Coffee Filters...Not Just for Coffee!

United States
January 13, 2009 7:01pm CST
I received this in a email today and thought to share it with my frugal friends. I am always on the look out for ways to make life a bit more easy. The following ideas are great. Coffee filters are inexpensive too. We just purchased a huge package of them from Sam's Club for less than $3.00! What a bargain. Hope you find this list useful. 1. Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave. Coffee filters make excellent covers. 2. Clean windows and mirrors. Coffee filters are lint-free so they'll leave windows sparkling 3. Protect China. Separate your good dishes by putting a coffee filter between each dish. 4. Filter broken cork from wine. If you break the cork when opening a wine bottle, filter the wine th rough a coffee filter. 5. Protect a cast-iron skillet. Place a coffee filter in the skillet to absorb moisture and prevent rust 6. Apply shoe polish. Ball up a lint-free coffee filter. 7. Recycle frying oil. After frying, strain oil through a sieve lined with a coffee filter. 8. Weigh chopped foods. Place chopped ingredients in a coffee filter on a kitchen scale. 9. Hold tacos. Coffee filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods. 10. Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot. Line a plant pot with a coffee filter to prevent the soil from going through the drainage holes. 11. Prevent a Popsicle from dripping. Poke one or two holes as needed in a coffee filter. 12. Do you think we used expensive strips to wax eyebrows? Use strips of coffee filters. 13. Put a few in a plate and put your fried bacon, french fries, chicken fingers, etc. on them. Soaks out all the grease. 14. Keep in the bathroom. They make great "razor nick fixers."
11 people like this
26 responses
@Grandmaof2 (7579)
• Canada
14 Jan 09
My goodness most of those ideas were new to me. What a great idea and I saved this for further reference. Thank You my friend. Have A Great Rest Of The Week. All it wants to do here is snow.
5 people like this
@stephcjh (38473)
• United States
14 Jan 09
Wow. I didn't know they could be used for so many things. That is great. Thanks for sharing with us.
4 people like this
@Polly1 (12645)
• United States
14 Jan 09
Thanks for the great ideas, I have used them to drain bacon before, but the other uses are new ones for me. I really like the one about putting it in the bottom of a pot before putting the plant in.
3 people like this
@jillhill (37354)
• United States
14 Jan 09
All very good and easy ways to use coffee filters....I have been using them when I heat chili in the microwave...keeps it from splashing all over inside....I haven't figured out how to use them to wax your eyebrows yet! LOL....but all of them are very great ideas'.....thanks for sharing!
4 people like this
@Pleiades (846)
• United States
14 Jan 09
Thanks for the tips and ideas...but I'm curious about number 12...and the wax eyebrows... *Pleiades
4 people like this
@sahmof2 (274)
• United States
14 Jan 09
There are some good uses for them I never thought of I'm going to have to give some a try.
3 people like this
• United States
14 Jan 09
I have used the coffee filters to drain bacon on. I ran out of paper towels and grabbed a couple of the filters. Worked great!
2 people like this
@Yoshi_ (156)
• Australia
14 Jan 09
They're also useful for separating the codeine from nurofen plus. Dissolve the tablets in cold water, allow to sit for 10 mins then filter through the coffee filter.
2 people like this
• United States
14 Jan 09
Thank you for the excellent tips. The only one I have used is in plant pots to stop the soiler from leaking through so I know that one really works.
3 people like this
@eaforeman6 (8979)
• United States
14 Jan 09
wow! and this is really great because they are not exspensive so actualy they are cheaper then most paper towels....Appreciate the information and the great tips.
@mamacathie (3928)
• United States
14 Jan 09
Those ideas were great! Thank you for sharing. I love frugal ideas! I am always searching for ways to use the items I already have in my home so I don't have to purchase other things. Be sure to inform us of other things you learn in your frugal searches. Thanks and God bless you!
• Canada
3 Feb 09
Hi Friend... How are you? I have been MIA here because of all the business development plans David and I are involved in. I drop by to pick up messages and respond to friend requests as time permits. I go through friends lists and touch in to say hi to let them know it is not out of sight...out of mind. That is certainly so with you dear one. You have always been so supportive of Perspectives topics and even though I am not in touch I do think of you and others here. I hope to start posting after our website is launched and will do a catch up post at that time. When I saw this discussion I wanted to drop in and thank you for it. Like you I love frugal tips for the art of living. I printed this so I will have it for future reference. Take care until we chat again...I care about you Butterfly Lady...because as you know I inherited a love for them from my Mom. She has her wings now and we are using a butterfly for our company Logo. So long for now... Big huggers and wishing you many blessings, Raia When
@Ldyjarhead (10233)
• United States
26 Jan 09
I used 2-3 of them just tonight to drain some food I fried. I don't like to spend money on paper towels to get thrown away, so this worked in a pinch.
1 person likes this
@ruthinian (2309)
• United States
27 Jan 09
wow! these are really great ideas and can really help a lot of homemakers out there. I especially like the tip for the popsicle... that was a good one. Thanks a lot.
@sudalunts (5523)
• United States
26 Jan 09
Wow, what an extensive list of uses for coffee filters. I do not drink coffee, my husband does, and I bought a big bundle from costco's for little or nothing. I think there were about 700 coffee filters. I will certainly begin to use them for other things besides coffee. Who knew, I never thought of all the other uses. thanks for these great tips.
1 person likes this
@lifeiseasy (2292)
• United States
14 Jan 09
WOW this was a great email to pass on. I really do not call myself frugal but I do try and find uses for things such as this. I really liked all the different ways they had listed. There will many of these that I will use myself everyday from now on.I really liked the one for the cast iron skillets, as I have many of them and they do want to rust from all the humidity here in Florida. Also the one to use the coffee filter as a strainer for your frying oil, that one is awesome with the cost of lard now a days reusing frying oil is a great way to save money.Many restaurants reuse the frying oil and strain it through big sieves never thought about using a coffee filter for this but I am sure going to now.
1 person likes this
@writersedge (22563)
• United States
17 Jan 09
We used coffee filters to decorate a float one time. Magic markers to draw circles in red and then blue with the white of the filter in between. Then we put a piece used wire to fasten them to a float. It was a 4th of July float. 50 of us did about 50 each. It was a big gloat and we had one square of square dancers on it. Thanks for the memories. Take care.
• United States
15 Jan 09
I had not heard of many of those ways to use coffee filters. I know they use them in craft projects for kids.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (157563)
• Boise, Idaho
14 Jan 09
Wow! this is great information. Something I wouldn't have thought of. I think this is a great idea.
1 person likes this
• United States
14 Jan 09
Wow, who knew? And here I use paper towels for coffee filters. O.K. I only do that when I run out of filters. Gotta have that coffee one way or another.
1 person likes this
• France
14 Jan 09
Thanks! I love these types of creative suggestions for regular household items.
1 person likes this