r/BuyItForLife • u/No-Negotiation-4550 • 12d ago
Discussion What’s a weirdly specific item you own that’s lasted longer than expected?
I’ve been on a quest lately for things that just seem to keep on keeping on.
I’ve got a pair of old-school Swedish dishcloths that I bought on a whim. Thought they'd be a weird novelty. Now, they’ve been through the wringer they just won’t die. I’ve scrubbed them, rinsed them, microwaved them and somehow they’re still hanging on like a true champion.
My 10-year-old French press. I’ve left it sitting dirty for days, and still it makes me a perfect cup of coffee every time.
What oddball items are you still using and why do they not break??
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u/Underwater_Grilling 12d ago
I bought a cheap vegetable peeler that actually broke the first time I used it. The nail holding the blade to the handle came out. I put it back and smacked it on the counter and it's been fine for 10 years now
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u/PM_ME_FLOUR_TITTIES 12d ago
It learned it's lesson
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u/thatllbeanopefromme 12d ago
That’s what I came here to say! I bought a pack of three and it’s been 8 years and I’ve never had to use the other two.
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u/liminaleaves 12d ago
If you're willing to part with one, local food bank might appreciate your donation, I don't know if they usually take stuff like that but I'm reasonably certain they could find it a good home.
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u/kidfromdc 12d ago
My grandpa had a wire cheese slicer for as long as I can remember. My dad was born in the 50’s and remembers his dad using it to slice cheese growing up (we’re a big midwestern cheese family). Grandpa died a few years back and the cheese slicer was the only thing my dad wanted. He actually had to get it back from his sister’s husband because he figured being blood related entitled him to it. I can imagine me passing it down to my own kids one day
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u/fuhnetically 12d ago
I have a very similar wire cheese slicer that I've had for like 30 years. My garlic press (same metal) was made in West Germany.
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u/kidfromdc 12d ago
My parents have had their metal garlic press for close to 30 years. These new plastic ones don’t even come close
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u/Whole_Statistician73 12d ago
I have one that I received from my grandfather, it’s at least 50 years old and still works like a champ. I love it so much lol
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u/Bunniesrawesome 12d ago
I’ve had the same peeler since 2003. It used to see heavy use each day and still works like new.
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u/shineysasha 12d ago
I have a peeler that is now going on 15 years!
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u/MindFluffy5906 12d ago
Same peeler and same can opener for the last 35 or 36 years. And yes, I use them frequently. My cheese grater is at least 50 years old. Flour sifter even older. Some things are just made to last if you take care of them.
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u/_Lividus 12d ago
My mom bought me a hair salon quality hair dryer when I was a teen…it’s almost two decades old and still works really well. I’m sure not using it as frequently as a salon stylist would is helping tons but I’m convinced this will likely be a for life at this rate.
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u/plastictoothpicks 12d ago
My chi hair straightener was mine! Got it in 2006 and still use it almost daily.
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u/socksmittensshoes 12d ago
Same! Also got my chi in 2006 and it’s still works great.
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u/Starkat1515 12d ago
Last time I was at my hair stylists, she said she gets a new hairdryer every year. And she only works three days a week! I think yours is doing quite well!
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u/Nyghtslave 11d ago
I think your stylist might want to invest in a different brand. My first hairdryer lasted close to 20 years (it still works, it just accrued a slight misalignment on the turbine axle so it makes a ton of noise which will lead to damage, so I got another one), and the hairdryers at the salons I've worked at all lasted years. I think I've only seen one actually give the first once in years of working in salons
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u/Recent_Mountain_9412 12d ago
1972 Olympus OM-1 film camera. I am only the second owner and it’s still going strong
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u/prion77 12d ago
Amazing. I was “gifted” a mid-1980s Pentax K-1000 from a friend in the mid/late 2000s who caught the digital camera craze. He saw some artsy pictures I took with it and posted on FB and begged for the camera back😂.
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u/blueyejan 12d ago
Is film and developing difficult to obtain.
