Ee-Bay-Glum? How to maximise your vintage success on eBay

In a follow on from my blog on maximising your vintage success at charity shops I simply had to write one about online shopping. More specifically eBay. If Disneyland is the happiest place on earth then eBay is a close contender for second in my house. 

The vintage market has changed online as well as in the charity shops but that's not to say you cannot find vintage and find it within your budget. 

Here are some of my tactics for finding budget vintage on eBay...

Look regularly - it's no use complaining that you cannot find anything on eBay if, like Mummy Rockabilly, you use it so infrequently that you cannot remember your password! Have a little look when you’re on a long journey or in an ad break (or on the loo!). You don't have to change your whole life for eBay by any means (in fact I'd recommend you don't!) but you do need to commit a bit of time to searching for vintage because it won’t fall in your lap.

Decide on priorities – It’s so easy to get carried away with eBay so decide your budget and top price for items and stick to it. If you are looking to keep costs down you can avoid paying additional customs charges by searching for items within the UK only. Of course this will limit the vintage you find as a lot of good vintage does come from the US.

Search smart - I have several ways of searching for vintage bargains 

Simple £1 search

I regularly search for items in this way and it throws up treasure.

1. Put the word vintage into the search field
2. Filter by ending soonest 
3. Add a filter for 99p to 1.00 

4. Add the UK only filter

Here are some of the more interesting items which came up at the time of writing this blog from searching in this way. This method is more like an online browse around a flea market, there is just no telling what might turn up.  

Now that is not to say these items will sell for a pound but it does increase your chances of picking up a vintage bargain especially when looking at the items which are ending soon but have no bids. 

Search misspellings 
As with all things these days there is "an app for that" and http://www.fatfingers.co.uk/ will take the pain out of searching misspellings for you, just type in your preferred search terms and it will search for all of the most common misspellings. As people use their phones to upload their items more and more these days and typo’s are common.  

For example I love Lulu Guinness bags (note the 2 n’s) but most of my purchases have come from people misspelling the word as guiness and therefore there is little or no competition for the item.

Here are some misspellings I found through using FatFingers, some vintage, some reproduction and some vintage appropriate. 

Knowing your favourite brands 
Go through the clothes you own and select your favourite pieces, it doesn't matter if they are vintage or reproduction. If they have labels search for that brand - this Richard stump dress is one of my favourites and I wear it to 1940's events.  Because I know I love the fit and the quality I am reassured in buying these dresses and they come up quite often. 

Some sellers will use a very simple descriptor of the brand name without using the most common words like “vintage”. This lessons the chance of someone searching for “Vintage dress” finding it. You’re relying on the laziness of the seller here to categorise and describe their items properly.

Here are some items that came up as listed without the word vintage or with poor descriptors which could help you snap up a bargain. Sometimes it pays to leave the word vintage out of the equation all together when searching.

My Top 10 search terms  

Outside of searching for “vintage dress" here are some of the search terms I use to find vintage online. It's worth remembering that sellers will often use these terms to attract the buyer so it's not necessarily authentic. For example if selling a 1980's polyester day dress you might see it listed with a whole host of descriptors such as: 

BEAUTIFUL 1940'S  VOLUP TWINWOOD DAY DRESS WW2 GRANNY CHIC 

Make sure to check the item description though,  just because someone has used WW2 as a descriptor it doesn't mean it's from that era. 

Example: Search “Vintage (insert one of the below here) dress. Apply filters as per your preferences.  

1. Volup – More common on Etsy but this comes in handy if, like me, you do not have the kind of bust that accommodates vintage without scaffolding, it’s commonly used by vintage sellers to describe something that is bigger than the average vintage item.

2. VLV – Viva Las Vegas – This search terms is also used, sometimes more by US based sellers, this is often used for items that are more rockabilly in style or glitzy evening wear.

4. Goodwood or 5. Twinwood – These event names are often used by UK sellers so are good for true vintage and often forties in style without having to pay customs charges. 

6. Wartime/WW2 – Sellers often use this for utility clothing or true vintage from the 40’s so it’s a handy one to bear in mind.

7. Granny dress/Granny chic – Yes some people do use these! You will find you get fancy dress costumes with this term as well but if you are filtering by “used” this should limit them.

8. Madmen/secretary chic – What it says on the tin really, these items can be more 60’s in style so if that’s your cup of tea it’s a good one to try

9. Downton Abbey – Any TV series which of an “era” will creep into eBay listings, especially one as popular as Downton Abbey. I’m also starting to see “home fires” but is not very popular at the moment (bear this in mind in six months)

10. Landgirl – This may also throw up lots of fancy dress results so make sure your “used” filter is on, people use this term for all kinds of items, not just the stereotypical jumpsuit or dungarees the term denotes.

