Most clothing companies are the biggest culprits on this issue. T-shirts from Walmart are just as durable as a shirt from Macy's. Don't be fooled.
Blending
Food Bomb GIF by truTVGiphy"Not a brand, but once you own a few spices, every "spice blend" feels like a pure rip off... yeah sure I'll pay 6 bucks for 60g of salt, pepper and a few herbs mixed in." ~ theRinRin
It's just fruit...
"Edible Arrangements." ~ dreamHunter9
"It's fresh fruit, cookie cutters, skewers, and about 30 minutes of work. Buying one is a terrible idea, but making a basic one is super impressive to most people and anyone with basic kitchen skills can do it. Making one and then immediately eating it is also a fun couples activity." ~ MaxDamage1
Unreliable
"Monster Cables!" ~ pipehonker
"I was a cable tv/internet service guy for a few years. One of the first thing they told us was when we were trying to track down a signal problem, eliminate the monster cables first. About a third of the time that's what it was. The coax jumpers we made ourselves were nearly 100% reliable."
"The other cables for other things were just cheap stuff in clear plastic bags. We sometimes had trouble with them but it was rare. Not only are monster cables terribly over priced, they are utter garbage." ~ bastion-of-bullshit
Byron Bad
"Anything labelled with "Byron Bay (x) company." I doubt this is as much of an issue in countries outside Australia and maybe New Zealand, but so many brands label their crap as "Byron Bay" something or other. It's almost always trash (Byron bay cookie co. being a notable exception but also probably one of, if not the, first to do it)."
"Otherwise it's just an attempt to capitalise on the name of a tourist town that any area local will tell you is a sh*thole that's only good for trying to hookup with European backpackers." ~ FallenSegull
La What?
Jazz Seaweed GIF by The ItchywormsGiphy"La Mer." ~ dianaconlon
"You mean to tell me that sea kelp is not worth $175/ounce?" ~ Gen-XOldGuy
I've never understood the nonsense surrounding using items from the sea as beauty products. Just go in your backyard and grab some dirt and a leaf. Trust me.
Real Estate Win GIF by Explainly"Vancouver and Toronto prices have started branching out to other parts of Canada over the last two years and it sucks. The prairies are pretty much the only place you can still find real estate that's been rising at reasonable rates." ~ mockingwillow
It's all cheap!
"Old Navy - their prices used to reflect the mediocre but good enough quality. Now they got big in the head and inflated their prices WAY beyond their worth. I'm not spending $40 on a shirt that will pill and shrink after a few washes." ~ notconvincedicanread
"In 1998 I was headed off to college as a freshman. I wanted to start this new chapter in my life with a fresh wardrobe."
"I went to Old Navy with a $150 and literally got a whole new wardrobe for that price. Multiple pairs of jeans, shorts, T shirts, a hoodie, even socks and underwear. Fast forward 20 years, add in some inflation, and I could get MAYBE 1/3 of all that for the same price." ~ mangoman39
No thanks Kim
"Anything Jenner/Kardashian... I don't know who buys that overpriced crap." ~ Safe-Ad4367
"I once got a Kylie Jenner lipstick for free because I was ordering makeup and they were doing some sort of promotion and the lipstick was just okay it was really dry and definitely not worth the $20 it would've cost if it hadn't been free." ~ Mangobunny98
Workshop Issues
"I've never seen a community love the game but rail on the company more than r/Warhammer40k, and the other Games Workshop miniatures. I know artists gotta get paid, but $66 for three 4" tall minis is insane. Especially when you need three of those boxes to field a decent unit gameplay wise."
"A standard army to play full sized games will run you hundreds. Did I mention Games Workshop is the biggest company in the wargaming industry? They use that to charge whatever they want.I swear they throw darts at prices on sticky notes for some of these boxes." ~ brannanvitek
Average
Schitts Creek Comedy GIF by CBCGiphy"I know it doesn't happen everywhere but Zara clothing is ridiculously expensive in Latin America and their quality is just average." ~ Johndoe448
What have we learned? Don't be bamboozled! If you can find it cheaper then shop cheaper!
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A cellphone. That is the item that changed it all for me. And in the beginning, I didn't want one. I fought to have one. I thought they were so useless. Ha! I got ny first for $35. Of course, the bill is a different story.
Tushy Love
Toilet Paper Dancing GIF by The CooligansGiphy"Soft close toilet seat."
My wife bought one for the powder room downstairs. Guess who slams the toilet seat upstairs like a moron?"
Brush
"A good quality electric toothbrush."
- jojokie
"Philips Sonicare is the best. I'm a dentistry student and we recommend those always. They can be used as a regular toothbrush so patients easily adapt. A lot of our patients don't get cavities anymore since they use those, highly recommended. For interdental cleaning get Jordan toothpicks. Don't floss, toothpicks are way better."
