One of the good things about not buying much new inventory in the winter is that all the the things that have been put on the back burner finally get to see the light of day! I've been having a great time listing my vintage ephemera on Etsy, despite my tush going numb from sitting and scanning for hours at a time!
Here are some of my favorites so far (of course I have a ton left to list, so stay tuned!):
Vintage Children's Book Art - I don't know about you, but I LOVE vintage children's books - especially the illustrations! And a lot of times even if the book is pretty much destroyed (kids destroy things? never!) the artwork can be saved... This book was chock full of amazing illustrations!
Vintage Animal Anatomy Book Pages - Dog - I found an amazing book on animal anatomy, the drawings in them are so exacting and the pages are nice and big! All kinds of animals were included, check this out:
Antique Garden Flowers Prints - Amaryllis - I found a book from 1926 all about flowers - the illustrations are just phenomenal! I think I got about twelve sets of two out of the book when it was all said and done, and each page is illustrated on both sides! I'll leave you with one more:
I've been meaning to do this post for a while now. Full disclosure - I was born in 1975, so the fact that stuff from the 80's is now considered vintage is still a little surreal to me. The return of 80's clothing isn't just surreal to me though, it's actually quite disturbing... Especially the prices some things go for! I can't help but occasionally amuse myself by looking at eBay auctions, and rolling my eyes.
The highest prices are achieved by sellers who specialize in clothing and have live models that they "style" - hair, makeup, accessories, the whole bit. If I tried to buy some ugly 80's dress off the thrift store rack, throw it up on Boobs McGee, my torso mannequin, and list it next to my dinnerware - well, if it even sold at all, I'm sure it wouldn't sell for much.
So let's take a peek at some of the things that are currently at auction right now, with ridiculously high bids that are bound to go even higher... Be sure to click the images to enlarge, so you can see them in all their crazy glory!
80's Skinny Black Leather High Waisted Pants - Here you see a typical model - super skinny, in heels and oversized glasses. These pants are currently at $90 with 15 bids and 4 days to go. They are being offered by eBay seller Thriftwares, who seems to be a major player in the space.
While nothing screams 1980's like a pair of leather pants, don't these look, well, painful?
80's Metallic Puff Sleeve Blouse - This model is sporting oversized sunglasses instead of regular glasses, and the "I'm so cool I'm bored, and I don't even remember how to smile" look that is apparently a requirement to be a model.
This shirt, which doesn't have a single redeeming quality that I can see, is at $83 with 17 bids and a day or so to go. It is being offered by eBay seller Laced With Romance, who has some of the creepiest photos I've ever seen in their auctions and on the front page of their store. Seriously.
80's Leather Zippered Mini Dress - Where do I start? With the pose I guess, which is apparently all the rage - hands on hips, shoulders rolled forward like you have scoliosis, knees turned in... to me it's got to be the single most unattractive way to stand ever created! Sorry, I just don't get it - a fashionista I am not, apparently!
The dress of course is scandalously short, but shaped like a sack. Seems a little contradictory. The sleeves are interesting though, they definitely give this it's 80's vibe. The high bid is currently $78 with 11 bids and 4 days to go. It is being offered by eBay seller Indie Cult Vintage, who appears to be raking it in, with almost 5,000 feedbacks.
80's Oscar De La Renta Polka Dot Summer Dress - Whoever styled this model forgot to give her her her oversized glasses, but they did remind her to turn her arm out so her tattoo would show, which is a big plus when you are trying to give "edge" to a dress like this one.
By the way - ruffle socks, worn with heels = 80's nightmare.
This lovely is currently at $56 with 11 bids and a day to go. It is being offered by eBay seller Lullie Vintage, who's tagline is "Because You're Not Cut From The Same Cloth". Clever, and if you would wear this outfit, definitely true!!
80's Long Sleeve Shorts Jumpsuit - I hate to feature the same seller, Lullie Vintage, twice, but how could I not highlight this getup? The hat, the glasses, the bizarre (and oh-so-80's) belt, the slouch boots (over thigh high socks?), and of course the jumpsuit itself... I think my eyes are going to roll right out of my head.
Currently at $51 with 3 bids and 7 days to go. I've got it on my watch list, I have to see this final price!
