So, part of the Compact thing I am following(loosely) is to avoid buying new non-consumables.
I have been wanting to make my own Vanilla Extract. Real Extract is soooo expensive and the Imitation Extract is plain nasty. You can make your own with just Vanilla Beans and Vodka or Rum. You slit the beans down the side and place in the alcohol. Seal the bottle up, put it in a dry dark place and let it make it's magical elixir. While transporting vanilla beans here from Madagascar or Tahiti widens your carbon footprint, buying the ready-made Extract isn't any more earth-friendly. The ready-made stuff has to be transported here too, just not by you but by a mega corporation.
I needed a large glass bottle to place the vanilla beans in with the vodka, with an air-tight lid. A bottle with a ceramic topper is the perfect container. When we went on vacation last summer in Maine, I bought some lemonade for the kids that came in the perfect type of glass bottle. So instead of turning the bottles in, in Maine for the return of the bottle deposit there, I carted them home to wash and reuse. Wouldn't you know hubby recycled my bottles when I wasn't watching! ARGH
So I've been scouting out for replacement bottles since August. Some brands of beer come in these type bottles but they are green colored and I don't drink beer and hubby doesn't drink those brands. No luck in the Salvation Army either for used bottles like this.
I was about ready to buy NEW and plunk down $3-$3.50 each for a couple of bottles.
I happened to be in Target(just to get out and walk around since it's too cold/bitter to walk outside here)perusing the grocery aisles. I came upon a clerk marking down products. She was marking down Lemonade....in big glass bottles with ceramic stoppers! So I now have 2 perfect bottles for my Vanilla Extract making and lots of Lemonade to drink. The lemonade was $1.74 each, about half of what the container supply store wanted for a new identical bottle, empty.
I would call that a Compact-y coup!
Check back in a couple of months to see how the Vanilla Extract turns out.
Sluggy
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