Thrifting is like looking for sunken treasure. You’ll sift through a lot of stuff, but you’ll eventually find the one thing worth grabbing.
For these people, those prized finds had extra surprises in store! From unexpected uses to actual money, the finds in this article will make you want to mask up and head out to your local thrift store ASAP.
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Now that’s a BIG score.
This wallet from Cabela’s was purchased for $1. Inside was a gift card to Bass Pro Shops for $78.10! They made a profit while thrifting! Amazing.
Think this is just weird Egyptian decor? Think again.
It’s a shelving unit! I’d ask what you would store in here, but that’s the wrong question. The question is what wouldn’t you store in here? It’s a masterpiece.
That’s no ordinary Death Star…
This was taped up in the toy aisle, so Redditor Cursed_0ne picked it up to maybe turn into a craft. Once they removed the tape, they found a total surprise inside! It was actually a light projector all along.
A tiny box had a big secret.
“Bought this organizer from a moving sale two years ago for $10, finally got around to cleaning it out today and to my surprise found a jewelry box full of old pins and earrings (and a 1 cent Euro for some reason) that had been hidden inside the whole time,” Luster-Purge wrote.
Surprise! Obama.
The purchase of a new hat and a book collection came with a surprise! Between the books was a pristine picture of former president, Barack Obama. What a random find!
These whales have a secret.
Are they creepy? Yes. Are they still cool? Also yes. The top whale opens up to reveal a storage compartment! According to a commenter, the whales are part of a fairly valuable line of collectibles.
This tiny mailbox has a secret purpose.
When you unlatch the front, it becomes a stamp dispenser! How adorable is that? Even though I don’t send many letters, I want to get one of these just to hold my stamps.
This hamburger serves a dual purpose.
Its first purpose is just to be a cute little burger. The second? To cover your dip. Everything about this burger plate is a 10/10.
A record player with a very adult secret.
Oh my GOD. “70’s Porn records surprise under the mat of my thrifted turntable …now I know why it was playing wobbly,” koolpanther wrote.
The secret inside this lunchbox wasn’t much of a surprise.
I mean, we all saw that coming, right? Still, that amount of Pokémon cards is a nice surprise, and it’s a total throwback to my childhood.
You never know what treasure you’ll find in an old book.
Especially a Neil Gaiman one! Two of his novels were found at the thrift store, and they were both signed! The price? $2. I bet they’d sell for a lot more.
This purse had a tiny friend inside.
The purse was purchased for $12, which is a pretty good deal for Vera Bradley. However, the wallet was a surprise that was hiding inside! Two for one deal.
Vintage picnic baskets are pretty cute, not gonna lie.
So, this picnic basket came with what Redditor AssassinInKarnaca thought was a tiny table. As it turns out, it’s a tiny stand to protect pies from the rest of the food packed in the basket! Cute.
Who doesn’t need a secret drawer?
Sure, three drawers are pretty great. But what about a secret fourth one, just for hiding snacks? That’s what I’d use it for, anyway. Don’t judge me.
Paintings always have infinite secrets.
But usually, they’re hidden in the art itself, not the frame. This one had some hard-to-find hinges that revealed a whole jewelry storage compartment behind the painting! What a great place to hide valuables!
Think this is just a box with Jesus on it? Think again.
It’s an exorcism kit. I don’t know what else to say, because it’s a friggin’ exorcism kit. That’s not something you see every day, especially in a thrift store.
Always look carefully at your purchases, okay?
“I usually get records at thrift stores for around $2. Realized after I had it for a year that Ella Fitzgerald signed this one. Wish [it] was in better shape,” tenglempls wrote on Reddit.
This bunny’s jewelry was pretty rich for its taste.
The weird wooden bunny: $1.99. The sterling silver charm necklace it’s wearing, for some reason? Worth $50+. Now that’s a great find…if you want to add a wooden bunny to your home decor collection, that is.
A VCR had a pretty dope secret inside.
It was purchased to play old tapes, but it turns out it still had a tape inside — and it was Return of the Jedi ! Truly the superior film of the Star Wars franchise. Controversial opinion, I know.
I’d like to experience this kind of find, thanks.
Inside a copy of T.S. Eliot’s The Confidential Clerk was a bookmark worth $150. WTF? How does this just happen to people? I’m going through every book I find at the thrift store next time I’m there.
I bet you’ve never seen a chair like this before.
How many chairs do you know that have secret wooden compartments inside? This is like something out of National Treasure . Where’s Nicolas Cage when you need him?
This isn’t just any bracelet.
When Redditor Mercury90210 found this bangle, she thought it was just a cool bracelet. Turns out it was a vintage watch! And it was only $5!
