How can I reuse or recycle … old cutlery?

Knife and fork
We got into our biennial toasted-cheese-sandwich obsession last weekend and while we were on top of a kitchen cabinet hunting down the toastie maker last weekend, we found a tub full of old random cheap cutlery.

We’ve acquired these random odds and sods over the years but they were superseded a couple of years ago by cutlery that

  1. hangs from a little hook thing because we don’t have any drawers in the kitchen, and
  2. doesn’t bend when eat something as solid as, oh, soup.

They’ve mostly got plastic handles but of all different colours and styles from different sets. I suspect the best thing I can do with them, even in their wonky bent state, would be to give them to a charity shop or Freecycle them but thought I’d see if anyone has any cool ideas for other reuses for them first. So suggestions?

(Photo by Gastonmag)

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16 Responses to “How can I reuse or recycle … old cutlery?”


  1. Lesley says:

    Someone locally makes wind chimes by taking old cutlery and bending them into interesting shapes, then hanging them up in different arrangements.

  2. I used to use my old forks for dishing out cat food from a tin, but now the modern design of pouches have taken over… so if you still use tinned stuff, or if you have a cat at all come to think of it, there you go.

    • louisa says:

      We have four cats so to avoid bankruptcy (and the excess packaging), we still use cans – and various forks/spoons have already been appropriated from the cutlery collection for their food :)

      -Louisa

  3. Sarah says:

    You could use them as an alternative to plastic silverware on outings or when hosting large events.

  4. Kathleen says:

    Donate them to a local homeless shelter, Goodwill, or Salvation Army. I’m sure they could use something more durable than plastic! :-)

  5. Rúna Björg says:

    I bought some jewellery made of cutlery.
    Can you replace the plastic handels with homemade wooden handels?

  6. fishcake_random says:

    could you tie a few peices to an old coathanger and voila a bird scarer or an unusual mobile for a window.
    dont forget that dollys and teddy bears always need culery on their picnics in the garden.

  7. Stephanie says:

    Easy take up playing the spoons. You can improvise with the knives and forks.

  8. Ryan says:

    They are most useful in their present shape. Please donate them, or perhaps give them out at the office. I forget a to bring a fork all the time.

  9. I know a lady that bends them into different shapes to make them into hooks for hanging coats and handles for her kitchen cabinets. Just keep them around in the garage for those times when you need something to stir some soil for a pot.

  10. Mea says:

    I used some to hang up my kitchen curtains. I curled the tines (the curtains hang on those) and bent the handles (which go over the curtain rod)

  11. Tricia says:

    I use old cutlery to mark plants in the garden. Use permanent ink to write or stamp the name of you plants on to the handle and then stick next to the plant in the garden.

  12. Diane W says:

    I keep my old forks and spoons for when the kids go digging in the garden or playing in the sandpit.

  13. Cam says:

    Maybe you could replace the handles with some cernit mass or something similar? (assuming that you want to keep them but they just look ugly :) )

  14. Alenochka says:

    When making stepping stones out of cement, concrete, incorporate old cuttlery inside for additional strength.



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