Keep it Fresh
"Air purifier."
"I have a few BlueAir purifiers, the 411 and the 121 models- they covered the biggest sq ft for the smallest $ and the replacement filters were the cheapest while also filtering PM2.5 for smoke. Recommended by Consumer report iirc. In addition to the fire season benefits, makes a huge difference for my (v. slight) cat allergies year-round. Before I got these, I taped furnace filters to a box fan and that worked well on smoky days."
Comfort
"A nice hoodie that comforts me when I'm lonely."
"Love a nice hoodie. Trouble is they take a while to wear in until they are comfortable. For that reason I always buy them second hand."
- sznfpv
Wrappers
Think About It Reaction GIF by IdentityGiphy"Condoms."
- OzTm
"100%. Remember it takes many screws to make a crib but only 1 to fill it. So wrap that thing!!"
Now there is a lot of truth id you ask me. My shopping list just grew. Of course a few seemed obvious... a soft toilet seat and condoms? Duh.
Pik for Life
Teeth Tooth GIF by OllieTorresGiphy"A Waterpik. Got one when I had braces, and am never going back to pre-waterpik life."
"Flossing is such a pain, I've gone an ordered one from the Penis Rocket people. Thanks stranger."
Warmth
"Towel warmer. Step out of the shower and be wrapped in pure warmth. Especially nice in the winter."
"I have the previous model. Looks like it got a little bit more of expensive. So worth it though. Makes me feel like a millionaire. Zadro TWB Towel Warmer, X-Large, Gray. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07V9K6WV3/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_24XKRKY2KW61HHPYFX52?psc=1"
"Or you can go for real luxury and also get a towel warmer warmer. Keeps your towel warmer warm. It's just nice to have a warmer towel warmer. Warm towel warmers warm towels better. Besides that, there's the simple satisfaction of having a nice warm towel from a warm towel warmer."
The Most Unexplained Events In History | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
History is littered with unsolved mysteries. Whether those answers are buried somewhere or lost forever, it doesn't stop people from wondering or hypothesizi...Hush...
"Noise cancelling headphones. They don't even need to be particularly good ones, but it makes listening to music more enjoyable in my opinion. And sometimes you just need to block out the world for a bit."
"Especially if you have a noisy commute on the subway or bus. It definitely helps your ears so you don't need to turn up the volume as much."
Bring the Heat
"Bidet attachment for the toilet."
- Sarke1
"It seems intense at first but I've had one for a couple years ago and don't really think I need heated water. It's a little cold in the winter but it's never been so cold that I couldn't tolerate it for a minute or so to get clean."
"Heated ones either have to heat the water locally or wait while the hot water comes through the pipes. The latter won't work for me because my shower takes 3-5 minutes to heat up. You get used to the cold water and it's really not that bad to begin with. Totally worth it."
- IceNFire
Hold me Down
"Weighted blanket. It's very comforting if you are distressed. I have panic attacks and it helps. Even if I'm just feeling anxious it is a great help. They can be expensive but 100 would be going pretty big on a weighted blanket. Be sure your medium to small pets don't get trapped in there."
Used Love
Season 6 Nbc GIF by The OfficeGiphy"A stuffed animal to sooth loneliness, going the used rout will get you an amazing one."
"When my wife passed away about 7 months ago my daughter went to build a bear and made me a bear with a recording of her voice singing "stop in the name of love." I have snuggled with this bear every night for the last almost 8 months now. This bear has gotten me through some rough nights so far and idk what I would do without it."
Ways to Slumber
"Sleep mask and ear plugs."
- natknewz
"Maybe this is just me, but earplugs make it so I can hear my own breathing and heartbeat. I feel like I'm going insane every time I've tried it."
"Try a weighted sleep mask- game changer."
For the Feet
"A good pair of comfortable shoes. Save yourself from debilitating foot, knee, and even back pain."
- hhhhhhd5
"If only I could find some that actually fit. Last Saturday I spend 6 hours going through every single shoe store that's near my home and trying on every pair of shoes I saw that was even remotely to my taste. End of the story is I still walk around in my old shoes that have holes in them."
- Xello_99
Pump It
Working Out Lifting Weights GIF by Chance The RapperGiphy"Gym membership, at least in my country."
- hadravao
"Got one of those, didn't change my life! Looking back, maybe I should have also used it!"
A Clip Away
"A good nail clipper can make grooming so much easier."