Ok, that's all I can handle for one day... I think I'll have to do a part two of this post closer to prom time - if I remember correctly, eBay was flooded with the ugliest 80's sequined/ruffled prom dresses ever made, and they were selling like hotcakes...
I just realized I never posted the link to my recent interview on RetroRenovation.com! I must be slipping. Anyway, Pam was nice enough to do a little feature on me and my business, and asked me about "what's hot" in the vintage collectibles world... Thanks Pam, you rock!! :)
I know the week is only halfway done, but I've listed some really great stuff so I couldn't wait to show it off! I'm hitting it hard again tonight, so I will probably be back with Part 2 in a couple of days... ;)
I hope all of you that sell vintage online stop in - it will be live, and the chat room will be open so we can take comments, questions, and calls! See you at 8pm EST on Talkshoe! :)
I am all done moving the 2nd batch of vintage costume jewelry to my Etsy store. Of course, there is more to come. A lot more. But, for now, these will have to do ya:
As most of you already know, I've been working on streamlining my business - yes, I'm actually sticking to a New Year's Resolution I made! Shocking, huh?
Anyway, the newsletter situation was one of the things that really needed addressed, so this week I took a careful look at it. I actually have 2 email lists, one for the website, and one for my eBay store. Both were being woefully neglected, but the website list much more so than the eBay one.
Well, once I took a look I realized that the eBay one I can set up to go automatically - so those folks who want to know the new things I have up at auction every week can get it, without me having to do anything... Not the case with the website list, that one I have to actually create every time I send it out.
So, here's my new plan: The eBay newsletter will go out automatically. The website newsletter will go out every two weeks, at the very least, if not more.
I have signed up with a brand spankin new email list provider:
So the newsletter will have a fun new look, and I will get some cool tracking and list management tools!
I bet you are wondering what will be in the newsletter, right? Check it:
~ All the news about Vintage Goodness that you can handle in one email
~ Links to all new blog posts since the last time you heard from me
And most importantly:
~ Super Secret Content - That's right, I'll put stuff in the newsletter that I don't put anywhere else. Articles, links, photos, contests... who knows what it might be! You don't want to miss out on that, do you? ;)
I have to share this amazing set of vintage Homer Laughlin Best China restaurant ware dishes that I have up at auction this week - talk about hard to part with! They are decorated with an atomic gray diamond pattern - too perfect!
My favorite are the coffee mugs - did I mention how hard these are to part with?
Yep, the AuctionWally show is having a special Thursday edition this week - Walt will be interviewing Usher Lieberman from eBay! How exciting is that?
I've been lax on promoting our new shows on Talkshoe (Tuesday nights, 8pm!) but I am going to try to do better, I promise! I had to make sure you all heard about this one though - it should be great!
Love eBay? Hate eBay? Have questions about where this online giant plans to take its business model in the future?
If so, then you'll want to tune in to a special edition of the AuctionWally Show this evening at 5:30 PM EST to listen to a live interview I'll be conducting with eBay's Usher Lieberman, the Senior Manager of Corporate Communications for eBay.
As an eBay seller for 10 years, mostly of antiques and collectibles via the auction format, I've been impacted by eBay's many recent changes as much as anyone.
I've been up and down in Powerseller status and have gone from fanboy to critic and back several times. (Just see some of the back articles of this column.)
After an article I'd written in December, I was contacted by eBay and asked if I would be interested in doing an interview with Usher Lieberman. I of course stated that I was, but only if the questions were not fed to me by eBay. I indicated that I would be fair, but would have some tough questions.
I was told that was fine and in fact, they were contacting me because they wanted input from someone who had a lot of experience on the site, but was not just a cheerleader.
If you miss the live show, of course you can always listen to it, and any back episodes in the archive.
If you've got some advice or issues about eBay, now is your chance to do something more than howl. Come to the show where there will be a chat room set up. My co-host Mitzi Swisher will be monitoring the room for questions.
I already have a list of my own questions, but we'll take some of yours as well.
Yes, I know it's hard to believe, but I have finally started tackling the huge pile of vintage jewelry that's been sitting on my shelf for a whole lot longer than I care to admit! It's been a blast sorting it, I'd forgotten about so many cool pieces...