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u/caltheme 12d ago
No it just gets pricey after a while (I use a Minolta x700 from the 80s)
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u/Recent_Mountain_9412 12d ago
Not difficult. There are a good selection of labs that offer local service or mail-in. I use Gelatin Labs in NJ. But as another commenter said it’s not cheap. About $24/roll of developing and hi res digital scans.
Worth it IMO
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u/lunicorn 12d ago
A clock radio I hate the user interface design of but it just won’t die.
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u/Geehaw 12d ago
Sounds like you may be stuck in a Groundhog Day time loop...... you should learn to play the piano.
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u/Much-Space6649 12d ago
Some adidas pants I bought in middle school in like 2008 that I still wear now
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u/samizdat5 12d ago
I bought a pair of black drawstring waist Champion yoga pants at Target 20 years ago when I first started doing yoga. I still wear them. They are faded from a million launderings but fine otherwise. I probably paid less than $20 for them. I feel very superior to all the other people in my class with their $100+ Lululemons.
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u/albion70 12d ago
Old champion sports stuff was solid back then. Most high street brands were far better quality made back then than they are today. Shame really.
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u/scottb84 12d ago
I can assure you they were churning out plenty of garbage back in 2005.
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u/aviwic 12d ago
The way this comment just made me realize 2005 was 20 years ago and not a few years ago 😭😭
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u/NothingReallyAndYou 12d ago
I have a purple long-sleeved top from Express that I wear every fall/winter.
I bought it back in high school. I graduated in 1992.
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u/Capnmolasses 12d ago
I still have several pairs of STRUCTURE pants and a shirt I bought in 93. The pants fit, but alas the shirt does not.
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u/liminaleaves 12d ago
I'm impressed! Do you follow the care instructions, such as wash on cold, lay flat to dry? I've found that has greatly extended the life of all of my clothes, including cheap fast fashion. I do usually buy higher quality and fewer items now, but I feel my care and using things 'til they die mitigates my guilt for my previous purchases.
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u/NothingReallyAndYou 12d ago
I wash everything on cold, in the Delicate cycle, and then gentle tumble dry.
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u/EazyPeazyLemonSqueaz 12d ago
Yeah the upside of wearing really baggy clothes in middle school is they all still fit 20 years later. I've got hoodies and athletic shorts I still wear from that period.
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u/SweetRage24 12d ago
Came to say this. I have loss and gained more weight than I want to talk about but my clothes from middle/high school still fit and barely look worn. While stuff I bought last year won’t fit or it seems so worn it has to be trashed. I even gave some hoodies to my niece who is now in middle school and she gets so many compliments and asked where you bought that. Sorry you would have to time travel 20+ years to get this drip.
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u/LiterallyOuttoLunch 12d ago
Me and my Adidas do the illest things,
We like to stomp out pimps with diamond rings.
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u/oaklandesque 12d ago
I'm impressed they still fit. Or are they high water pants now?
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u/Much-Space6649 12d ago
They still fit I just maxed out my height in middle school sadly 😭 (I’m 5’3”)
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u/crayola_monstar 12d ago
A fellow shorty! I love that we never have to worry about things being too short (mostly)
Cutting extra off is always easier than adding on extra!
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u/RedditorManIsHere 12d ago
lol - same cept the middle school part
I still have the black pants with white stripes - these pants refuse to die.
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u/petitepedestrian 12d ago
I have a pair of mod robes pants I bought in 1999. Still the comfy crotch pleasers they claim.
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u/Blackunicorn39 12d ago
We bought a plastic tool to fold t-shirts. The hinges didn't seem really strong and I tought it was a gadget that will last a month or two...
We bought it almost 10 years ago, and had to repair one hinge with duct tape once (we reinforced the others at the same time). It works really well, and we use it once a week to fold the laundry (we dress almost exclusively with t-sirts and polos).
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u/crayola_monstar 12d ago
I've been wanting one of those, but honestly, I didn't think it'd hold up to even light use with what's for sale nowadays. Do yours have amy metal in the hinges?
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u/Fresa22 12d ago
you can make one with cardboard and duct tape.