"I will add that the best nail clippers aren't nail clippers at all, but rather high quality wire cutters! I was ordering jeweler's supplies several years ago and added some lap jointed flush cutters to my cart. I saw a woman in the reviews claiming she used hers as nail cutters which I thought was silly. I was curious, so I tried when they arrived and I have never gone back to nail clippers! The flush cutters give excellent control, squeeze effortlessly, and cut through nail like butter."
For the Lambo
"I bought my Dashcam for 80 bucks and it save me money and time dealing with "he said she said bullsh*t" over whose fault it is. There was clip just went viral where a girl rear ended a lambo then it came out that the lambo driver was trying to gaslight her after he hit her. Imagine if either one of those expensive cars had a 100 dollar dash cam problem solved."
- FRAZORO
Go Deep
"Magnesium, something that made my life so much better in many ways some are faster recovery (working out), deeper sleep, calmer mind, helps lower inflammation (we all need that), lowers cramps, and so much more, check with your doc though it may interact with other meds."
- hoodyk
Let's Plant
"You may not think so, but using it to buy a few plants can be amazing. There have been studies done on how caring for plants releases endorphins and is really good for mental health. I think this is why there was a surge in plant ownership/popularity during quarantine; even best-case scenario we were all a bit lonely and stressed. Plants help to alleviate that."
Know your tools...
"Mechanic tool set. Got my first one, Husky 230 piece set, two years ago. On sale at the Home Depot for about $99 plus tax. Picked up the Hart 215 piece kit at Walmart for $98 plus tax, as a back up. It is a good kit to start working on cars, in my case, I leave it in my truck. I have a few side hustles to supplement my income, the struggle is too real."
I can personally attest to a weighted blanket, towel warmers stuffed animals. They should all start a life "must have" list. The essentials don't always have to break the bank.
Curious to hear about the palates from strangers online, Redditor knightfall0 asked:
"What is a poverty food you'll always eat no matter how you're doing in life?"
These typical cultural cuisine are popular favorites.
Simple Tacos
"Cheap can of corn, cheap can of black beans, 3 cups of cheap rice."
"Tortillas for flair."
"Boom! Poverty tacos."
Magic Of Ramen
"Same. I've eaten expensive restaurant meals that still don't compare to a 25 cent ramen package."
"25 cent ramen package with a boiled egg marinated in soy sauce packets and sugar and some spinach if you have any for some veggie chef kiss cheapest dinner but makes it feel fancy."
Presto, Dinner Is Served!
"Random stuff in my fridge fried rice. Take the veggies that are about to go off, throw in some cheap white rice and an egg with some soy sauce and garlic- boom, dinner."
Bread-based meals seem to be an easy go-to choice.
For The Posh Palate
"Beans on toast and if I'm feeling posh maybe i will put an egg on top."
Season 5 Eating GIF by OutlanderGiphyGood 'Ole Cornbread
"Cornbread and buttermilk. Seem to recall that my maternal great grandmother's house in the the early 1960s had a manual pump in the kitchen, an outhouse and oil lamps, no electricity! There was a big stump for splitting wood for the heat and killing chickens. Relatives had tractors but at least one still worked with draft horses...big horses. NE TN. And my Mother would eat salt sandwiches."
"I do like cornbread, various peas and beans and greens...a lot!"
Who said traditional side dishes can't be the main attraction? These folks, that's who.
Cheese-Drenched Pasta
"Mac and cheese with hotdogs or sloppy joes were top tier. I remember having to be careful to not take too much meat/noodles since we only had one can/box to share."
Getting Krafty
"If I had a million dollars, we wouldn't have to eat Kraft Dinner (but we would eat Kraft Dinner)"
Instant ramen has come a long way. I go to one of several local Japanese markets here in Manhattan and there are literally aisles of a variety of ramen and yakisoba, my personal favorite, stocked on shelves to choose from.
Yakisoba is basically "fried" noodles. It is "instant" because you basically soften the noodles with boiling water and drain it after three minutes.
The sauce packets that come with some of these are an absolute delight, and I usually add scallions or even a hard-boiled egg.
It is cheap, simple to prepare, and absolutely delicious.
But can everyday objects have the potential to increase in value that are not necessarily limited edition, signed works of art?
All you need to do is to go on eBay to find out.
While you're there, you may find plenty of random items you thought were worthless at one time is going for a king's ransom today.
"What is cheap right now but will become expensive in the near future?"
The depletion of these three things sparked its own thread.
Decreasing Commodity
"Cork, vanilla and many fish. The sources for them are not being properly maintained and are shrinking."
Vanilla Value
"Vanilla has already more than doubled in price since 2015. There was a hurricane or something that wiped out most of the crop in Madagascar, which is where the vast majority of vanilla comes from."
"About a decade ago I bought a 16oz bottle of fancypants vanilla bean 'crush' (aka vanilla paste, basically a syrup form of vanilla extract) for a little over $20. Nowadays that same amount would run you at least $60."
