20 Creative Uses for Paper Clips

Here’s a list of 20 creative uses for paper clips that you didn’t even know that you needed!

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They may be called paper clips, but there are more uses for these bent pieces of wire than just holding paper together.

If you’re like me, paper clips are all over your house and office. There’s always a single paper clip lying around somewhere. I swear they get up and walk around in the middle of the night.

We don’t always think of paper clips as something we can use to solve common everyday problems. I’m going to share with you some great ways to use paper clips that you probably never thought of before!

20 Creative Uses for Paper Clips

1. Make a keyring – Create a circle by wrapping a paper clip around a marker twice, then slide it off and add your keys to it.
2. Fix a zipper – Hook one end of a paper clip through the end of the zipper pull and the other around the button on your pants.
3. Tiny screwdriver – Tighten tiny screws in glasses with a paper clip.
4. Keep wrapping paper from unrolling – Slide a paper clip over each end of the wrapping paper tube to hold the paper in place.
5. Hide bra straps – Pull both of the back straps together and fasten them with a paper clip to hide the straps.
6. Unclog small holes – This is great for clogged salt shakers, glue bottles, spray bottles, and anything that has a small hole that can become clogged. Just stick the paper clip in the hole and give it a little swirl.
7. Bookmark – tie a small piece of ribbon around one end of a paper clip and slide it over a page in a book for a cute bookmark DIY!
8. Remove hair from a hairbrush – Open a paper clip and run it along the bristles of a brush to remove stubborn hair.
9. Close opened bread bags – Unravel a paper clip and wrap it around a bread bag like a twist tie to keep bread fresh.
10. Hang decorative plates – Use a strong adhesive like E6000 to attach paper clips to the back of plates, then hang them from nails to create a gallery wall.
11. Pit a cherry – Unbend a paper clip until it looks like an ‘S’, then use it as a scoop to remove the pit from the cherry.
12. Find the end of the tape – Stick a paper clip at the end of the tape after using it to easily find the end the next time you need it.
13. Clean a keyboard – Wrap a tissue, paper towel, or felt around the end of a paper clip to create a mini brush to easily clean around the keys of a keyboard.
14. Make a smartphone stand – Straighten out all the bends in a large paper clip and fold it in half to create a ‘U’ shape. Bend each “leg” of the clip forward to make a stand to place your phone.
15. Hang ornaments – Slide one end of a paper clip through an ornament loop, then use the other end to hang the ornament with.
16. Dye Easter eggs – Create a spoon shape by twisting a paper clip around. Then use it to lower the eggs into the dye cups.
17. Secure chips and cereal bags – Clip a paper clip on both sides of a bag of chips or a cereal bag to keep the food fresh.
18. Create a bouquet of flowers – Unbend a few paper clips and wrap around several flowers to create a bouget. Wrap a ribbon around the bouquet to hide the clips.
19. Reset electronics – The reset button on most electronics is super tiny, so a paper clip is perfect for this job!
20. Hang photos – Use paper clips to hang photos of friends and family or kids’ artwork.

Paper clip use goes well beyond the office. Who knew that the simplest object had so many uses?

Now that you know how many things paper clips can be used for, you might want to stock up. These little pieces of bent wire are quite inexpensive and really come in handy in an emergency.

Can you think of other uses for paper clips? Let me know in the comments!

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