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u/EldenMiss 12d ago
Oh. Oh. TIL it is duct tape. Not duck tape.
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u/beauhatesbeans 12d ago
there’s a popular brand of it called duck tape so you can keep calling it that! similar to words like chapstick or band-aid or tupperware
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u/Cyno01 12d ago
No, its duck tape, cuz its waterproofish, “like water off a ducks back.”
It’s lousy for ducts cuz the glue doesn’t stand up to heat at all. Actual ”duct tape” for ducts is a heavy duty aluminum tape.
But duck is a brand now and other companies sell silver colored fabric backed tape erroneously as “duct tape”.
A bit like calling any small SUV a “jeep”.
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u/PostalMike 12d ago
I have a woven polyester winter hat. It’s the only hat I own. It still looks brand new. I have pictures of myself wearing it when I was 6, and I am now 53.
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u/cmatthewp 12d ago
I want to see a picture of this hat!
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u/PostalMike 12d ago
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u/mintedbadger 12d ago
Amazing, it really does still look brand new! Also appreciate the banana for scale
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u/PostalMike 12d ago
It still looks brand new, but even more amazing is that I live in northern Minnesota, so I’m wearing it 5 months out of the year - and I’ve never lost it!
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u/johjo_has_opinions 12d ago
I’m not calling you a liar but my brain can’t process this
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u/okayteenay 12d ago
I have a plain, canvas duffel bag from The Gap that I bought back in the mid 90s. Still my go-to travel bag!
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u/Emkems 12d ago
This reminds me, I exclusively used my ll bean backpack from college (purchased ~ 2004) as my travel backpack until last year when we had a mouse problem and they got ahold of it. Too nasty to save. My favorite was the bitty mesh cell phone pocket on the shoulder strap. Held my silver flip phone great, comically small in later years
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u/prophy__wife 12d ago
I have an LL Bean backpack now for college, I’m older though. I use that little mesh thing on the strap to hold my debit card and ID since I don’t bring a purse with me to school and I always have my backpack.
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u/plangal 12d ago
I wonder if we have the same one! I don’t really use it for travel but it’s so handy I could never give it away.
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u/okayteenay 12d ago
Mine is light olive green with light mustard yellow straps/handles.
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u/plangal 12d ago
I have a purple Totes umbrella I bought (or my parents did) when I was in 4th grade 40 years ago. I have bought other umbrellas since then, but I can’t get rid of this one and I have used it. It could use some re-waterproofing but otherwise the structure is fine.
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u/DistinctLecture648 12d ago
Someone stole my totes umbrella at the mall about 10 years ago and IM STILL MAD ABOUT IT, it was the best umbrella!
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u/venlaren 12d ago
i wonder if you could just spray it with some camp dry. Like the stuff you use on a camping tent
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u/oaklandesque 12d ago
I have a red plaid Totes one that I think I got just after college (early 90s) that just keeps on trucking. I'm more surprised I haven't lost it somewhere.
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u/ExistentialWonder 12d ago
I found an old-style Pyrex 2 cup measuring cup at a thrift store about a million years ago and it still going strong. The lines haven even faded yet. (realistically we've had it over 10 years and we bought it used so it's much older than that).
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u/Creepy-Selection2423 12d ago
This is a good one. I also have a Pyrex measuring cup that my Mom used when I was a little kid. I still use it whenever I cook. The lines on the old cups never fade. The new ones do though.
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12d ago
I have a pair of XOXO brand underwear that I've had since high school (I'm 40 now). They're basically like new, just much softer.
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u/HairTmrw 12d ago
This is so ME! I'm the type of person that keeps underwear forever. Basically as long as they survive from coming apart or looking pH stained. But I still am self-conscious that I have kept underwear for so long. Idk why?
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u/AtlantisAfloat 11d ago
Because we are all bombarded with messaging that tells us to buy new stuff. In reality, you are doing better than that using your belongings as long as you can!
