35 Times People Were ‘Lucky’ To Find These Gems While Thrifting That Were Too Bad Not To Share (New Pics)
Interview
In times of high consumption, when companies are racing against each other to offer their customers choices of products at competitive prices, marketing tricks get into people's heads, making them fall for it and buy stuff they don’t even need, just to stack them at home and eventually get rid of them. Some will simply dump these items to get some free space (and buy more gadgets). Alternatively, all these forgotten, often brand-new items may be donated to thrift stores. This is probably the best scenario, as many of these products can be upcycled and used by people who actually want and need them.
Let’s talk about thrift stores. Very often, they have a unique charm that attracts a diverse range of people. This is the place where you can find a wide variety of items, some more or less precious. Today we would like to highlight some of those “lucky findings”. We have selected the best images collected by the Instagram account 'Thrift Store Art.' Get ready to be left speechless and ask yourself, "What am I actually looking at?" You may also have a good laugh at goods offered for sale to the wider public. One way or another, be prepared to be entertained and, after all, let us know in the comments below what was the luckiest find you encountered during your thrift shopping.
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When your parents are divorced but you still want a picture of them together.
In order to get more details about thrift stores and surprising items you may stumble upon while browsing for something you actually need, we have contacted a painter, Wesley Altena. The artist specializes in upcycling old paintings into unique, contemporary pieces of art. He tells about himself: “There's an artist out there who has taken forgotten paintings from thrift stores and turned them into something truly special.” If you’re interested in Altena’s work, we highly recommend you check out the Bored Panda post featuring his paintings. This time we wanted to find out more about his passion for thrift shopping in particular. Scroll down to read more about what the artist shared with us.
First, we were wondering what the most surprising or unexpected painting Wesley has come across was, that later he turned into a remarkable piece of art. Altena said: “Together with my wife I was away for a weekend in Antwerp (Belgium). We woke up and walked out of the hotel, and then there was a market right in front of us. The whole sidewalk was covered with old paintings. It was a Valhalla for me, and I brought a number of them with me. One has been repainted into a work I'm most proud of to date. Since then we have visited many markets in that area!”
Asked to share a story of an artwork he initially overlooked but later realized its potential after a second visit to the thrift shop, Wesley Altena told us: “In fact, quite the opposite at first. Sometimes I take something with me, and I take a closer look at it at home, and then it just isn't it. Would it then be a wrong purchase? No, some paintings are sometimes there for a year before I really start. There is always something to do with it! And if I see something with potential in the thrift store and don't take it with me, it's because I already have enough paintings in the car!”
Lastly, we were curious if the artist could tell us about any particularly funny, weird, or lucky discovery he made during his search for paintings to transform. We found out that: “The best location I've been to buy old paintings was here just across the border from the Netherlands in Belgium. There's 'Snuffelland'. Large corridors and halls were full of stalls. As if you're going back in time... but worse. They sell stuff that we wouldn't hesitate to throw away 20 years ago. Also, the power goes out every 5 minutes and you're suddenly in the dark. Greasy snacks, and bad live performances by local artists. But... a cozy place with very friendly people. And a nice painting here and there for little money makes it a nice place to go!”
Please don’t be human hair, please don’t be human hair, please don’t…
"Does your chewing gum lose it's flavor on the bed post overnight?"
That's not how I was taught to resuscitate someone.
There's a photo of a fireman carrying a little dead girl away from the Oklahoma City bombing. Vultures begged her mother to allow them to make a coin of the picture. She told them all to f**k off.
The Precious Moments figurines actually did make a figurine with a child in a firefighter outfit holding an infant. It was to replicate the image. They used to have a bigger scaled model of it at the OKC Memorial Museum but due to the mother's request, it's now in their archives space in the basement. Every year, the mother has to make a request for all social media platforms to not spread the photo, and I don't blame her. Let the families live their lives in peace without having to be reminded.
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https://boingboing.net/2022/03/03/some-call-him-pig.html This is a shít-painting version of a BILLBOARD from the 1970s.
It would seem in this case, “Pig” is actually underselling it quite a bit.
This is probably meant to be endearing, like a police officer trying to resusciatate an unconscious kid..but man, it looks so awkward.
.....i think ive had to much internet today. will i stop? no 🫠🥲
This is pretty specific. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say dude is probably a pig. Is "some" his whole community and the artist his mom?
People making art out of adults making out with children ARE pigs. 🤬
“The Kiss of Life” photo showing CPR of a guy electrocuted by power lines. It won the 1968 Pulitzer. Very similar to this
For those with their mind in the gutter it's a depiction of a State Trooper giving mouth to mouth resuscitation to a child
Except he isn't. The child needs to be laid flat and the trooper would be kneeling or standing in order to give the chest pumps. the child's nose would pinched closed during mouth to mouth. This just looks like a strange and passionate kiss. So maybe that was the intention but it did not come across well.
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I know it's supposed to represent artificial respiration, but it still comes off creepy as hell.
Not many pictures make me squawk "oh good God!" but this one did!
I... I... don't... I... ehh. Wha.... wha... ewww.... eye wash. EYE WASH!
Get your minds out of the gutter. Clearly he's giving him CPR, that's not a scoutmasters uniform he's wearing.
I imagine it's maybe meant to show a state trooper saving a kid with CPR. But why in the hell would you paint it? It looks so very wrong.
Because , pray all you like, God don't play favourites with the germs.
Note: this post originally had 101 images. It’s been shortened to the top 35 images based on user votes.
On Saturday I went to goodwill and found a brand new $75 Harry Potter wallet purse. It was only $4.88⁶
At 10:30 am, these were perfect! (hello from Seattle!)
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I stopped after posting just one, but 95% of these images deserve the same comment:: "Well, that's just horrifying..."
I bought a set of lawn darts at a thrift store 20 years ago. They were already illegal to sell back then.
Yes, a lot of Christians like visual reminders to think of Jesus in everything they do. This can result in tacky art. But after the 397,285th time, does it really still stay funny?
Yes. Yes it does. Because, if it was an organic belief living in your heart, vs one was that was ingrained into it from the outside, constant reminders wouldn't be necessary. And, for many Christians, it's not. But the ones who have to put it on blast are usually the same ones shoving it on others. Believe it or not, I neither need nor want outward displays of my beliefs on every shelf of my home.
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On Saturday I went to goodwill and found a brand new $75 Harry Potter wallet purse. It was only $4.88⁶
At 10:30 am, these were perfect! (hello from Seattle!)
Load More Replies... I stopped after posting just one, but 95% of these images deserve the same comment:: "Well, that's just horrifying..."
I bought a set of lawn darts at a thrift store 20 years ago. They were already illegal to sell back then.
Yes, a lot of Christians like visual reminders to think of Jesus in everything they do. This can result in tacky art. But after the 397,285th time, does it really still stay funny?
Yes. Yes it does. Because, if it was an organic belief living in your heart, vs one was that was ingrained into it from the outside, constant reminders wouldn't be necessary. And, for many Christians, it's not. But the ones who have to put it on blast are usually the same ones shoving it on others. Believe it or not, I neither need nor want outward displays of my beliefs on every shelf of my home.
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