20 Thrift stores with bizarre items for sale: ‘Selling sunflower oil that expired in 1998’ – FAIL Blog

Thrift shops: What don’t they have? 

Thrift shopping has always been a cheap way to get yourself some common household items, but it’s also become quite trendy in recent years. I think it’s partially because the quality of new clothing is just abysmal, but it’s become a big part of the shopping routine to pop into thrift stores and shop around. Some of my favorite sweaters have been thrifted, and I don’t worry about the seams coming loose after 3 wears. Instead, they’ll last until long after I’m gone, for several hundred more years, probably. 

It’s not just clothing — a lot of common household items were just better quality 20 years ago than they are now. That means that if you can find a good toaster or cast iron pan or bookshelf at the local Goodwill or Value Village, you can feel good about that investment. You’re recycling, saving money, and possibly even buying a superior product to the 2026 version. 

Microtrends have also made this a better way to find clothing, because sometimes the big name brand stores will really lean into whatever is currently trendy, even if that look will expire like milk. I’ve noticed that there’s a trend of putting little bows on every clothing item, which is very cutesy and all, but that’s not even what I want to have on my jeans or shirts. To the thrift store! All the attire with bows on it will be there soon enough! 

These people discovered some very ridiculous things for sale at their local thrift shops, though. Some folks will donate literal trash, like glass jars or plastic tubs. I’m not sure why they pass through the inspection process, but they do, and they wind up getting labelled and put on the shelves for sale. No one wants to pay for those glass yogurt jars, cute as they are, because if you really wanted those, you could just go buy them in store for probably less money and enjoy the delicious yogurt inside. There’s literally a person who has to hand-label these items, so… there must be some method to the madness. Check out that, as well as 19 other thrift store surprises down below!