I've been listing them at auction on eBay (with a bit of success!), and whatever doesn't sell will be moved to my Etsy store. Here are just a couple of the Etsy listings I just finished up:
I have been working on sorting books over the last week or so - 99% of them were kids books, but a few other random ones were mixed in (no surprise there). One of them is a little booklet called Decorating Your Child's Room from The DoubleDay Home Decorating Program, circa 1971. It's a winner, so I have to share!
The scans are a little small, since it is more of a booklet rather than a full sized book, but I hope you can get the general idea...
First up we have a little boy's room. I kind of dig the beds and dresser, and even the numbers, but the whales have me totally confused. As far as the colors go, the book says, and I quote: "Make sure to select a color scheme (like avocado green and blue) that is easy for lots of people to live with for a long time to come."
Really. Really?
Here is a lovely yellow and green girl's room - another stunning use of avocado green! The trundle bed is kinda cool, in fact the author of this book seems to LOVE trundle beds. Wicker furniture is also prominent, for some reason...
I find the flooring especially interesting - "Note that the gay design is carried out in the easy-care, easy-to-apply hard surface flooring." It looks cool, but man, if little Suzie falls out of bed, she is going to get one good conk on the noggin!
Now here is a color combo that I actually really love, bright red and baby blue. I also really love that wallpaper! But, I think the carpet is a bit much, and the soldier is a tad on the creepy side. The bed unit is pretty awesome, and for some reason the pillow with the red square in the middle leaning against the polka dot wallpaper makes me happy...
A girl's room, of course. You can tell by the pink telephone, if the stuffed leopard (?!?) wasn't enough of a clue. Again we have wicker furniture, and crazy wallpaper. And a super fuzzy rug - at least Suzie won't hurt her head falling out of this bed!
I think it is interesting that the books on the shelf that don't match the color scheme are wrapped in paper so that they will... I like the idea in theory, but the idea of wrapping all of my books is pretty overwhelming!
I think the rule for designing boy's rooms in 1971 was use primary colors, and large letters and numbers. And they weren't allowed to have pillows, apparently. I love the lamps in this room though!
Hopefully, this is designed for a teenage girl - I can't see little Suzie enjoying a fake zebra skin tacked on her wall. Well, I guess I can't really see *anyone* enjoying a fake zebra skin tacked to their wall. And what is that head on the shelf under the window? Creepy. I do like the bedspread, and how the shade over the window matches.
Here is another room that has more of a teenage feel to it. I love the desk and chairs under the window, and the bedspread is kind of cool. Taking it all the way to the ceiling behind the bed is a bit much. Again we have a wicker chair - was wicker really all the rage in the early 70's?
Last but not least, we have this pink monstrosity. The only thing I kind of like about it are the shelves on either side of the vanity. The rest just hurts. And why hang modern art on the walls only to surround it with such an over the top floral pattern? I just don't get it.
I wish there was more, but most of the photos in the book are too small to scan in well, or are in black and white. Still, a fun little look into 1971!
As you can probably tell from my blog tagline, the phrase Vintage Geek is one of my favorites - it just describes me too well! I have wished for a while that I could get a coffee mug that says it, so today I did something about it!
I set up a store on Cafe Press and whipped one up - nothing fancy, simple black on white... but I dig it. In fact, I went ahead and made a t-shirt and bumper sticker too, for good measure!
Print from Trees At Night by Art Young - Fireworks - I listed a bunch of these, they are from 1927! Here's another cool one:
Print from Trees At Night by Art Young - Orchard Revel
Vintage Children's Book Art - I don't know about you, but I LOVE vintage children's books - especially the illustrations! And a lot of times even if the book is pretty much destroyed (kids destroy things? never!) the artwork can be saved... This book was chock full of amazing illustrations!
Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tale Prints - All I can say about these prints are *swoon* - I'm going to finish listing the rest today, so check back in later if you want to see them all!
Vintage Animal Anatomy Book Pages - Dog - I found an amazing book on animal anatomy, the drawings in them are so exacting and the pages are nice and big! All kinds of animals were included, check this out:
Vintage Animal Anatomy Book Pages - Flying Squirrel - Creepy!! Here's all the rest if you want to check them out...
Antique Garden Flowers Prints - Amaryllis - I found a book from 1926 all about flowers - the illustrations are just phenomenal! I think I got about twelve sets of two out of the book when it was all said and done, and each page is illustrated on both sides! I'll leave you with one more:
Antique Garden Flower Prints - Petunia
