So you’ve got a whole pile of magazines at home and don’t know what to do with them. They probably came into your home through subscriptions or random purchases at the supermarket. You could also have been passionate about an interest like running or cooking, hence the pile of runners’ magazines and cooking magazines at home. But with magazines available on tablet, you’ve opted to flip the pages digitally instead. What can be done with magazine back issues? Before you throw them out or have them recycled, here are some ideas that you can explore.
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure! Sell them at a garage sale – or give them for free! You may have exhausted all that you could learn from those back issues, but other folks may still learn from them. If you invested quite a lot in the magazines, you can sell them at your next garage sale. Back issues are generally loads cheaper. Now if you really want to dispose them, give them away for free! Simply put them in a box labeled “Take one!” and watch your customers grab your magazines.
Recipes never go out of style. Read back for recipes. Cut out the recipes and organize them in a clear book or your recipe box. You could also post the cut-out recipes on your refrigerator door. It beats having to refer to the magazine again and again for the recipe. You can cut out recipes and compile them in a scrapbook. This makes for a perfect gift for your foodie friend who loves to cook.
Your back issues may be dated, but they can help you with your future! Prepare a vision board. A vision board is a blank canvas where you can post pictures of things you dream about – a dream house, a dream vacation, your dream family, a dream career. A vision board is visual. It is also best seen everyday so you’re reminded of those dreams of yours. You can use back issues of your magazines to fuel that vision board. Scour the magazines for items or images that can be part of your vision board.
Save on having to buy wrapping paper by using magazine pages to wrap gifts instead. Spot pretty pages, tear them and put them aside. You can use them to wrap your pretty packages during birthdays or holidays. Pages can also be made into ribbons, not just the wrapper itself. It’s a creative way to give a gift!
If you’ve got really old magazines, why not make a vintage magazine gallery wall in your home? Vintage ads can add a quirky touch to your home. Choose articles that connect with you. Cut out print ads that amuse you. Go vintage all the way by choosing pages with content specific to that time period – shoulder pads for magazines from the ‘80s, the grunge look for magazines in the ‘90s. Your vintage magazine gallery wall can be themed. If they’re all fashion, wouldn’t they look great gracing your bedroom? If they’re all music and entertainment, they’d make a great accent for the family room.
Where is one place you can always find magazines? At waiting areas of doctor’s clinics. Why not donate your magazines to your doctor’s office? This way they can update their own magazine stash and you give patients something new to read too. You can also consider donating your magazine back issues to the school library.
To give your magazines another life, why not pass them along to family and friends? Chances are one of them would love some new reading material! This is great especially if you can’t let go of your magazines. At least you can keep them in the family!