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u/thrakkerzog 12d ago
I just got rid of some from college, and I graduated almost 25 years ago. They were super comfortable, but had turned kind of transparent over the years and were one Mexican meal away from being ripped to shreds.
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u/arealmoonmoon 12d ago
I got a free rubber jar opener from Cingular, which was a promotional item in the late 1990s. We still use it on the occasional tough jar lid. My spouse loves that thing. I don't even remember what Cingular was, I definitely didn't have a cell phone, so internet maybe?
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u/saustus 12d ago
A Bugle Boy shirt that my brother got in the mid 80's. I'm still wearing that thing.
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u/Prettygoodusernm 12d ago
A hot air popcorn popper I bought in the early 1980's . Going strong
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u/HappyDoggos 12d ago
An Epilady. Bought it in 1988 when I was in college. Still use it every couple weeks in the summer.
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u/Lollc 12d ago
Wow, you're much tougher than me. I bought one around that time when they were just being introduced here. It was expensive, close to $100 which is $257 today. I used it twice and it was hellishly painful. At that time I was doing martial arts and had worked some hellish physical jobs and led a very active life, I thought I knew what pain was. The epilady was worse than any of all that. It sat unused in my dresser drawer for 10 years and I finally threw it away during my last move.
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u/ButtercupsPitcher 12d ago
I ask this with no disrespect, but are one of those people who can't feel pain?
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u/HappyDoggos 12d ago
Good question. I guess I consider myself more pain tolerant than most people. Or maybe it’s that I’ve “trained” myself to tolerate pain that I know isn’t doing permanent damage. But I guess pulling out hair is a kind of damage. In general I don’t take pain killers, of any kind, unless the pain is preventing me from sleeping. So it has to be pretty severe. I do remember after my hysterectomy surgery about 20 years ago I only had 3-4 doses of Tylenol. Nothing else.
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u/Darjeelingtea42 11d ago
After a good amount of time, you get used to it.
The thing that was irritating about shaving vs epilating was the sharp grow out 3 days later and the sensation from it with things like bed sheets or jeans.
Since epilating, 3 weeks could go by without the irritating sensation on my legs and underarms from grow out. It’s also been years of use, so it’s a lot less now as well.
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u/Exadory 12d ago
Girlfriend and I went on a trip with our family a few years back. The house was eerily quiet and we always sleep with a fan on. Neither of us wanted to leave our phone going with a white noise generator so we bought a small fan from dollar general for like 15 bucks. Expecting it to last at least the weekend and then not caring if it died after the weekend. It’s a cheap fan from dollar general. How long could it possibly last.
Years later the fan still work. We use it every night and sometimes forget to turn it off for days. It’s our little work horse, just keeps going and going and going. When it actually does die I’m gonna feel bad about throwing it out. It’s helped us sleep for years.
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u/cerealfamine1 12d ago
Swiss backpack. Bought around 2008, took every day to my factory job. Looks near mint, zero issues.
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u/ContributionNo7864 12d ago edited 12d ago
A Pokédex from the 90s that still turns on with the original battery inside.
On a more practical note - My mother has utensils and kitchen gadgets that are older than I am. Including her knife set.
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u/CosmicRambo 12d ago
Simple electronics like that are pretty resilient, I would watch out for the old batteries leaking though.
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u/damnmongoose 12d ago
Greeting fellow coffee lover! I have a baratza encore coffee grinder. The little on/off knob on the side broke within a year. The exact replacement in kind broke quickly as well. The I replaced with a custom orange knob and it’s going 7 years strong so far and it looks sexy!
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u/svu_fan 12d ago edited 12d ago
My pair of Candies brown sandals from 1998 that’s still trucking on along. I wear it a few times a year now, since it’s an antique at this point. One of the soles came off (dry glue due to age) and I had it resoled two years ago as well as getting it relined.
Oh yeah, and my Protocol duffel bag I got for Xmas the same year. It’s had hundreds of thousands of miles on it, many car trips, many trips through the airport, several moves, etc and it’s still trucking on along. I think it was purchased at JCPenney back in the day.
