34 Products That May Seem Frivolous But Will Actually Impact Your Life

HuffPost and its publishing partners receive a share from retailers on this page. Prices and availability are subject to change.

1
A Cup Cozy couch pillow

Cup Cozy Pillow is a small business that specializes in family-friendly snack and drink organizers.

Promising review: “We have a sectional sofa with an area that has a chaise lounge section I like to lay on but that puts me far enough from the coffee table that I don’t have a good place to put my drinks. I bought this pillow to put next to me to hold my drinks, and I love it. It let’s me keep my drinks nearby without having to constantly hold them while lounging and watching TV. Stable without being too bulky or heavy.” — Holly M. Paddock

2
A heated eye massager

Read more about how temperature therapy can help — including how applying heat during the start of a migraine can help relax tense muscles, while cold compresses can have a numbing effect, which may dull pain — at Mayo Clinic. And learn more about how reducing light can lessen migraine pain!

Promising review: “My wife is the kind of person who can’t fall asleep unless it’s pitch black, so she’s experimented with a few kinds of sleep masks over the years. Most of the time she can’t relax with something touching her face, but the massaging aspect of this mask helps her get around that somehow. The heated function is a nice bonus for when she has a bit of a headache, and the music is a nice touch that you usually won’t find at this price point. This is a great buy on all accounts, and worth the space on your nightstand!” — Jim Farmer

3
A full-body bath pillow

Promising review: “I have an oval jetted tub so it’s deep, and the pillow I had previously was okay, but I had to lay on the hard back of the tub. I also like to sink down into the bubbles and warm water, so having this full-length mat is great! It’s thick, and when it’s in a tub full of water, feels very plush to lay on. There are four suction cups around the pillow, four along the body, and three more at the bottom edge to keep the mat firmly in place. They’re strong so you need to get a nail under the edge to release them so as not to tear the fabric that holds them in place (which is what happened to my old one with cheap fabric). When wet, it’s heavy, and you’ll need a sturdy hook to hang it from. My solution was to rinse it and then fasten it around the sides of the tub to drain, which works fine. I plan on purchasing more as gifts for my girlfriends, though I’m sure men will love it as well.” — Honesty

4
And an overflow drain cover for a fuller bath

Don’t worry, it doesn’t block your overflow drain completely but rather moves it up several inches — there’s a hole at the top of this cover that still allows excess water to safely drain.

Promising review: “I received this yesterday; installed it last night. Took my first bath with it today, and boy, does it work. I did not rate whether it’s easy to remove or clean, as I haven’t done those yet, but I don’t see why either would be an issue. If you’re an avid bath taker like I am (baths are needed sometimes to warm up during our cold Wisconsin winters) and are tired of the water level going down as quickly as you’re trying to fill it, I definitely recommend this. My only complaint is that I should’ve bought the sooner… I’ve spent years and years using strips of old rags, sponge materials, etc. to try to keep the water from seeping out (which results in smelly, moldy material), but this works like a charm.” — HeartStar14

olors).

5
A “Purse Gummy” anti-slip strap stickers

,

Amazon

This comes with a six pack.

Promising review: “I recently bought a high-quality leather shoulder strap handbag and was having problems with it sliding off my shoulder, since the leather strap was fairly smooth. So I went online and searched to see if there were any products out there that would solve this issue…and I found the Purse Gummy! It works beautifully! No more struggling with a slipping strap. It is hardly noticeable on the strap since it is on the underside, but I wouldn’t mind it if was seen because it works so well.” — D. Dillon

6
A set of non-stick toaster oven bags
Amazon

,

Reviewers say these are also great for anyone with a gluten allergy who needs to keep their bread separate in the toaster. This comes with four oven toaster bags.

Promising review: “This saves so much time. I love these so much. I purchased more for gifts. No need to wait for items to cook in the toaster oven with these. I place three chicken nuggets or cheese sticks in a sleeve and pop them in the toaster on high/frozen. Perfectly crisped items are the result.” — Gloria Nunez

7
A pair of Wad-Free bedsheet detanglers

Plus, they’re BPA-free, reusable, and created by a small business during the pandemic.

