December 29, 2009

Double Duty Shipping Boxes

In the mail from Santa's sleigh
came boxes full of booty
Don't let those boxes go to waste
Make them pull double duty!

Just as you reuse gift boxes and bags year after year, shipping boxes that bring you first-class presents and online orders throughout the year can be reused, with fairly minimal effort on your part.

• Reduce clutter: If you're not ready to ship anything out just yet, break the boxes down with a box cutter or scissors and fold them flat under a bed or inside your closet.
• Repeat performance: Before reshipping an old box, make sure that you cover up any old barcodes or labels so as not to confuse the shipping company or postal workers.
• A hole in one: If you want to reuse a box that has a small hole in it, use carton sealing tape to properly patch it so it will not reopen in transit.
• Share the wealth: Infrequent shippers and those with very little storage space in their homes may want to advertise shipping boxes for free on Craigslist. Depending on the amount and size of your empties, you may only have to wait an hour or two for someone to come by and clean you out.

Boxes rarely come without some form of packing materials, so find out the greenest way to deal with the rest of it at ehow.com.

If you don't have access to shipping materials, check out the CareMail line of recycled mailing and packaging products.