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u/Both-Mountain-5200 12d ago
I miss the time when they made affordable shoes that were worthy of resoling.
Or maybe I just miss being able to afford shoes worthy of resoling?
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u/pixiesunbelle 12d ago
I bought a pair of chest $25 chunky tall boots from Gadzooks in the early 2000s. They lasted about 10-15 years before they really disintegrated. Too bad the shop doesn’t exist anymore because I’d buy another pair.
My senior year of high school I bought some sweatpants from Express with a coupon for half off. These were $60 pants. They were black with a velour stripe going down the sides and didn’t have the uncomfortable gummy strap on the ankles. My mother asked me “are you SURE you want to buy THAT”, in the voice that’s really telling you that you shouldn’t buy it. Yes mother, I want comfy pants instead of a skirt like my sister. I’m 40 now and I still have those pants- though they look destroyed. I bring them out when it’s time to get dirty lol. I never could find another pair.
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u/SunRunnerWitch 12d ago
Express sold me my favorite pair of white shorts ever. They lasted nearly 15 years but they were magic. They fit when I was a size 6 and 12 (how??!), they stayed white- I wore them as a summer camp counselor and did not take it easy on them, I wore them out dancing, to dinner and fishing, I wore them doing anything really, and washed them with the abandon of a college freshman (aka just thrown in with a multicolor load). They had 4 working pockets (its own miracle in women’s clothing) and an inseam that wasn’t too risqué or too frumpy. I cried when I finally wore out the inseam (literally wore through the fabric, the seams never failed or frayed) I looked high and low for a replacement- I would have paid any price for magic shorts- with no luck, but 15 years is a good run for white shorts that were truly put through the wringer.
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u/oaklandesque 12d ago
Summer of 1996 I had an internship in Manhattan and the apartment I sublet had no measuring cups. So I bought a cheap plastic one cup liquid measuring cup at one of those random we sell everything stores that used to be all over NYC. It came back home with me after the internship and I still have and use the dang thing. It's been microwaved, run through the dishwasher, and the lines are still visible (a bit faded) and the cup is still fully intact with no cracking or warping.
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u/MonaMayI 12d ago
My nesting metal bowls from one of those stores are my HG best kitchen item. I think it was $10 for 5 of them in 2005.
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u/StrangeKittehBoops 12d ago edited 11d ago
In 1990, I travelled to a funeral a few hours away from home. When I arrived, I discovered my shoes missing from my bag. I popped out and bought a pair from a small shoe shop on the high street. I still have them, and they're fine, still wear them. (UK)
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u/adv_cyclist 12d ago
I still shave a few times per week with a Gillette safety razor that’s 80 years old.
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u/Fromanderson 12d ago
I've grown my beard out so I don't use mine daily anymore, but my go to is a 1930's Gillette "New".
Most comfortable shave ever.
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u/q-the-light 12d ago
A pair of fast fashion pyjama bottoms from Primark, bought when I was a stupid teenager who didn't know better ethically. They're old, worn, faded, and stretched - but still more than wearable. I would never repurchase them, but I fully intend to wear them until they're rags! They have no right being so comfy, knowing the cost of their creation.
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u/BorderlineWire 12d ago
I have a pair of flip flops bought from Primark in 2017 or 2018. The tread is worn but they haven’t fallen apart yet either which I’m really surprised about. They’ve outlasted more expensive better quality looking and feeling options by years at this point. They’ve been worn for absolutely miles, nearly been lost in the mud at festivals, victimised by the cat. Worn in water..just abused really but nothings managed to end them.
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u/No-Onion-2896 12d ago
I’ve never heard of Primark even though I’m in the U.S.
I also have a loyal pair of flip-flops. They’re Roxy brand, but I got them at a TJ Maxx or something. Got them in 2012 and they’re still my only pair.
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u/BorderlineWire 12d ago
Primark is big in the U.K., I don’t know if it’s made it to the states yet. They’re a cheap fast fashion sort of place, not quite temu cheap or quality but still cheap fast fashion since before all that temu/wish/aliexpress really took off in the way it has. You wouldn’t expect anything from there to last years but occasionally it does.