11. vtg – simple really, this is used as a shorthand for “vintage” by many sellers.

Check out the seller

Once you have found a vintage item that is of interest to you do go and check out the sellers other items, they may have similar items or more vintage clothing that is the same size. If you find a seller you really love then save them to your sellers list so you can go back to them later.

Handing over the cash

Buy it now – Obviously this is a great option if you are in love with an item and simply must have it but make sure you are not doing yourself a disservice. Sometimes I see two different listings of the same items with wildly different price start points so if the item is branded then search for that brand in the size you want and make sure no one else is selling the same thing but cheaper.

Auctions – don’t get carried away here, it’s so tempting but don’t let the thrill of the chase overshadow your budget. You can input your maximum bid and eBay will do the work for you. Your bids will increase until you hit the top of the budget you have set. If you get outbid at the top of your budget breathe deeply and take a real assessment of the item, should you really up your budget? 

Make an offer – Weirdly I had felt an awkwardness about making offers on eBay. I am not sure why but I have never enjoyed haggling really. But I have made offers on eBay before and been successful so bite the bullet and tell the seller what you want to pay. They may reject the offer, they may counter offer but all of this is part of the back and fourth of vintage clothing transactions. I made an offer on a vintage dress and when I realised the seller was only two miles away we agreed that I would come and collect it and she refunded me the postage saving me even more money so it's always worth asking. 

Pay now – don’t let your eBay account end up in a sea of things you need to pay for, it’s poor form to keep the seller waiting for payment. I sell on eBay occasionally and it’s really irritating that the person I recently sold a lovely bag to hasn’t paid, despite two payment reminders. Your seller will be able to get your item in the post a lot quicker if you pay as soon as possible after the auction.

I hope this inspires some new ways of searching for vintage online for some of you.  

Coming soon – Now that I have told you my own personal tips and tricks for finding vintage cheaply, in the interests of balance next weeks post will be about what happens when you shop smart but shop too much.

How to Tame Your Vintage Vixen – Surviving a Buying Ban! 

Until next time

Love

RB

Charity Begins at Home - How to Maximise Your Vintage Success in Charity Shops

The vintage market is no longer lost on most charity shops, many stores have vintage sections and in big cities most of the true vintage is often snapped up by savvy sellers during the week, when the stock is replenished. 

1980's does 1940's is still quite widely available I typically pay anywhere from 50p to £5 for 1980's dresses and won't pay more for a simple polyester day dress. I'd expect to pay more for true vintage these days even in a charity shop. As you'll see below these 70's/80's dresses were a snip and you don't have to spend a fortune to dress in a vintage style. 

Whilst the thrill of charity shopping is the rummage and the fact that you conceivably could find vintage anywhere (that's part of the fun!) There are ways of increasing your chances of finding those vintage bargains that are becoming harder to stumble across. 

                                  

Dress £1.99 Barnardo's, Golders Green. Shoes by Hotter £3.70, Ebay. Headscarf  50p, St Francis Hospice. Bag £7.50, Cardiff Indoor Flea Market.  Bamboo style bangles 50p, bootsale. Cardigan: From own wardrobe. 
Total outfit cost £14.19

Out of town: As mentioned above it's increasingly difficult to find vintage in bigger cities but step outside of this and the nearest village or town can be a treasure trove. These smaller places will often also have house clearance shops, local eateries and somewhere to buy local produce (that's how I discovered that mead is actually quite nice) It's good to support local businesses and tourism so don't stick to inner cities if your hunting for vintage, make a day of it elsewhere and see somewhere new. 

Seaside towns: These can be a relatively untapped treasure, firstly older people tend to live there, hence old people clothing donations, secondly they have less people traffic than inner city shops so vintage doesn't get scooped up as easily, in fact it's often underpriced. They often sell more fabric which can be reworked (sheets and linen etc), and vintage ornaments or homeware are readily available. 

Local charities: Many towns and cities will have a charity that is close to the heart of the area, whether it be a cattery or a local hospice, they often only have one shop instead of a chain. The best part about a charity shop being independent is that their donations stay in the same place, they don't have policies of vintage going to one store and designer too another. These shops tend to get lots of donations because people like to support causes locally. They are often not as glamorous or well organised as the Cancer Research's of this world but if this puts people off then it's all the better for us rummagers. 

