Living Large tip of the Week: Enlist Friends and Family on the Repurpose Hunts
So, you’ve decided to get into the Three R’s, Reduce, Reuse/Repurpose and Recycle.
You need a new “X” and you start looking for it at garage sales, second hand shops and Craig’s List.
If you live in a rural area, as we do, it may be harder to find whatever you’re looking for.
I previously posted about our quest to find some good old Made in the U.S.A. copper bottomed Revere Ware.
We searched high and low for two weekends (while on other errands). There was even one of those “Miles and Miles Garage Sales” that went through a couple of towns in our area.
No Revere Ware.
Even if we found some around here, unless we lucked out and found it in a thrift store or garage sale, we most likely would have overpaid in one of the antique stores that caters to the tourists.
I called my Godbrother in Kansas City. He goes garage sale-ing, to antique and thrift stores, as well as to auctions.
He found some great buys on some Revere Ware that’s in great condition – and he found it for me all in one week.
He picked one pan up for $1.
So, when you’re making the move to purchase some used item to help the environment out by Repurposing something old to be new again, get your friends and family involved in the search too.
It could help you save some time, money and gasoline.
Have any of your friends/family helped you find a great deal on a used item?
I so wish I lived closer to my mom. She got rid of all of her canning jars awhile back but it was just to pricey to have her send them to me. Such good ideas here!
That’s too bad!
Nice score, Kerri!
Just remember that some recipes may call for sticking your pans under the broiler…which is not a good idea for plastic-handled equipment.
And if I were you, I’d push hard for that propane tank–we just spent the week at a house at the shore that had an electric stove…wow, was that terrible!
Oh, and to answer the question, yes–I enlist the grandparents constantly for finding nice, used clothes for the little guy. We still need snow boots…I can’t believe the size 12 boots we found last year don’t fit my 3-year-old!
They grow fast, don’t they!? No, no broiler use with the Revere Ware! Thanks for the reminder.
My husband is amazingly good at this. Unfortunately, it hasn’t rubbed off on me as much as I’ve hoped.
Keep trying, Jane.
enlisting the help of friends and family this way is a great idea, Kerri. thanks for the reminder.
and Revereware is the best! hmm, might be time to polish mine up a bit though…
Thanks, Kerry. I love my new Revere Ware!
Congratulations on your success at finding the Revere Ware, Kerri! Putting the word out to family and friends when looking for something particular, is a great way to network your needs! I have a Revere Ware sauce pan that I got when we first married, and it’s in as good a shape as the day I got it!
Thanks, Kathleen. I was very excited to chuck that awful non-stick cookware (to charity). Evidently, when people have the old Revere Ware and realize the quality, they do take care of it. Mine is in awesome shape!
Revereware rocks! We were lucky to receive a full set as a wedding gift in 1974, and it remains my favorite cooking tool. We also received a super sturdy Dutch Oven by Magnalite, which is used constantly as well. My in-laws had Revereware from their wedding gifts in 1951 — and GAVE IT TO THE CHURCH RUMMAGE SALE!!!!! when they replaced their range with a ceramic top one & could no longer use it. Their Revereware was actually much weightier than ours, and would have been an awesome hand-me-down to grandchildren about to launch to apartments and new homes! Enjoy your “new” cookware! I still feel the love when I polish those copper bottoms.
Thanks, Emma, I’m very excited. I mastered the cast iron skillets without any problems and now hope to learn to cook in a no-non-stick pan (which I’ve been using all my life). What do you use to polish your copper?
ummmm,, can’t you used copper bottoms on a ceramic stove top ???
Kathy, while I’ve read that both cast iron and copper bottomed pots are not recommended for glass stove tops, I’ve also read many bloggers commenting that they have used their copper bottomed pans on the glass stove top (as I’ve used the cast iron). The one thing I’ve read is that the copper bottoms have to be kept clean or they will leave a residue. If anyone else has any other experience, I would like to hear. When we replace the stove, if my husband still doesn’t want to mess with a huge propane tank, I will probably go with electric coils next time.
And overstock.com even says they are perfectly acceptable: http://www.overstock.com/guides/best-cookware-for-electric-stoves
I use my Revere ware and cast iron on top of my glass top. You just don’t want to slide them across the surface.
Good point, Susan. Thanks for the input.
Enlisting friends and relatives for finding what you need is a fabulous idea. It looks like your Godbrother got some great deals, too.
Yes, he did, he has a knack for this sort of thing.
My in-laws go to estate sales every weekend. My MIL carries a list of the things various people in the family want her to look for! She has found some very hard to find items that way.
That is a great idea!