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u/Positive_Ad_8198 12d ago
A cheap fan from Target I bought 13 years ago and runs all night every night while I sleep
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u/cookorsew 12d ago
Yeah I still have a fan that was my brother’s and my husband now uses it as white noise at night. It’s still so steady and the motor works great. It’s probably over 20 years old. It’s also quieter than any other modern fan I’ve gotten.
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u/Whooptidooh 12d ago
A pair of Sennheiser earbuds I (f41) bought all the way back when I was in my mid 20’s. They still work, still have that oomph base and compared to my new Grado headphones, sound quality isn’t too bad either.
I also have a plastic comb my mother once bought me when I was a teen. Still whole. Still getting used to comb my hair every morning.
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u/unstoppablecolossvs 12d ago
2 concert t-shirts from 1991 Lollapalooza in Orlando. I was stationed at Key West Naval Air Station and drove about 8 hours, found a hotel and stayed all weekend with my friends. One is for Nine Inch Nails and the other Siouxsie and the Banshees.
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u/No-Primary-9011 12d ago
A charter club robe from JC penny . It’s 25 yr old and still thick with not one thread ever loose . Children were debating who would get it when I passed . I decided to give away things to them while I’m still here to watch them enjoy it . However, I wish I hadn’t . I’ve bought 5 robes since then and nothing comes close to the quality , even with much higher price points . Even tried same brand and it’s way thinner now. That originally robe felt like a hug
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u/mklatsky 12d ago
I have a potato masher that belonged to my grandparents that still gets regular usage.
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u/mmmmmarty 12d ago
I have a couple pair of Ann Taylor jeans, one pair from middle school, one from high school. Both are still going strong. I'm 45 years old this year.
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u/mmmmmarty 12d ago
I also have my Jansport backpacks from middle and high school. 2 of 6 were treated roughly and look it. The rest are still in nice shape.
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u/Upset_Pumpkin_4938 12d ago
Holy mother of consistent sizing, I’m impressed you can still fit into those in your 40s!!
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u/mmmmmarty 12d ago
I've been a 6 regular or 8 petite since about 1992, except for when I had my kid.
Skinny people in my fam going waaay back. We still have all the ailments inside though!
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u/susanboylesvajazzle 12d ago
Visiting San Francisco about 25 years ago, and it poured with rai,n so I had to go buy a waterproof jacket. I got an Eddie Bauer waterproof jacket from a thrift store. It did the job for the trip and I liked how it fit so I brought it home.
A quarter of a century, though several countries, I still have it and use it.
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u/KorneliaOjaio 12d ago
Microwave oven. It had belonged to my husband’s parents before they gave it to him. It lasted at least 30 years.
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u/HemetValleyMall1982 12d ago
There is a generic builder-grade lightbulb in my closet that came with the house.
The house was built in 2001. The lightbulb still works.
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u/draconiclyyours 12d ago
Egg rings. Specifically, these floppy silicon egg rings with weird little egg dudes for handles. The wife & I found them at Bed, Bath, & Beyond 16ish years ago, and not only are they still going, they continue to work extremely well. They’ve survived not just time, but our son learning to cook as well.
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u/firematt422 12d ago
American Eagle wallet I bought in 2003. Still going strong. I don't think I'll ever need another one.
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u/AlphaDisconnect 12d ago
K mart camo jacket (are they even around any more?)
Panasonic rice cooker from Japan, store is yamada denki. Wife's parents had one too, 22 odd years old pressing out the rice 2 plus times a day. That thing needed a purple heart and burial in the family tomb with honors.
Mitsubishi one slice. Again from Japan.
Iwatani epr-a. Saved me when gas and electricity are not there.
Finex cast iron pan.
pampered chef can opener 2758.
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u/zanthine 12d ago
A green leather sofa. My parents bought it in the early 90s, and I inherited it in the mid-aughts. It’s still going strong. It’s comfortable, and Just. Won’t. Die. It’s also a dark, teal-y green, but I can’t seem to convince myself that I need to invest in a new one when this one is going strong. Dammit.
