Forget about making ice, here are 9 clever ways to use ice cube trays

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With ice makers being common in most refrigerators, many people no longer use traditional ice cube trays to make ice. Even if you no longer make ice the old-fashioned way, you may still have a few trays hiding out in your kitchen cabinets.
Even if you don't already own an ice cube tray, you can easily find them for very little at discount and dollar stores. Vintage ice cube trays, made from metal, offer a unique design choice if you can find them at flea markets or antique stores. New or old, their little cubbies are excellent for organizing small items.
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1. Freeze your summer herbs
A wonderful summer harvest of fresh herbs only leaves you wondering how to use it all. Preserve the flavor of summer by freezing your herbs. An ice cube tray allows you to freeze your herbs in perfectly sized portions. Simply chop your herbs, pack into the trays, add water, and freeze. Once frozen, store the herb cubes in the freezer in a freezer bag.
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2. Keep small hardware handy (h/t Sew Many Ways)
Screws, nails, tacks, power drill bits -- all the little pieces of hardware that you can't find when you need them. Keep them well organized in the cubbies of a silicone ice tray. The low profile of the tray allows it to easily slide into a drawer.
3. Find sunburn relief in the freezer (h/t The Dumb Belle)
Cool down the sting of a summer sunburn with frozen aloe vera cubes. All you have to do is freeze aloe vera in an ice cube tray. Once frozen, store in the freezer in a freezer bag. Pull out as needed to rub on burns, stings, and other pains.
4. See your makeup options (h/t Being Kindra)
One of the difficulties of being a makeup lover is organization. Traditional makeup storage makes it difficult to see what you have. This use of an ice cube tray to store eye shadows allows you to see the colors you have. Large traditional plastic ice cube trays will at least 15 eye shadows each.
5. Collect office supplies in one spot
Keep all of your office supplies neatly organized with an inexpensive ice cube tray. Each little cubby can hold a different item. Paper clips, binder clips, staples, tacks, rubber bands, and all the other little supplies you collect in your office drawer find a perfect home in an ice cube tray.
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6. Get crafty with creative storage (h/t Parent Map)
Crafting often involves tiny little pieces. Beads, sequins, and all the things that make your imagination soar don't need to be hidden away. Storing them in an ice cube tray helps them to inspire you as you work. You can use the ice cube tray to easily contain the items you need for a project as you work on it.
7. Inspire math learning (h/t My Obstacle Course)
Use an ice cube tray as a math organizer for learning fun. By writing numbers on the bottom of the tray in permanent marker, you create a cubby for math manipulatives. You can use the tray in many different learning games.
8. Accessorize with ease (h/t Decorating Obsessed)
Small pieces of jewelry can be difficult to store. Earrings and rings can get easily lost in the bottom of a jewelry box. Ice cube trays have enough cubbies that you can give each pair of earrings their own special space. When it's time to put on your baubles, you can easily see what you have to choose from.
9. Display your markers (h/t Pre-K Pages)
Think outside of the traditional ice cube tray to find creative storage for markers. This tray is designed to make ice cubes for water bottles. It just happens to fit markers perfectly. You can easily see what colors you have and that each marker has its matching lid.
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