Using Extra Cloth Shopping Bags In The Freezer

I've found a great use for extra cloth shopping bags! I'm so glad that I couldn't find another post about this so that I could share a tip with everyone and finally "pay everyone back" who has helped me on this website for a change!

I have a good sized deep chest style freezer and while wading through it to try and take an inventory, it occurred to me that we had a few extra sturdy cloth shopping bags that would be much better to use inside the freezer instead of the limp plastic bags we had been using to keep like items organized better by category.

I cleared everything out of the freezer, took my inventory of what we had on hand, then I got out five sturdy cloth shopping bags that we had been given for free (NOT the plastic laminated bags! Those will crack and split in the cold and they're generally too big to easily lift in and out, unless you have been weight lifting for a hobby!)

Next, I put all the veggies into the larger bag, since those were the largest contingent. I laid the bag on its small side, then flattened out each bag of veggies and slid them into the bag. Then I marked my inventory with a "P" for purple so that I'd know which bag to look in for the right veggies I'd need for dinner. The next bag was just for stir fry kits, the bag after that was all of my meats and finally, some homemade meals for the crockpot.

I can now easily see if I can fix a certain meal by checking my inventory (I use a magnetic dry erase board that I bought from Dollar Tree eons ago, and make sure that I erase the item and then put it on my grocery list right away!). But the best part is that I don't waste time trying to dig through a frozen avalanche of packages! In and out quickly keeps the temperature from dropping drastically and that helps with the electric bill!

What nifty ideas can you come up with for your extra cloth shopping bags? I'd love to know, as I still have a few extra leftover that I'd love to put to good use!

Thank you everyone who has helped me out on this website! I hope that I've been helpful to you today for a change!