It was twenty years ago that the Human Genome Project was completed. This was huge feat and major milestone in scientific research, and it doesn’t feel like it happened twenty years ago.
We’ve just rounded the corner into 2026. For sellers of true vintage that means a whole new group of items from 2006, twenty years ago, are now considered vintage and eligible to sell as such.
Raise your hand if you owned a Motorola Razr. They actually came out in 2004, so you can definitely count them as vintage.
What did originate in 2006 however was a little micro-blogging site called Twitter. While we cannot sell our old tweets, it gives us a look back into how we used the internet.
Another popular item that came out in 2006 was the Nintendo Wii, getting loads of parents off the couch to play virtual sports with their kids. XBox 360 launched as well.
The terms “crowdfunding” and “crowdsourcing” were added to the dictionary.
Low rise jeans, velour track suits and MySpace were still going strong in 2006.
The Bananagrams game was introduced to the world, and still remains popular today.
BluRay was introduced that year and while it’s been eclipsed by streaming video, it’s still used for video game consoles such as PS5 and XBox games.
iPhones didn’t come out until 2007, but iPods were popular.
Facebook became public and soon outpaced MySpace.
Late 2005 brought us the Bugatti Veyron, the fastest car in the world at the time at 253 mph. That record has since been broken multiple times.
Guitar Hero was turning us all into living room rock stars.
We were watching American Idol, Survivor, Grey’s Anatomy, and Desperate Housewives. The first use of the term “selfie” was recorded.
We’ve come a long way in 20 years. Technology has replaced much of how we used to spend our time. We used to watch network TV, read magazines and newspapers and play board games. Going to the theater was the main way to see the latest movies, it took a while for new releases to get to Blockbuster on DVD. Our books were physically checked out of the library and if we didn’t want to cook, we went out to eat or placed a take out order by phone.
Now we stream shows, read newsletters online and subscribe to magazines and newspapers on our phones. We order food and so much else via Uber Eats, Door Dash or Instacart. Library books are checked out using Libby and land on our tablets instantly. Music is streamed via Spotify, Apple Music, Soundcloud, or Sirius XM. Life has become digital, we converse via FaceTime, Discord, WhatsApp, Slack and more and keep up on what’s new with TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest and Snap. In so many ways, we are more informed and connected than ever before. Yet we are all consumed by the tiny screens in our hands. Maybe resistance to that trend is why vinyl LPs and actual books are making a comeback.
Some vintage items are obviously more popular than others. Mid Century modern furniture doesn’t seem to be waning any time soon and Pyrex is perennially popular. Vintage clothing from 1980 – Y2K like band tees, Hollister jackets, low rise jeans and baby doll tees are hot. Vintage jewelry is in high demand. And thanks to Tik Tok, classic turntables and speakers from the 1950s-1980s, CD players and CDs, cassette players, iPods, Walkmen and classic game systems and games are also in demand.
What items from now do you feel will become collectible or coveted in twenty years from now?
What items from twenty years ago have you seen become collectible?
