Ziploc Storage Bags

Ziploc Storage Bags were invented in 1970 by the Dow Chemical Company, and happen to be the first plastic storage bags to come out with a zip. In fact, this is what the name is suppose to imply, a zipper that can be locked.

Even though these bags are versatile and be used for many purposes around your home, there are a few ways you shouldn't use them. One of them is don't boil this bag with food in it. The plastic will melt at 195 degrees Fahrenheit. Another is don't put foods that are really high in sugar content or high in fat content in these bags, then put them in a microwave oven.

The sugar and fat content in these types of food have a quick reaction time to the microwave cooking process, and will heat quicker than normal, causing the bag to melt. Now let me go ahead and give you the 25 ways in which you can use these bags around your home.

Your Shower Head
Whenever your shower head becomes encrusted and the water isn't coming out the way it should, and you're having difficulty removing the shower head, just pour some vinegar in the Ziploc Storage bag, tie it to your shower head using string or a rubber band, and leave it over night.

Use Them For Potpourri
These storage bags make excellent containers for holding all your potpourri ingredients. Try the recipe below.

Dry Ingredients:
• Whole Cloves • Strips of Orange Rinds • Dried Roses • Cinnamon Sticks • Juniper Sprigs
• Tiny Pine Cones • Bay Leaves • All Spice

Wet Ingredients: (mix these with orrisroot)
4 Drops of Rose Oil
4 Drops of Cinnamon Oil
4 Drops of Balsam Oil

Put all of the ingredients into your Ziploc bag, and leave it for about 2 weeks. Be sure to turn the bag occasionally.
Use As A Changing Mat
If you and your baby happen to be someplace where you need to change a diaper, but there isn't a changing table, you can use a large storage bag instead.

Store Your Holiday Decorations
This is a nice way to store any kind of decorations from any of the holidays. Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, Valentines Day, etc.

Apply Your Icing
If you need to apply pipping to your cake, cookies or cupcakes, just pour your icing into a Ziploc plastic bag, make sure the icing is at the bottom of the bag, and preferably to one corner. Twist the bag, snipe the corner, then squeeze the icing out. The size of the snipe will determine the size of the pipping.

Store Your Coupons
Gather up all your store coupons that you haven't had a chance to file, and keep them safely together in a Ziploc bag.

Store Your Jewelry
This is a good way to keep your jewelry from getting tangled with each other. Just store them the smallest Ziploc storage bags they sell.

Store A Child's Toys And Games
You know how small toys and game pieces are always getting lost or scattered over the house. Why not store them in plastic bags. This way your child will have all the pieces to that game or toy in one safe place.

Store Seeds For Your Garden
If you're a gardener, and you love planting with seeds, but you happen to have seeds you didn't use, then just store them in a Ziploc storage bag, and put them safely away until you need them again.

Store Your Food
Got leftovers from lunch or dinner? Store them in plastic bags, then put them in the refrigerator or freezer. If you want to eat them later, just remember you shouldn't put a plastic bag containing food with a high fat or sugar content in your microwave.

Use In Your Travel Packing
I do this all the time. When you are going on a trip, put all of your toiletries, make up, soaps, lotions and anything else you can think of inside Ziploc bags. This separates everything, and it also protects your clothes or suitcase if any of your items should leak or break.

Organize Your Drawers
If you keep small items like handkerchiefs, scarves, gloves and stockings in a drawer, why not store them in plastic bags to keep them neat and orderly.

Store All Your Arts And Crafts
This is an excellent way to store and organize all your art and craft supplies and tools. You can store your brushes, your ribbon, paper, cards, beads and anything else you can think of.

Organize Your Child's Crayons
If your child is like I was, I had all types of crayons, and all sizes of crayons, and the best way to keep them separate and organized is by putting them in Ziploc storage bags.

Store Used Baby Diapers
Away from home with your baby... traveling in a car, plane or train... you will always need to change your baby's diaper. When you do, store it in a Ziploc bag and this will eliminate having to deal with the odor of a soiled diaper on public transportation.

A Place To Keep Damp Clothes
Children and even adults will need a damp cloth every now and then, so why not carry a damp cloth in a plastic bag whenever you go out. A good way to do this is to dampen the cloth, squirt a little, not a lot, of antibacterial liquid hand soap in the middle of the cloth, then fold it up and put it in the plastic bag.

Keep Nuts And Bolts
If you want to keep your nuts, bolts and screws separate and organized, keep them Ziploc storage bags.

A Good Way To Marinate Your Meats
I do this a lot with pork, beef and chicken. Pour all your marinating ingredients into the plastic storage bag, add your meat, chicken or pork, put in the refrigerator and let it marinate for1 hour or overnight.

Store Baby Clothes
This is not only a good way to store old baby clothes, but it's an excellent way to carry clothes for your baby to change into. If you're going out, this keeps the clothes neat and separate from the other items in the diaper bag or your purse.

Store And Organize Camping Items
One item that comes to mine are matches. But you can also store your clothes, your food, your medication, first aid box and your map. All these items are prone to water damage and a Ziploc storage bag will protect them.

A Place To Keep Puzzle Pieces
You can either keep the puzzle pieces in a storage bag, or you store the entire puzzle box inside a plastic bag. This way you know the pieces will always be together.

Organize Your Child's Suitcase
Going on vacation with your children. If they are young enough for you to still pick out their clothes, then organize their daily outfits into large Ziploc storage bags. This way they know what outfit they will be wearing each day.

Store Papers That Are Important
If you have any kind of papers that are considered important, you may want to add extra protection to them by storing them in a Ziploc plastic bag. You can do this with warranties, receipts, maintenance and care instructions for your appliances, paint samples, tile samples, etc.

Store Snacks
This can be done for snacks you pack for traveling, lunch boxes, or just storing in the cabinets at home.

Store Passports
Doing this will protect your passports against water damage regardless where you are.

This completes the 25 creative ways to use Ziploc Storage Bags around you home. If you store food in these bags and you want to heat them in the microwave, just remember that you can't do this with foods high in fat and sugar content, but you can reheat other foods in the microwave.
When you do reheat, be sure to open the Ziploc a little and this allows steam to escape.

When you finish with all your Ziploc plastic bags, clean them, cut off the zip part and put them in a container for recycling. You should also check with waste management in your city to see if they recycle plastic bags, because all facilities may not. If yours doesn't, then ask them for the name of a company or agencies that does.