jars, bottles, etc. Otherwise it's just a waste. My favourite kitchen instrument is a spatula for that very reason.

The thrifty Dutch actually devised a tool especially for this purpose. Called a flessenschraper. Years ago their favourite Vla dessert (like thick custard) was packaged into cartons instead of bottles and they complained that they couldn't get it all out! I brought a couple back with me but I think that you would be able to get them online now.
http://www.blokker.nl/nl/blknl/koken-en-tafelen/keukengerei/overig-keukengerei/flessenschraper

I've just bought a pack of two for £1.89 from fleabay. One for me & one for MiL. Brilliant idea.

wort

I only use garlic mayo which I can't seem to get in jars. It annoys me that the squeeze bottle only squeezes a couple of times before I have to take the top off and start scraping it out. Then cut the bottle in half, and even then the shape of the bottle make it difficult to reach it all out!! Then they are I nightmare to clean! I wish I could get large glass jars as I use it everyday on sandwiches instead of butter.

-taff

Why not make your own? large jar of mayo, add a clove of garlic grated, mix well, put back in the jar.

Primrose

Agree.  plastic bottle oK for first couple of Squeezes when full and thereafter a lot gets wasted.  Not sure what's best to dilute content with slightly so you can shake it well before decanting remainder into a covered jar. Squeezy mustard jar has same problem i find as we recently got a substituted jar of it in online grocery delivery. 

Eenymeeny

Naomim said:

Eenymeeny said:

Wombatchops wrote: »

Thank you Aesop and Anne_Marie.

Jackie O, can I ask a daft question? Will any vinegar do for ketchup, or should it be a particular variety? By the way, I'm with you on ensuring that every last drop possible cones out of this, jars, bottles, etc. Otherwise it's just a waste. My favourite kitchen instrument is a spatula for that very reason.

The thrifty Dutch actually devised a tool especially for this purpose. Called a flessenschraper. Years ago their favourite Vla dessert (like thick custard) was packaged into cartons instead of bottles and they complained that they couldn't get it all out! I brought a couple back with me but I think that you would be able to get them online now.
http://www.blokker.nl/nl/blknl/koken-en-tafelen/keukengerei/overig-keukengerei/flessenschraper

I've just bought a pack of two for £1.89 from fleabay. One for me & one for MiL. Brilliant idea.

Nice to see one of my tips being requoted! also nice to see that they are available on ebay now. Thank you.
In a similar vein to comments about reusing bottles and jars, I recently decanted hand lotion into a (clean!) golden syrup squeezy bottle which seems to be working. I find that the silvery plastic tops on some dispenser bottles go a horrible verdigris colour. I'm currently looking for white plastic ones which will fit my nice ceramic bases. Any suggestions please?

SeaVixen

Sallygirl said:

I was given a third of a bucket of mayo (catering size bucket) and have been refilling my last squeezy mayo bottle. I prefer jars of mayo because I can recycle the jar and the metal lid if I don't want to reuse them myself but I like being able to drizzle mayo on some things too. I am just wondering how many times I can refill my squeezy bottle before it gives up : )

Thanks - good to know that this is doable. Might give it a go with my next lot. 

PipneyJane said: [Very useful things, but a bit big to quote - Go read it above!]

This is super helpful, I'll try this! 

How do you both find cleaning out the mayo bottle between uses? 
I assume you've got to get all the previous mayo out and clean it properly. I might re-use a plain cylinder one from my garlic mayo rather than the Hellmans one as it's probably easier to clean.