A woman was let scratching her head over two mystery items she found in her mother’s house – before their function was uncovered.
The woman discovered the crescent-shaped metal items with dozens of sharp nails sticking out and asked people online what they could be.
Many were quick to share their guesses from detangling brushes to boot scrapers before it was revealed to be a flower frog, a tool used by florist to arrange bouquets.
‘Anyone know what these are for? They are quite heavy. Found them amongst some of my mum’s stuff after she passed away,’ the woman said in a post to a popular Facebook group.
Dozens shared their theories on what the strange gadget could be with many thinking they were ‘Blakey’s Segs’ which are protective pieces of metal people use to hammer into their shoe soles to prevent them from wearing.
A woman was left baffled after finding some mystery item in her mum’s house. People guessed they were brushes while others thought they were shoe sole protectors
‘Not sure of the size in the picture but if small they were made for heals and toes of working men’s shoes. My granddad had them,’ one woman said.
‘At first I thought they were Blakey’s but there are too many pins,’ another agreed.
A couple of members thought they were ‘detangling brushes’ at first while others shared some amusing answers.
‘Not sure. Looks kinky though!’ laughed one user while a second joked they were ‘a set of false teeth’.
Many the items were flower ‘frogs’. ‘Placed in a dish or bowl filled with water and the stems of the flowers would be pushed onto the pins to create an arrangement,’ a florist explained
‘Are they fake eyebrows?’ asked a third.
‘Could pop one by front and back door and use them as boot scrapers,’ someone else suggested and another thought: ‘You put them on your carpet/rug under the coasters of sofas or furniture. It doesn’t compress the carpet as bad’.
However, the majority said the items were flower pin holders or ‘frogs’ used for flower arranging.
‘They are called pin holders. Now called frogs. Weighted with sharp pins used for flower arranging some years ago,’ a florist explained.
‘Placed in a dish or bowl filled with water and the stems of the flowers would be pushed onto the pins to create an arrangement. Used a lot in Japanese Ikebana.’
‘Florists flower arranging tool, used prior to oasis, still used today in some arrangements,’ one member agreed.
The woman who found the objects decided they were flower frogs as they were ‘too heavy’ to be put on shoes.
‘I think the consensus is they are for flower arranging so I’ll put them back until I get some flowers!’ she said.
‘Thanks for all the great and amusing replies. Turkey teeth and eyebrows my favourite.’
This isn’t the first time flower frogs have confused the internet.
Dozens were left baffled after an op-shopper bragged about her rare vintage find.
The woman called the $5 buy she found at a Tasmanian second hand store her ‘unicorn’ but many were baffled by what the gadget was used for.
A second-hand shopper confused dozens after bragging about their recent thrift store find. No one knew what the small round item with lots of holes was used for
Shoppers asked what the small round translucent apparatus with a series of holes of varying sizes was before people said it was a flower frog.
Many had never heard of a flower frog before and some even said they had one in their home but never knew what its true function was.
‘Finally found my unicorn! $5. Very grubby but could not feel any damage. Thanks to Ulverstone Salvos, also brand new pair Fletcher Jones jeans, $1. Yippee!’ the shopper wrote in a post to the I Love To Op Shop Facebook page.
The woman, who is travelling Australia in a caravan, had been scouring op-shops trying to find a flower frog before she finally came across one.
‘Um what is it?’ a confused commenter asked while another said: ‘Oh wow I have a green one of them, I was about to donate it. What are they?’.
The gadget’s true function was eventually revealed as a flower frog or hopper which is used in the bottom of a vase to make flower arrangements and keep the stems in place
‘It’s creeping me out whatever it is,’ one group member said and another agreed pointing out the gadget would trigger someone with trypophobia.
Things with patterns with lots of holes like strawberries, sponges and honeycombs cause a feeling of disgust or discomfort in people with the surprisingly common trypophobia fear.
‘My eyes are burning,’ someone said of the hole-covered object.
Fears aside, many were quick to answer people’s queries saying the thrift store item is a flower frog or hopper and explained what it is used for.
‘It’s a flower frog, goes inside a vase or bowl to stand flowers upright,’ one woman clarified.
‘That is a flower frog, you put it into a vase and arrange your flowers into it,’ another replied.
Others shared their vintage flower frog collections that had been handed down to them or they had found in second hand stores
Others shared their old flower frog collections that had been handed down to them or they had found in second hand stores.
People were thankful to those who cleared up their confusion and were glad to have learned about the flower arranging device.
‘Ohh I was trying to figure out why everyone was talking about frogs,’ one woman laughed.
‘And now I’ve learnt what a flower frog is! That’s my extra knowledge for the day. Now you bet I’m going to be looking out for these,’ another said.
‘I had no idea these were for arranging flowers, I have one that I keep make-up brushes in,’ a third admitted.
‘They look like pen holders to me at first until I found the answer in the comments,’ another group member added.
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