Dress: £1.99 Bernardo's Golders Green, Shoes by Collection @ Debenhams £6.00, Ebay. Train case £2.50, Ebay. Cardigan from own wardrobe. 
Total outfit cost: £10.49

The one that smells: We all know that one charity shop, the one that smells like cigarette smoke and old spice, the one that looks like it's struggling because it's so disorganised and no one really seems to know what's going on. That's the one to rummage through, peg your nose and crack on! It's never failed me and as long as you know a good dry cleaner then you'll survive. 

The wedding dress shop: St Francis Hospice has a shop in my home town that has a specialised wedding section. What comes with that is vintage. Firstly even if you are always the bridesmaid and never the bride don't disregard the wedding dresses, this might be sacrilege to some but consider the vintage dresses and whether they could be dyed and worn as an evening gown. 

Then there are the hats and accessories, my best source of vintage or vintage appropriate hats it this one charity shop, they have such a wide selection and they can be very reasonable in price since hats aren't in vogue for most. 

Moths:  Especially if you are braving the smellier charity shops just check before you buy anything that it doesn't have any unnoticed moth holes or that the shop isn't damp. Look under collars for evidence of critters, a bargain is only a bargain if it doesn't infest your wardrobe! 

To little too late? 

• Wrap your vintage treasures in a bag and put it in the freezer for at least 24 hours
•  "defrost" and take to the dry cleaner straight away. 

The Boutique Charity Shops:

This blog is not to say you shouldn't visit the vintage boutique charity shops that sell true vintage. Oxfam Originals in Manchester is one of my favorite shops in the city and it is reasonably priced for the true vintage shopper but forget the fact that's it's a charity shop. They are on to us, consider it a finders fee or keep your money in your purse. I personally would never try to haggle in any kind of charity shop, it's for the cats/children/elderly, let it go! 

For me there are two types of vintage love. 50p love is for anything that could pass for vintage appropriate wear (non vintage beads or brooches, 1980's wear, modern rockabilly wear) they types of things you would be happy to part with jumble sale money for, up to a couple of pounds. My gorgeous friend Vintage Frills did a fantastic blog post recently of seven vintage inspired outfits on a  budget which you can read here. 

Then there is proper money love, the kinds of items you need for an event, to finish a collection or the true vintage that you are unlikely to find in a charity shop if you searched for 100 years. In a way having to part with real money stops you buying in the haphazard way many of us start our vintage collections with. 

Dress £2.00 PDSA (Cowbridge Road, Cardiff) Shoes by Hotter £18.00, Ebay. Bag £2.00 Oxfam Romford. 

Headscarf 50p St Francis Hospice. 

Total outfit cost: £22.50

How to Find Budget Vintage On Limited Time

If you only have a couple of minutes to dash around a charity shop here is how I best assess it's vintage-ability quickly:  

The Dresses: If it is arranged by size look at your size, the size below and all the sizes above (example if your a 14 look at 12-20) vintage sizing can be off so don't only look at your modern size. If there is no vintage there I check out the following: 

The Knitwear: There is often vintage to be had in the knitwear section. Cardigans your gran would love or cute little bolero's and shrugs. In one of my more misguided moments I once bought a vintage knitted bed jackets but the less said about that the better. We all make mistakes! 

The Handbags: Vintage handbags can sometimes be disregarded over and above a Cath Kidson or similar which will sell easily so look at the back of the rails. 

The Glass Cabinet: What is in the glass cabinet that so many charity shops have will tell you a lot about the shop and how they value vintage. Is it full of modern designer stuff or pretty enamel brooches? If the former then check out their jewelry section because they may have vintage there which is being undervalued, if the latter then have a look ,  if you're after a 50p bargain you probably won't find it here but you might find a Stratton compact. 

The Buckets and Baskets: These usually live in corners or under the rails of clothing, they are so often hidden. underneath a naff duvet set sits headscarves and belts and foundation garments, all the things some charity shops deem not good enough to hang. This your goldmine, flick though and flick quickly. I cannot tell you the amount of things I have only found because I crawled (yes literally I sometimes crawl) into nook of a charity shop to discover a beautiful item that had been deemed unworthy. 

I hope you find this useful and would love to hear about your best charity shop finds! 

