Millions stunned by unexpected thrift-store hack for telling crystal apart from glass: ‘The thump test’
Perusing the glassware section in your local thrift store can be a bit like the Holy Grail scene in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” — it’s no life-or-death situation, but there are plenty of options, making it difficult to choose just one.
Luckily, a friend of TikToker ThriftTDiva (@marieachane87) offered a handy tip to help thrifters potentially find a valuable chalice hiding in a sea of imposters.
The video, which got over 10 million views and 1.2 million likes, showed ThriftTDiva’s friend explaining the difference between a regular wine glass and a crystal one.
“The way to check if something is pure crystal or if it’s … just regular glass is to do the little thump test,” they said.
The friend proceeded to flick the rim of both glasses, with the normal wine glass making a short, “clink” noise while the crystal produced pure, almost ethereal reverberations — almost like a bell had been struck.
The latter had a price tag of $1, but according to the friend, “Chances are, this is probably something like Waterford or Mikasa.” If true, that would be quite the value, as some crystal wine glasses retail for over $100.
A find like this isn’t an isolated event, too. One thrifter paid just $4 for a pair of expensive Le Creuset pots, and another spent $7 on diamond earrings that were appraised for almost $4,700.
Not every purchase from thrifting has to be “the find of the century” for it to pay dividends either, as the mere act of secondhand shopping prevents items in good condition from ending up in landfills, where they will eventually degrade and release planet-warming gases.
The comment section was filled with fellow TikTokers eager to try out the hack.
“Excuse me while I start flicking glasses at the thrift store lol,” one person commented.
“Imma be thumping the hell outta glasses,” another said.
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