Thursday, January 17, 2008

The definition of re-seller angst.

Imagine wandering through a pretty junky estate sale early on a Saturday morning. You are groggy but determined. You climb some dingy stairs to a small upper level, and head into an impossibly tiny bedroom that at first glance has nothing of interest.

Lucky for you, you are the nosy type and you happen to lift up a couple of folded blankets that are on the bed. This is what you discover:

Hmmm, wonder what is in these boxes? Lets open one and have a look:

Curtains! Amazing, beautiful, unbelievable vintage fiberglass curtains! You thank your lucky stars that you were the one who found them, scoop them up, and make a bee-line for the cash table.

Now, what do you do once you get them home?

If you are me, you make no effort to look them over, or see how many panels are there, or anything of the sort. You just stick them on the incoming inventory table and try to forget they are there. Because you know, once you pull those suckers out and really look at them, it is going to kill you that you have to sell them.

KILL you. Like, literally make you feel sick to your stomach, and worry that you may be having a heart attack because it hurts so much that you can't keep them. Because they are so perfectly awesome.

But, of course, the day comes. It always does. You get an email that says, 20 cent listing day on eBay! So you scour your inventory waiting to be listed for things that you want to start at a high dollar amount.

Like those curtains. Those damn wonderful curtains. Out they come, and it is just like you thought it was going to be. There are TEN panels, all with hooks. They are all in amazing condition. And the pattern?

It's perfect. Of course. So you ooh, you ahh, you whine, and your boyfriend who is just trying to get some work done, rolls his eyes.

But, in the end, you list them. Because what good is an awesome set of curtains if you can't pay the rent?

This is what I like to call re-seller angst. The horrible catch-22 of being in business selling stuff you love. The only real consolation is remembering that whoever buys them is going to be really, really happy, and these curtains are going to look really, really awesome in their retro styled home.

3 comments:

Pam Kueber said...

Mitzi, these are FANTASTIC!!!!! I will feature them on my blog tomorrow (Sat.) and try to help you find a LOVING buyer who will pay a lot of money. Fabulous beyond words!!!!!!

Mitzi - Vintage Goodness said...

lol Pam, I almost sent you a note to make sure you didn't miss them, I knew you would appreciate my angst! That would be great if you could spread the word a little, I really do want them to find a good home. Thanks, you are a doll!

Monica said...

UGGGG I know how you feel, I am looking for a full time job because it has gotten to the point of me selling things I dont want to!!