It’s easy to fall victim to an online shopping purchase that doesn’t quite measure up to what you’d hoped. We’ve all been there — clothing where the fabric doesn’t look quite as expensive as it did on the website, decor that’s drastically smaller than you thought it would be (the price did seem too good to be true in retrospect), but some online shopping stories really do take the cake, so to speak.
So is the tale of TikTok user Neta Murphy @froginahatgirl, whose video of a “croissant lamp” from online marketplace Temu has been viewed nearly 9 million times by now. We get it — food-shaped lamps are cute. There’s something nostalgic about them (well if you’re a similar age to me, anyway). They’re total 00s-core decor, dorm-room chic, and, dare-we-say, a little bit Brat. There’s something about how super-realistic that makes them kitsch, but in a modern art sort of way.
From Temu, it was possibly never going to be the best table lamp, but this particular “croissant lamp” took the realism stakes to the next level.
@froginahatgirl Pls explain temu
♬ original sound - froginahatgirl
One day, after coming home on a hot day, its owner found hundreds of ants underneath the small table lamp. Disturbed, she made a small opening in the lamp a little larger and started to suspect that, in fact, her “croissant lamp” was a real, hollowed-out croissant, covered in resin. After breaking the lamp open and even, we hate to say it, giving it a taste test, Neta confirmed that to be the case.
However, after doing a little research, it turns out that this isn’t the only place you can get yourself a preserved croissant lamp, and some people are doing it willingly. This Amazon croissant lamp listing has over 100 positive ratings, and an average rating of 4.4 out of 5, despite, it seems, most of the buyers figuring out it’s actually a resin-covered croissant with an LED light in it.
We even found a version of the lamp, made by a Japanese artist, selling for $250 that is, again, made from an actual croissant.
It might not be quite as shocking as it sounds. According to ArtResin, you can use resin to preserve food, as long as you cover every square inch of it, which may be where this Temu croissant lamp has gone awry. Would I buy it knowing it’s a croissant dipped in resin? Personally, no. But these reviewers seemingly had no problem with it.
We’re not averse to a food-shaped lamp all together. A designer brand like Seletti makes this idea feel kitsch yet elevated, while you’ll find yourself virtually tripping over cute fruit-inspired lamps in Urban Outfitters.
Here are some of my favorite foodie lighting finds if a semi-edible pastry lamp isn’t for you either.
Price: $17.97
Material: Resin
A thick piece of buttered toast for your nightstand that's actually a lamp — its material list says resin, but we're pretty sure it's not a real piece of bread.
Material: Glass
Price: $84
Remember the "tomato girl summer" trend of yesteryear? Trendy and realistic, this Urban Outfitters buy is a little more expensive, but infinitely more chic.
Material: Resin and glass
Price: $150
Seletti's banana lamp is a surreal design classic, and has inspired all kinds of food-shaped lamps.
Material: Glass, polyresin, and fabric cord
Price: $99
Less realistic, but very cute none-the-less, another find from Urban Outfitters to bring an on-trend accent if you're embracing the unexpected red theory.