"Alcohol-based extract is generally cheaper than paste, but still way more expensive than it was as little as 6 years ago."
Cork Stigma
"Many mass producers of wine have shifted to synthetic corks or twist offs. The stigma of twist offs is already few years gone unless you're drinking something with a bit more age to it."
Thoughts On Fish
"Sometimes when I eat fish I think about how it could be a scarce delicacy in the future that only rich people will get to enjoy."
– letter99
"History major here: it already is, at least partly. Best example is salmon. Back in the 18th century, there are examples of house-people 'rioting' because they were sick of eating salmon at least 4 times a week. Now you'd have to be pretty rich to eat salmon nearly everyday, here in Europe."
Keeping up with the latest technology, while convenient, has a financial setback.
"Owning" Devices
"Companies are lobbying hard to fight right to repair legislation that would make it so you can't actually fix your own devices or have a repair shop do it for you. It's already pretty bad with companies like Apple, Tesla, and John Deere. They design stellar products but if anything goes wrong with them you're almost always going to be told to buy a new one (apple) or to ship your heavy piece of machinery both ways for days to weeks to have it repaired when you should otherwise be able to do it yourself."
"Farmers are moving back to ancient tractors since they can fix them themselves and get parts for a reasonable price, or they're using bootleg Polish JD software to bypass the DRM in their tractors so they can actually fix these things in a timely matter. Sometimes having a $100 sensor break in your tractor can cost you upwards of $5000 with shipping, rigging, and labour. Not to mention a potentially lost harvest if it takes too long to fix."
A "Global Scale Issue"
"It's kinda a global scale issue right now. Poor people just can't afford ecological stuff."
"My dad always mentioned that he'd buy electric heating system for the house, electric car, solar panels, etc. if they were actually affordable in a lifetime. Now he's stuck using 20+ years furnace that runs on wood and and burnable trash, 20+ year car, some old tractor, and actually he got subsidies for the solar panels, so that's nice."
Some of the most basic things used in our daily lives may no longer be attainable without spending beaucoup $$.
Sucks A Bunch
"Bananas. At least, the kind of bananas we're used to now, the cavendish banana. The fusarium fungus is slowly spreading through the world's cavendish banana plantations, killing all of the plants. https://qz.com/1691363/fusarium-fungus-could-wipe-out-the-worlds-favorite-banana-again/"
– ratsbane
People Who Made A Lot Of Money From Something Totally Random | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Big Brother Is Watching
"Relatively speaking, privacy."
– Voxico
"NordVPN: Because our servers are more trustworthy than their servers."
Simple But Necessary Indulgences
"Chocolate or coffee."
"Either that or I'll be dead when that happens."
Good Morning Drinking GIF by University of PhoenixGiphyGame Preservation
"Games in general really."
"Lack of game preservation by companies in recent years (Nintendo just ignoring most of its backlog with the Switch, Sony getting a massive backlash for trying to pull the plug on the PS3 PSN store, which it seems like it won't be the last time they attempt this considering they still went ahead and did that for the PSP despite the backlash), emulation still being stuck in a legal gray area that makes it easy for the sites hosting older games to be taken down, and disks/carts being destroyed due to neglect by owners, are all going to make the used game market insanely expensive."
"If you have a local retro game store in your area, make sure to support them. They're basically the only ones still making older games remotely affordable."
– TokoWH
Second-Hand Vehicles
"They've already started to go up a huge amount, but used cars."
"90s Japanese cars are outrageous now."
Chump Change
"Pennies."
"They already cost more than a penny, because of the copper."
"Edit: yes, pennies are mostly zinc, not copper. Got it. Why do I get all the upvotes when I say something dumb?"
I never thought cologne increased in value, but apparently, it does.
I used to shop at an apparel store called Ruehl, which was owned by Abercrombie & Fitch and catered to the post-collegiate demographic between the ages of 22 and 35.
As with their Abercrombie locations, Ruehl stores – which were themed after New York's Greenwich Village – pumped the store's eponymous fragrance throughout their stores.
Their gimmick worked and I bought myself a bottle of the good stuff and was subsequently mocked by my colleagues about how I'm such a sucker for egregious marketing and wasting money on "crap."
Well, a friend of mine recently apprised me of a listing on eBay of the discontinued bottle of Ruehl cologne and asked me if I still had mine.
I do have my half-used bottle of RUEHL No.925 R-7 Men's Cologne Spray. And apparently, the "crap" I initially spent $40 on is now roughly worth $250 according to this listing my friend showed me.
So who's laughing now, huh?
Had I known it would appreciate that much in value a few years later, I seriously would have stocked up. Sigh.