Every home seems to have a junk drawer. It’s where loose keys, coins, buttons, old pens, and random little things end up when there isn’t a better place for them.

Most of those items probably seemed ordinary at the time. Nobody expected the contents of a junk drawer to become collectible years later. Yet some of these everyday objects now attract collectors who enjoy finding pieces tied to travel, history, advertising, and everyday life.

If you’re cleaning out an old drawer, take a second look before throwing everything away. A few of those forgotten odds and ends may be more interesting than they first appear.

Loose Foreign Coins

Foreign coins often came home from vacations, work trips, or visits with family members living overseas. They were easy to toss into a drawer and forget about.

Some of those coins can be interesting to collectors, especially pieces from countries that no longer exist or currencies that have been replaced. Older coins, unusual designs, and coins connected to major historical events can also attract attention.

A handful of foreign change probably won’t make you rich, but it can be worth checking before sending it off with the rest of the clutter.

Loose Buttons

A small jar or drawer full of spare buttons was once pretty common. People saved them after buying new clothes or removing buttons from garments that were too worn to keep.

Today, certain old buttons have their own collecting community. Glass buttons, military buttons, carved examples, and unusual decorative designs can be particularly interesting. Some are valued for their materials and craftsmanship, while others appeal to collectors because of their age or history.

That box of mismatched buttons may be worth keeping if some of them look especially old or unusual.

Vacation Refrigerator Magnets

Souvenir magnets have been coming home from road trips and vacations for generations. They usually end up stuck to the refrigerator for a few years before being tossed into a drawer during a kitchen cleanup.

Older magnets can tell a story about places, attractions, restaurants, and businesses that no longer exist. Collectors of travel memorabilia may be interested in pieces connected to long-gone tourist attractions or destinations.

If you find an old magnet from a favorite family vacation, it may be worth keeping for the memories alone. A discontinued attraction or business can make it even more interesting.

Mystery Spare Keys

Every junk drawer seems to have at least one key nobody recognizes. There may be several, all saved because someone was convinced they might be useful someday.

Some old keys are collectible, particularly skeleton keys, vintage hotel keys, and keys with distinctive markings from older businesses, cars, or manufacturers. Their unusual shapes also make them popular with people who use vintage objects for decorating and crafts.

Before tossing a mystery key, check whether it has an unusual shape, name, logo, or marking. It could be an interesting little piece of the past.

Vintage Matchbooks

Matchbooks were once common giveaways at restaurants, hotels, bars, casinos, and other businesses. People brought them home as souvenirs, and plenty ended up sitting forgotten in drawers.

Today, vintage matchbooks are collected for their artwork and advertising. A matchbook from a restaurant that closed decades ago can provide a small snapshot of what that business looked like and how it marketed itself.

Sets from hotels, famous restaurants, casinos, and other recognizable businesses can be especially fun to find. Condition matters, so keep old matchbooks dry and handle them carefully.

Rubber Stamps and Ink Pads

Before computers made printing and labeling quick and easy, rubber stamps were part of everyday life in homes and offices. Address stamps, date stamps, business stamps, and other specialty designs were common.

Older stamps can appeal to collectors because of their lettering, wooden handles, unusual designs, and connection to businesses or organizations from another era. Some also make great additions to vintage-inspired displays or craft collections.

An old rubber stamp may look like nothing more than an outdated office supply, but the right design can make it a surprisingly interesting find.

A junk drawer is full of things that were once useful and then forgotten. That’s part of what makes these old objects so fun to collect. They’re small, easy to overlook, and often tied to a specific place, person, business, or moment in time. Before cleaning out an old drawer, it may be worth taking a closer look at what’s inside.