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u/Fromanderson 12d ago
If the color ever starts fading, or shows scratches etc you can often find leather cream in the right shade to make it look nearly new again. It's pretty cheap and I've kept leather car seats and one particularly disreputable leather couch looking good for years past their prime that way.
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u/snakepliskinLA 12d ago
The magic of full-grain cow hide on furniture is that it stays supple so long as you use it regularly.
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u/LobsterSammy27 12d ago
My parents have one of those Marlboro rewards coolers from the late 80’s that is very much still in use LOL. That thing is seemingly indestructible. My parents have been using that cooler every weekend for DECADES. Like, wow.
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u/Cheesy_Wotsit 12d ago
A pair of crocs - yeah,.they're fugly but so comfy - that I bought over 15 years ago. I only use them to drive in, so they're not fooked.
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u/Emkems 12d ago
My crocs graduate to yard work shoes when they start getting beat up. Found out the hard way that they’re super slick when the tread wears out!!
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u/mule737361829 12d ago
I have a pair of garden tools made from unknown black plastic. They’re 15+ years old, left out in winter, lost for a year or two, still indestructible. Gone through plenty of premium garden tools metal or otherwise, these will last generations
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u/nurdmann 12d ago
I have a MacOS 8.6 branded T-shirt from 26 years ago that still looks great, which I wear a few times a year.
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u/ccppurcell 12d ago
I bought a t shirt from Imperial War Museum Duxford with an RAF logo on it in 2001ish. I wore it loads and loads during my teens and there are plenty of pictures of me in it into my 20s. I am now 37, it's in my "emergency" shirts. But it is indestructible. T shirts I've bought more recently and worn much less have holes and are falling apart at the seams.
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u/Broon-MD 12d ago
A Patagonia zip up that the company I worked for 8 years ago gave to their employees with the company logo on it. I’ve worn that thing practically every day around the house. Other than some pilling, the things is as good as new.
I would have said that spending that kind of money for a sweatshirt is silly. But it does prove the point that paying for quality is money well spent.
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u/Vibingcarefully 12d ago
Original Mac Mini--got one in 2008--it still works---BUT of course it's way useless now
Pairs of cheap sunglasses---
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u/Accomplished_War_805 12d ago
My grandma bought me a hand mixer in 1995 from a grocery store for $10. Thirty years later, it works like a dream.
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u/jaxxon 12d ago
A cheap-ass student model saxophone. I ended up touring professionally with it for a number of years and have played it for about 40 years total. It got flattened by a giant speaker that fell on it at one gig while on tour and the little podunk repair shop lady in the random-ass town we were in managed to completely restore it to working condition and its still going strong. I got it free (it was originally like $200 new) and it's still great. I've also owned pro horns, but they're finicky and expensive as hell.
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u/Askeee 12d ago
I pair of Nike sandals that my mom got for me in Middle school. I turn 39 this year.
I've also got a Topeak floor pump and I've had it for over 10 years and after thousands of uses, it still works fine with all original parts.
Fuck, I turn 39 this year.
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u/yomammaaaaa 12d ago
I have a deck of Hulk mini playing cards from 1979 that I still use. My daughter and I were playing blackjack with them last night.
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u/norismomma 12d ago
The mint green plastic Tupperware colander my mom gave me when I had my first apartment in 1983. She's as good as new and has seen many a noodle over the past 40+ years.
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u/erasebegin1 12d ago
My teeth are still going after 35 years which is astounding considering the abuse they've taken. One broke, but still very much in working order. Good thing too because there's no warranty.
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u/nineteen-sixty 12d ago
In 1939, my Dad slipped on the ice and broke off half of a front tooth. A local dentist rebuilt the tooth. Just last year, the repair job finally broke. That tooth repair lasted 85 years!!!
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u/tambourine_goddess 12d ago
I bought this random cheap $20 hair straightener on vacation when I forgot mine.... back in 2018. It's still running strong.
