Before tossing an empty laundry detergent cap into the trash, consider giving it another job around the house. These sturdy little plastic cups are surprisingly useful once they’ve been thoroughly washed and dried. Because detergent residue can remain behind, it’s best to keep reused caps away from food, drinks, medicine, and anything children might put in their mouths.

One easy use is as a small scoop for non-food materials such as potting soil, birdseed, rock salt, or pet-litter cleanup. They can also become paint cups for small craft projects, holders for screws and nails while doing repairs, or containers for beads, buttons, and other tiny craft supplies. Keep one near the sink to hold a sponge or scrub brush, or use several in a drawer to organize paper clips, rubber bands, and spare batteries.

Gardeners can use clean caps as temporary seed-starting containers if drainage holes are added to the bottom. In the garage, they work well for sorting washers, nuts, and bolts. Another clever idea is using them as disposable glue or paint-mixing cups during DIY projects. They can even serve as small catch trays underneath dripping bottles of cleaning products.

That gives you ten simple uses: scooping soil, scooping birdseed or litter, holding paint, organizing hardware, storing craft supplies, holding cleaning tools, organizing drawers, starting seeds, sorting garage parts, and mixing DIY materials.

Not every detergent cap needs saving, of course. But keeping a few clean ones around can turn something normally thrown away into a surprisingly handy household organizer.