Promising review: These are life-changing!! The sheets don’t get bound up and twisted full of socks and under things. And therefore you KNOW that those socks and underthings are CLEAN. And the sheets are CLEAN. Which means not wasting time, soap, water, and electricity washing all that stuff all over again!!!! They’re good for your mood and good for the wallet and for the environment. Buy them and see what this brilliant woman has wrought. I’m buying a set for my kid going off to college and another set for me so I can do more than two sheets at once.” — LHorns 4Ever

8
A clear under-oven toy blocker

Promising review: “Obviously these function well at blocking things from getting under furniture or such. My use case was cat toys under the oven. I had these down for a month or so when I realized they needed to be shorter so the drawer under the oven could open. I peeled them up, NO RESIDUE AND NO FLOOR DAMAGE! I was able to cut them (although it was a bit difficult). And they stuck down again perfectly. Now, I’m moving out of my apartment and they have been down for at least eight months. I actually almost forgot about them! Even after a long time, they peeled up with no residue and no floor damage. I am extremely impressed by these and will definitely use my leftover pieces in my next apartment. They are not very noticeable, work well, and don’t damage your floors (or at least my floors, which I think are laminate). Highly recommend!” — Megan

9
A set of six soda “lids” for canned drinks

Promising review: “Love these! Such a great idea! Easy to put on and take off. Great for taking soda and beer cans outside or to the beach. I shared them with my coworkers, and they liked them so much that they bought some, too. I recommend trying!!” — sd109

10
A pack of four bed bands

Promising review: “I have a pillow-top and pillow-bottom queen-sized bed that is a little too small for king sheets, and with queen sheets, I have battled to keep the sheets from popping off. I have tried everything! I was about to try to customize some king sheets because it was so frustrating. Then I saw this. It works. I was shocked. My sheets have not popped off once. I ordered this in February and it is May now — and they have not popped off once! They used to pop off EVERY…SINGLE…NIGHT. To say this is life-changing is not an exaggeration. Such a relief to be able to sleep through the night without ending up in rumpled sheets.” — TinkerbellAPixie

11
An oil dispenser with a measuring pump

To use, press the button until the oil reaches the desired amount. This also comes with an oil mister so you can spray an even coat on those veggies before you roast them.

Promising review: “This product is easy to use and is the perfect addition to any kitchen! I love how easily I can measure out olive oil and how smoothly it comes out of the bottle. It is great for cooking or for drizzling over salads! Not only is it easy to use, but it also looks nice in the kitchen. Unlike a plastic olive oil bottle, this dispenser is a beautiful addition to my counter top. Also, for anyone who is interested in measuring out their olive oil without needing to constantly pull out a tablespoon, this is the perfect dispenser for you! The spray bottle is also great for cooking! I love that I know exactly what comes out of the spray bottle, rather than a store-bought spray bottle with additives. 10/10 would recommend!” — Clotilde D.

12
An adorable octopus-shaped blackhead remover

Promising review: “After just two days of use, this adorable little octopus has done wonders for me and smells great, too. Here’s how I used it: I wore down the stick just a little to where the texture from the salt is visible, scrubbed around on my face so there was plenty of product, then used my fingers to gently massage all the gunk away. Rinse, pat dry, and enjoy the softness. Highly recommended for people with sensitive skin like me.” — LuckLocust

13
A variety pack of 100 LED light–blocking stickers

You get a set of 100 stickers made to fit all sorts of electronics, so you can find the ones that will work perfectly for you.

Promising review: “Ingenious little idea. I suffer from migraines, so I know how a little LED light can irritate you in an otherwise pitch-black room. This product does a great job of dimming those harsh LED indicators that EVERYTHING seems to have nowadays. They are neat, not unsightly.” — Jarom A. Daszko

.

14
Two facial applicator brushes

Promising review: “I absolutely love these. I saw them on TikTok and ordered them right away. I’ve been using them for months now and they make applying masks so much easier. I get a much more even application than I did with my hands or with other brushes. Extremely easy to use, clean, and store. Love love love!” — caterina

15
A bagel guillotine

Promising review: “My boyfriend can’t cut bagels. He literally butchers these poor baby bagels all up. I saw this on a TikTok and I was like ‘oh we need that.’ So I bought it. And it was a good investment. Now we can enjoy nicely sliced bagels that fit in a toaster and aren’t jagged across. Yay bagel slicer!” — Ci DiPalma

16
A pair of beaded fan pull extenders

Available in five finishes and two sizes.