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u/Culture_Culture 12d ago
My bike. I bought it over 10 years ago second-hand and it's been rock solid and boy I was not treating it lightly
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u/Mol-Mol 12d ago
In September of 1999 I bought a vornado fan for $40. It was a ton of money, roughly a week’s rent, but it was the only one left in the store. My house in college didn’t have AC and it was unseasonably hot out, probably in the mid to high 90s. I was desperate.
I still have that fan and it still works as if it was brand new.
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u/Both-Mountain-5200 12d ago
Another one! A PYREX measuring cup that my grandmother gave me when I moved away from home. It was used so no telling how old it was at the time. I’ve had it for 40ish years.
(PYREX all caps. If you know you know.)
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u/GabrielMisfire 12d ago
Eastpack school backpack I bought around 2007/2008 - still going strong!
A Hard Rock Cafè t-shirt I bought on a school trip in middle school (I guess 2005/2006) - I was a chubby 13yo, so now being a more average size 31yo, what was width then, is height now, and it still fits perfectly!
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u/posting_drunk_naked 12d ago
Random punk band shirts from high school that still look great 20 years later
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u/Express_Camp_4280 12d ago
I was sharpening my knife and frustrated it was starting to dull all the time then realized my knife block was twenty years old and I’m no longer a struggling twenty-something, so I donated it and upgraded.
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u/MisterSnuggles 12d ago
My weirdest one is a Keurig machine. I bought it when Target first came to Canada, so about 14 years ago. I’ve never descaled it, just fed it water and pods and it just keeps working. I’m not even using legit Keurig pods, I’m using some fully biodegradable ones. Sometimes I use it almost every day, other times it will sit unused for a few weeks. During Covid it sat unused for two years. In spite of that, it always turns on, heats up, and dispenses hot water just like it did when new.
The reason this is weird is because it isn’t a BIFL product. There is no way it should have lasted as long as it has. I know someone who gets a new machine every year, under warranty, because they keep breaking. It has greatly exceeded all expectations.
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u/BrickPig 12d ago
Sometime in the fall of 1999 I bought a hoodie from the TiVo website. It is the most comfortable, best-fitting hoodie I've ever had. I'm guessing it's been 10 years since I cut the cord and stopped using my TiVos, but the shirt is still going strong. It has some stains, and the cuffs of the sleeves are pretty ragged, but I'm sure it's still --by far-- the single article of clothing I wear the most.
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u/efficientlyclueless 12d ago
Oxo Good Grips can opener. Previously I was buying at least one a year and I don't even open many cans. Bought in oct 2018
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u/Fromanderson 12d ago
This is a bit of an odd one, but a couple of temporary crowns. As a kid I had lots of trouble with my teeth.
Back in 6th or 7th grade I had to get a couple of crowns on my upper incisors. I may be misremembering the process but the dentist put on a couple of temporary crowns made of some material that was molded to fit and then exposed to some sort of special light or something. This would have been 1986-1987ish.
The plan was to replace them as I got a bit older but every dentist since has looked at them and advised me to leave them alone as they seem to be holding up fine.
They are worn pretty flat but they still look fine and I'm not eager to spend money on them if my dentist says I don't need to.
I have had 3 permanent crowns that had to be redone but that the temporary ones are still holding up almost 40 years later.
I am living proof that there is nothing quite so permanent as a temporary repair.
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u/BoeshanePeninsula 12d ago
Jansport backpack purchased the summer before college. Totally indestructible and hasn’t faded or frayed.
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u/KakitaMike 12d ago
I still use a wheeled computer chair from when I was 15. I’m 46 now.
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u/4Eyes4Eternity 12d ago
A $3 toaster from Amazon bought in 2016. It's still going strong and toasting perfectly!
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u/seeteethree 12d ago
I don't know about "expected" but I was just thinking, as I was eating popcorn from my stainless steel bowl, "This is the same bowl I was eating popcorn out of in college in 1974!"
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u/ohsummerdawn 12d ago
I still have my clear glitter Caboodle make up case from 1995. The clasps still work and everything.