My New EBay Guide

Coutureallure

Coutureallure

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After a rash of receiving damaged vintage clothing described as "excellent condition", I got frustrated and wrote a long diatribe for my blog. I was angry, so I didn't publish it. Instead, I wrote my first Guide on EBay about protecting yourself when buying vintage clothing. If you have a moment, could you vote for my guide, please?

Protect Yourself When Buying Vintage Clothing on EBay

And if you'd like to read about my EBay experiences over the last several months (with angry comments deleted) here's my blog post.
 
Your guide is remarkably restrained! I TOTALLY understand what you are saying in your blog. I have even had problems with clothes from high-profile sellers on eBay who have 100% feedback and good reputations. A petticoat I bought from (let's call her CF) reaked of mold and when I queried her about it I got an evasive answer with no solution. I also had a cheap home made suit upsold by (let's call her MM) as essentially Hollywood couture that I would not have spent half the money on in a store. Her response was a rebate of $25.00 which has yet to show up...
 
I have been shopping round quite abit myself. We will see what the results are as only 2 of the dresses have arrived. So far, so good.

But you are quite right - the number of dresses described as excellent with visible damage in the photos has gone up.

So has the phrase "it will need cleaning". What does than mean? It's dingy? It has big stains? Or I am covering my ass for when you complain about the smell, dirt and smoke?

That's another one that keeps me from bidding.

Hollis
 
What an experement! I've done a lot of buying and have been fairly lucky, but the occasional turkey does pop up. I always consider a $12 trip to the dry cleaner in my price I'm willing to pay on ebay stuff. It's just part of the deal.
 
i wish there were a thank you button. on here so i could say thank you for starting this thread......:USETHUMBUP:



i used to show dogs ...and done quite well with them had a few champions etc.... went to america once to show a dog .....and there is a term that we used to use called....'kennel blindness'...... which means... that you are soooooo used to seeing your dogs. that in the end you can not see the faults that you are breeding... or the dog has....

could this be the same sinario with people who see and get used to diff conditions of vintage clothing......? or maybe an item is classed as excellent by them.... as that is the better quality items that they have seen/had in a long time....so thats what they have got used to.....and have got into a zone where their interprtaion./judgement on a garment has slide..?

sorry to waffle on... hope that makes sense.......

it would be interesting to hear what people write to discribe certain faults.... smells/aromours etc in this discriptions.....

as then maybe we could have a set of uniform discriptions to discribe certain..... common faults etc.......( sorry if that idea sounds silly but that it might be a starting point to try and help....)
 
Hi, Jonathan, I might guess who CF is. If it is who I think it is, she never cleans anything before listing. It's all offered up "as found" even when it's perfectly washable. I always marvel at the high prices she commands for things she hasn't prepped (while I spend hours and hours washing, removing stains, and ironing!)

Jen
 
Another vote for your terrific guide, Jody (and I agree with Jonathan, it is admirably restrained in tone...)

More than 50 out of 100 items had undisclosed damage--egads!

It's funny how you have to read between the lines in many descriptions, then try to assess whether you're dealing with a) an honest seller giving it to you straight, no surprises in store; b) an inexperienced seller telling some whoppers without meaning to; or c) a seasoned con artist.
 
There are lots of people who just don't know or don't realize what might be considered flaws. I have dealt with many people locally who call an item flawless/pristine/mint, and I have to point out why it is to be considered good or fair in condition, not even close to excellent, let alone mint.

I hope we can do a public forum list of detail considerations someday...Jody, you've certainly helped!
 
And many people think that just because an item is "old", that it is expected to have signs of age. It makes me wonder why people who think this way don't stop and ask themselves if someone would actually want to wear a worn-out dress. I mean, lots of people wear vintage, but I don't see very many people wearing rags!

You got my vote!

Lizzie
 
Great guide. I'm in the middle of writing a similar one for my web magazine. I love how there is this new clothing language on eBay that many vintage sellers seem to have adapted.
Like a "slip dress" is really a nightie that's been shortened. Or an XS empire waist mini is actually a little girl's dress. Then they are the elastic waist skirts pulled up to the armpits being sold as "strapless tent" dresses. And trust me, I've emailed some of these sellers with questions about these garments (like, "Is that really a dress or a skirt?") and they either don't respond or say, "I have no idea" (which is a GREAT answer for someone who is trying to sell a product!)

Unfortunately, there are a lot of buyers out there that just look at the photos, don't read the listing, and really don't know how a garment is supposed to properly fit so the sellers continue to get away with it. It's pretty disheartening.
 
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