Promising review:This is the definition of ‘product you didn’t know you needed because you didn’t know it existed.’ I was FOREVER pulling the wrong chain on our bedroom ceiling fan. (Want the light off? Oh no…now the fan’s on high. Need to change the fan speed? Eek… now you’re in the dark.) They’re a much better quality than I expected. They’re actually quite heavy-duty pull chains, and they add a bit of fun to the decor. (When you notice them — most of the time, who even thinks about a ceiling fan pull chain?) As an added bonus, my infant daughter loves staring at them while I change her diaper or jammies. I tap them to make the chains swing, and it’s instant fascination, which helps make my job easier!” — LHD

17
Amazon
A set of six adhesive organizing cable clips

Promising review: “I absolutely love these! I saw them in a recent article on a list of must-have Amazon products and decided to give them a try since getting things cleaned up and organized is somewhat my thing, so any items that help me do that are always on the top of my list. These are so cool! My husband and I both work from home and have tons of charging cords for us and our kids and they’re usually just dangling around. This helps us keep those organized and neat, making them not only look better but easier to find. The adhesive seems good so it should last, but I got some extras just to have handy for the future. Highly recommend!” — Milica P.

18
A condiment fork

Promising review: “Great kitchen item. Forks are great to get pickles out of the jar, but if you have kids/lazy people (lol) you know that dirty hands are going into that jar. This has really prevented that from happening. It comes with two different rings to fit whatever size jar, a stabber holder, and a stabbing stick.” — Amazon customer

19
A pair of seat gap fillers

Promising review: “These things are amazing!! My Explorer has an abyss under the seat. If anything drops, it’s gone forever! These stay in place way better than expected. I won’t go without them ever!” — Kaci A.

20
A 2-pack of detergent cup holder

Tidy-Cup is a woman-owned small business started after the founder, Julie Reinhold, was tired of detergent containers dripping all over her laundry room floor.

Promising review: “I had no idea I needed this until I saw it on TikTok. Listen, it’s the little things that matter. This little thing saves me the headache of a laundry room mess. I love it. Fits perfectly on my liquid detergent. No more messes!” — Christina

21
A “Bread Buddy” dispenser and freshness extender

Promising review: “The Buddeez Sandwich Bread Dispenser is great! It does exactly what it was intended for. I live alone and I don’t quite go through bread often enough before the last quarter section of the loaf starts to go stale. I was originally looking for something to put a loaf of bread in as a shell for my vacuum sealer, that would keep the bread from getting crushed from the pressure. This dispenser solved all of my problems. Thank you!” — DRMcQuaig

22
A soil moisture meter for plants

,

Mallory Mower / BuzzFeed

Promising review: “This item is great. I can check how wet my plants are down where the roots are. So no more over-watering! It is very accurate. This works great!!” — Terri Carlson

23
A fast grape cutter

Promising review: “Yes. TikTok made me buy it. It’s awesome In my opinion. I use it for my fruit salads and my son’s snacks. It’s helpful, and I think it saves a bit of time.” — Amanda

24
A SockDock storage hanger

SockDock is a small business founded by Kevin Bunn in March 2017 after he got so frustrated losing socks while doing laundry.

Promising review: “For the last six years, I have lost literally dozens of socks. No one would fess up to having them stuffed in their drawers or crammed underneath their beds. So, it must be the sock gnomes or if you are familiar with Family Guy. I have been using the SockDock for about a month, I’ve washed about three or four loads and guess what, not one sock lost. It does take some commitment to load soiled socks on the tree, but it’s worth the effort. They come out of the wash, and you just hang them up and pull fresh ones off. I highly recommend if you can commit yourself to the process.” — S. Peterson

25
A pair of comfortable AirPod ear hooks
Amazon

,

Promising review: “These are great…you just have to wear the hoop part facing forwards. It’s completely backwards from how you think you should wear them. But trust me, it works so much better! And I’ve worn them for 6-8 hours at a time and never hurt my ears! Wish I’d bought them sooner!” — Ashley

26
Amazon
A motion-activated toilet night-light

It is an LED light and has 16 colors — you can choose just one or have it rotate between them all! The light will stay on for two minutes after the last motion detection before turning off.

Also, this uses three AA batteries (not included), and a new set should last between 6 months to a year — depending on the brightness and frequency of use.

