15+ Things People Didn’t Even Know They Wanted — And It Turned Out They Needed Them

Kylene Loucks | April 5, 2025 8:00 am

Have you ever stumbled across something in real life or online that made you stop and say "what a great idea" or even "why don't I have this yet?"

From horizontally sliced bread to a keyboard with printed short-cuts, all of the things below are unexpectedly cool ideas.

Everyone Should Get To Meet Steve Martin

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Photo Credit: Monkeytitan / Reddit
Photo Credit: Monkeytitan / Reddit

Apparently, if you have a sporadic encounter with the one and only Steve Martin, he will gift you one of these official-looking, signed business cards.

The cards certify that you met the comedian and found him to be "warm, polite, intelligent, and funny" which, of course, he would be.

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Bread Sliced Horizontally

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Photo Credit: minecalos1 / Reddit
Photo Credit: minecalos1 / Reddit
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The best thing since sliced bread might actually be more bread sliced in a different way.

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This supermarket sells "horizontally" sliced bread in loaves, for all of your super long sandwich needs.

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The Husband Drop Off And Pick Up Center

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Photo Credit: co106 / Reddit
Photo Credit: co106 / Reddit
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This mall features a "Husband Depository" where men can go and hang out while their spouse is shopping.

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The lounge is equipped with recliner massage chairs, phone chargers, and is almost guaranteed to keep husbands from whining about shopping.

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This Smart Printer Said "You Can't Escape The User Manual"

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Photo Credit: viktor197 / Reddit
Photo Credit: viktor197 / Reddit
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Most new electronics come with some kind of instructions manual that people tend to ignore.

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This HP printer auto-printed the user manual as soon as it was plugged in and connected to WiFi, a sneaky way around including the manual in the box.

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Purple Cutlery Because Why Not?

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Photo Credit: TurtlesAndMustard / Reddit
Photo Credit: TurtlesAndMustard / Reddit
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Cutlery is almost always a fairly standard silver, but this set is a flashy chromatic purple.

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The fun purple cutlery might just be the trick to making a lunch that kids are refusing to eat seem exciting when it's served on a special purple spoon.

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Boxed Beer Is Harder To Cheers

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Photo Credit: alexvjones07 / Reddit
Photo Credit: alexvjones07 / Reddit
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This person ordered a beer at a restaurant and was served the foamy pint in a hand-crafted box made of wood.

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For some reason, drinking out of a wooden box sounds like a fun challenge.

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Popcorn Puzzle With An Extra Piece

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Photo Credit: Dgenconvention / Reddit
Photo Credit: Dgenconvention / Reddit
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Puzzles featuring one single pattern can be more difficult, and this popcorn puzzle looks especially tricky. Weirdly enough, it came with an extra non-edible puzzle piece.

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Now we need popcorn, puzzles, and a movie night.

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"Do You Smell Burning?" "Don't Worry It's Just Bob Ross"

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Photo Credit: DictatorTot23 / Reddit
Photo Credit: DictatorTot23 / Reddit
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Someone brought this hilarious Bob Ross toaster to work and plugged it in the break room for all their coworkers to discover.

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The whole place has been eating Bob's face on toast for months.

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This Full Coverage Bathroom Stall Door

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Photo Credit: SleepingWillows / Reddit
Photo Credit: SleepingWillows / Reddit
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This is one of those inventions that you never knew you were missing out on in life until you discovered it.

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The manufacturer of this bathroom stall door has eliminated the dreaded door "crack" that allows you to peek out and others to peek in.

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The Instructions Were Unclear Here

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Photo Credit:Rollipollipotamus / Reddit
Photo Credit:Rollipollipotamus / Reddit
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The water spout for this large Jacuzzi tub in a hotel room pours from the ceiling of the bathroom.

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It's both impractical and intriguing. There is no obvious reason why it was installed this way, yet there it is.

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Airplane Toilets With Little Lavatory Windows

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Photo Credit: MaximumEngineering8 / Reddit
Photo Credit: MaximumEngineering8 / Reddit
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Going to the bathroom in a moving airplane can be stressful and claustrophobic.

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The newer Delta airplanes are being designed to include a small window in the lavatory to make the experience a little less terrible.

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Overly Accurate Aisle Labels In A Store

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Photo Credit: theXAKARI / Reddit
Photo Credit: theXAKARI / Reddit
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If all stores could start labelling their aisles in very straightforward terms like these ones, people would find the products they were after quicker.

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The Aisle of Death is reserved for Bug Killer and Weed Killer. It's a bad place to be if you're a bug.

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One Vending Machine To Rule Them All

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Photo Credit: SuspiciousLizardo / Reddit
Photo Credit: SuspiciousLizardo / Reddit
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Every town should have a mandatory cheese vending machine, not just the fancy Swiss Alps towns.

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Unfortunately, if you want swanky vending machine cheese you're going to have to make a casual trip to Switzerland. Or at least Wisconsin.

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The Throne Room (No, Really)

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Photo Credit: JackQ942 / Reddit
Photo Credit: JackQ942 / Reddit
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The family who lives here took the "bathroom throne" idea and ran with it.

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The toilet is mounted on two platform steps, allowing squatters to oversee the entirety of the Bathroom Kingdom.

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Talented Family Members Who Can Create Stuff Like This

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Photo Credit: Brettskie85 / Reddit
Photo Credit: Brettskie85 / Reddit
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It pays to have an artist in the family who can create amazing masterpieces like this one on a bedroom wall.

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One lucky young boy got a bedroom makeover featuring this insanely detailed Star Wars mural on his bedroom wall.

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Window Masks For Babies To View Expressions

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Photo Credit: JohnIsaName / Reddit
Photo Credit: JohnIsaName / Reddit
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In the NICU, newborn babies are cared for by doctors and nurses who wear "window masks" that allow babies to see human facial expressions through their caregiver's PPE.

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This man is sending some very expressive vibes through his little window.

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Keyboard Short Cuts Printed On Computer Keys

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Photo Credit: Mental_Moose6683 / Reddit
Photo Credit: Mental_Moose6683 / Reddit
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People who are experienced with computers know the keyboard shortcuts off the top of their heads, but people who are still learning have a hard time remembering and then finding them on the keys.

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The printed labels on this computer keyboard are a quick reference feature that's helpful for anyone learning.

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Chocolate Bar Flavored Toothpaste

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Photo Credit: dantravers / Reddit
Photo Credit: dantravers / Reddit
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Someone snapped a photo of this concerning toothpaste selection from an Iraqi supermarket.

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We can't help but think that 10/10 dentists absolutely would not recommend brushing your teeth with anything flavored like a chocolate bar.