Until next time 
Love 
RB 

Cardiff Indoor Flea Market

I had goggled vintage shopping in Cardiff before setting off and had been really organised, I wrote a list of all the places I wanted to pop into but after the disappointment of Fridays not so vintage window shopping I was hesitant about bothering with the indoor flea market as I really didn’t want to waste any more time. The reviews and their own website looked good though so I decided to make the trip. The name flea market intrigued me because that could mean that sellers could have pretty much anything, unlike antiques fairs which are often pricey. 

http://www.cardiffindoorfleamarket.com/

I took the number 11 bus from the city centre and twenty minutes later the driver, who had never heard of the indoor flea market, told me that this was the industrial estate I was looking for.

The site was well signposted and the warehouse that holds the flea market was really easy to find. It opened at 9am and I got there around 10. I was one of only a handful of other shoppers it was so lovely to be able to walk around without too much hustle and bustle.

It was like Aladdin’s cave, some vintage, some retro, and some just plain second hand. Items hung from the ceiling, boxes to rummage though were scattered around on the floor. Some stalls were chaotic piles of treasure to wade through and others were so organised they looked like little lounges.  It’s everything I love about these kinds of flea markets.

The warehouse itself is split into three main areas, the first of which housed tonnes of vintage furniture and I spent some time talking to the seller. He was happy to talk about the items and tell me all about how many people put deposits down and then are never to be seen again (who does that?) and he showed me his recently sale of a vintage larder in which the clock and alarm as seen below, still work. He sold this for £180, which by many standards is cheap.

A stunning 1930’s walnut dressing table sat amongst the furniture he had for sale and he also showed me these wicker chairs (below) which were in amazing condition with no breakages. 

Other stalls were selling lights from all kind of era’s, vintage mirrors, home furnishings and jewellery, and no matter whether the stall was specialising in one particular thing or not most of them had additional items such as books or jewellery scattered around them.

The next room contained less furniture and more jewellery, a huge book stall and a stall which was selling all kinds of ornaments and glassware, there wasn’t huge amounts of vintage clothing, a lot of stalls had their own little rail with a few items, I saw a Jaeger wool coat for £15.00.  There was even a stall that specialised in vintage and retro actions figures, a big bang theory enthusiasts dream!

I met the lovely Iris Namurach and her daughter who run the larger jewellery stall at the market (Em Jay Jewellery) who were so sweet and had some amazing items for sale. In the picture below you can see the gorgeous Lucite snowflake brooch she had available for £35.  They have a Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/Em-Jay-Jewellery-904703482955023/ 

I also loved this beautiful green dressing table set and this gorgeous buckle that I was tempted to blow my whole flea market budget on. The record player below was a snip at £60, if only I hadn't been so far from home. 

There was only one seller that seemed to be dedicated to clothing. I didn’t catch the name of this blue haired seller but she was so friendly and helpful. She also had gloves in my size so I will be forever in her debt!

In this room there was also a barber for gents to get their vintage style taken care of and the “Nostalgia Café” where you could buy sweets by the weight (as I the only one that misses this?) and cakes etc. Thanks to how well organised it is and the fact that it has an eatery and toilets, you can enjoy hours here and stop for refreshments when you feel like it.

In the seating area of the café someone was playing guitar, I love places like this so much, all of the sellers knew one another and were chatting and laughing and carrying on with their regular customers. The sellers stopped to talk to me and ask where I was from and what brought me to the market. They all agreed on one thing, that it doesn’t get enough support for advertising that it’s there, and I have to agree that it could do with a boost as I am sure lots of tourists like me would love to go if they knew it was there.

The very last room was the auction room. Sadly the auction wasn’t until the next day but the room was open for people to come and view the items. I had to wander round the whole market twice because it’s so easy to miss things in a place that is so overwhelmingly interesting.

My Haul

I had limited my spend to £20 as I am not really in the market for buying but in the back of my mind were a couple of things that I am always on the lookout for including a head vase and a hat pin holder but these don’t come up as much as I would like.

Other things I am always on the lookout for include gloves since in my size they are not widely available.

The first thing I picked up was this cute brown bag, the clasp detail was what I really fell for and I had been after a brown bag to match some hotter shoes that I got on eBay for a couple of pounds. The bag was £7.20 and is made by Spearex for Boots.

The blue haired vintage clothing seller had, on my second trip around, started bringing out more stock including gloves in size 7.5, the seller offered to do 3 pairs for £10.00 so I really couldn’t say no! I wore the crochet pair the very next day at a wedding. 

All in all if you are in Cardiff or passing through the area I would highly recommend this market. I just hope it starts getting the attention it deserves.

You can take a little walk with me around the market here on my youtube channel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMR6IMsCVOQ 

With Love 

RB

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