Promising review: “This seemingly silly little gadget has turned out to be great! The light level (brightness) can be dimmed down if desired, and the color can be set to whatever you want, but the bottom line is that you don’t need to turn on a bright overhead light (which wakes me up and makes me angry, not a good combination) when you need to go into the bathroom at night. Cleaning it is a breeze, too; what seems like it’s going to be a problem…isn’t. I can’t recommend this toilet night-light highly enough, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. Could be on the gift list this December.” — Wandergurrlee
Get it from Amazon for $9.99.

27
A Kindle strap

TFY is a small business creating genius tech accessories. This strap is designed to fit the Kindle Voyage, Kindle Paperwhite, and 6-inch Kindle Fire. It’s available in two sizes.

Promising review: “I already loved my Kindle Paperwhite, but this makes it even better. It looks bulkier in the picture than it actually is. There’s enough room in the strap for A FINGER (not two), and it weighs close to nothing — maybe an ounce. I wanted something that would make it easier to hold in front of my face while reading on the plane (to avoid bent-over posture) and also an easy loop to put my finger through when reading on my side (in bed). It folds flat to fit in a sleeve as well. Perfect for my needs!” — Andrew H.

28
A pancake batter dispenser and mixer
Amazon

,

Promising review: “If you like to eat pancakes for breakfast a lot and want to avoid a lot of dishes, please get this! This is so worth it. I saw this on TikTok and had to get it. Just make sure you’re putting the amount of water that’s right for the amount you’re going to eat.” — Buchii

29
A french fry holder

Promising review: “I was so sick of spilling my fries in the car, lol. It is a little loose in my particular cup holder in my car, but it fit nicely in another car. Holds the fries well. No more spilled fries.” — Missy

30
A pair of Saucemoto dip clips for the car

Saucemoto is a small biz that launched in 2017 and pretty quickly became a viral sensation with their genius cup holder for condiments. The three founders appeared on Shark Tank in season 10 and secured a deal with Kevin O’Leary.

Promising review: “How did I go so long without one of these??? The Saucemoto was my first ‘TikTok Made Me Buy It’ purchase, and I have no regrets. It clips easily to my car’s vent, and the sauce cups clip in easily so I can dip and drive. No more trying not to dump the sauce by accident while steering with the same hand that’s holding the dip cup. It even comes with a dip cup for those places that do the pouches for their sauces rather than the cups. (I’m looking at you, Arby’s.) Ya know, you end up squeezing the sauce onto the wrapper that’s balanced on your lap, and you end up getting some sauce on your steering wheel. OR you try the whole ‘wrapper and sauce on the passenger seat and try to dip while watching the road,’ which usually doesn’t turn out so great.” — Pleasure Pamela

31
An Itzy Ritzy adjustable stroller organizer
Amazon

,

Itzy Ritzy is a small business founded by parents who wanted to create stylish and safe parenting gear. Available in nine styles.

Promising review:Love love love!! Use this every single day!! It has been so helpful, not to mention how gorgeous it is! We get so many compliments on it and matches her diaper bag! Would definitely recommend this to any of my moms!!shae Cox

32
A burger holder

It’s great for times plates aren’t available (road trips, etc.), and it’s dishwasher safe!

Promising review: “I have neuropathy, and everything I pick up to eat turns into a squashed mess, so as soon as I saw this I ordered it. First hamburger I’ve eaten without it turning into a mess in years. I loaded up the burger with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cheese, and mayo, and every bite was delicious!! I LOVE IT!!!!!” — Paul Roup

33
A sliding magnet for your dishwasher
Sally Elshorafa / BuzzFeed

,

Promising review: “I bought this because of a TikTok video. Super cool and now nobody has to ask me if the dishes are clean or not.” — D. Washington

34
A Bluapple produce extender
Amazon

,

Amazon

They can keep produce fresher for two to three times longer. The set comes with two Bluapples and eight packets, which should last you about a year (each packet lasts three months) — and you can order replacement packets as needed.

Promising review: “I’m very happy with this product for a few reasons: 1) They work as advertised — I placed one in my produce shelves in the fridge and my berries have lasted three times as long. A container of blueberries used to go bad within a few days, but my latest purchase lasted 2 weeks. 2) Super easy to use — you just pop the container into the ‘apple’ and put the top on and you’re ready to go. Took less than a minute for both. Overall, this product has saved me money and kept produce fresh for so much longer. I wish I had purchased them sooner.” — Sammyb07

Related Posts


This will close in 0 seconds