Vintage Patterns - Knitting - Crocheting - Sewing - What to Buy OR Sell

[jazznut2]

Okay - I see eBay/Liveworld has been cutting the valuable threads here - ones that have helped us as buyers and sellers. That information is long gone but hopefully we can re-create some of those threads for the benefit of everyone interested.

I'm not an expert in this subject but I have specialized in selling vintage needlework patterns and items since I began on eBay 4 years ago. So here are just a few tips that may be helpful to some.

SEWING
Collectible and saleable sewing patterns need not be very old to be sought after by the collector and profitable to the seller. But the condition is important and if you feel you don't have the time to check over each pattern envelope, don't expect to reap the rewards of high bids as some have.

When looking - check garage sales, thrift stores and flea markets - I usually prefer to pay 10 to 25 cents per pattern or maybe a dollar or two for a box of them, which usually yields one or more good finds, but leaf through them first....nothing but current patterns that have been used are generally a waste of time and money.

Envelopes needn't be in great condition BUT if mousey chewed or piddled on, avoid...ripped and/or taped is fine as long as all the pieces are inside, but if it's old (1940's or earlier) it's worth the risk and I'll buy it. I've sold many patterns which were missing a piece or two because the experienced seamstress can usually duplicate the pieces if the pattern is one she wants.

Factory folded is great - meaning the pattern is still folded neatly inside the envelope, flat and untrimmed and all there. If the pieces have been trimmed you can tell if they are all there by looking at the paper instruction sheet inside and matching the pattern pieces to the letters or numbers (12 pieces 1-12 or A-L etc.)

Some of the best sellers are for doll clothes especially from the 1960's and earlier. Doll collectors want clothes from the era their dolls were made and collect these patterns even if a few pieces are missing as most patterns offer several outfits per envelope.

Look for a date either on the instruction sheet at the bottom, front or back...or on the envelope, usually at the top of the back or along the side. The price can be an indication too as most of these will be 25 cents to 50 cents originally whereas today's patterns are several dollars each.

Barbie doll fashions are very saleable as are women's fashions from the 40's (halter tops, swing coats, purses and hats etc.), some children's fashions are but mainly those for babies. I've rarely found men's fashions to be worth the effort to sell. Costume patterns are iffy as profit makers unless sold in lots of several to make the shipping worthwhile to the buyer.

Transfer patterns (those with tissue sheets inside with patterns you iron onto fabric or linens and then embroider) are very collectible especially if they are ones for days of the week (7 patterns one for each day and usually of an animal or child doing a daily chore), Mexican scenes, Dutch scenes, animorphic (sp? -fruits/vegetables with faces)etc.....never found much enthusiastic interest in the alphabets/monograms ones so I usually avoid them unless very old.

Handle any tissue pattern very carefully as they may be fragile if stored in hot or damp areas in the past.

When listing give a good close scan of the envelope and if possible the inside pieces (stacked together, not individually) - mention the date and any information from the back of the envelope about contents (name of the doll the pattern is for, date if available, if counted to make sure all pieces are there etc.) - do a search for similar patterns on eBay and see if others are having any success listing the same or similar ones and whether they are getting counter hits and/or bids.

Be realistic in your starting price - I've seen so many sellers starting a single pattern at $4.95US and higher "because it's old" - lots of things are "old" but that doesn't make them worth anything if the buyers are looking for a more reasonable starting bid, especially if condition isn't factory folded and extremely good. And if you can sell 2 or more patterns in one lot it will be more attractive to bidders than just one.

Okay these are just a few things to look for in the sewing area. Next time I'll try and cover the Knitting/Crocheting area of pattern collecting. Any questions or personal observations of your own?? Add them here.


Lyd

[mybearsnme]

glad to see this thread is still alive... was wondering about old knitting patterns - are they still selling well??

[nanamarnie]

Thank you to everyone for all your help on this one.



AFter letting the buyer off the hook, she did leave me great feedback. She was very thoughtful and I just chocked it up to a bad day for her. Not a big deal for me either as I sold it to the runner up anyway and still made a profit. That's what it's all about anyway, isn't it. Making a small profit and making someone else happy at the same time... So that's what I did and she was thrilled that I didn't push it. And I feel good about that as well. Thanks!

[nammaladybug]

Oh Nana Marnie, I'm so glad it all worked out.

Nice feedback too!

Keep up the good work!

Lorna 🙂

[nanamarnie]

Thanks, and it was nice feedback. that alone made it worthwhile.

Marnie

[vintagemodo]

Time for a Happy Thanksgiving bump

[vintagemodo]

that previous Happy Thanksgiving banner was kinda puny....let's see if this one is any better.

[nammaladybug]

Yup, that's a really nice THANKSGIVING!

Finally got some wares listed... bids on 3 items my first week! I'm :-)HAPPY:-).

Anyone care to check them out?:|... I know I made some errors, but would appreciate advice on the overall look of them. Not all vintage,but I'm pleased to have finally bitten the bullet. No more excuses for me!

:-x!

[pukmis]

...do do do lookin' out my backdoor

Attack life, it's going to kill you anyway.
~ Steven Coallier

[jazznut2]

Hi Annie....hope the weather treated you better today than it did us...torrential downpour, high winds, ice pellets ..... and that's just the good news... 🐵

Stay safe and warm

Lyd

[vintagemodo]

Happy New Year Lyd.

and to all who check out this thread. Lyd does a great job keeping us all up to date on pattern trends, and whats HOT, and whats NOT.

Thanks Lyd........and a great big

BUMP :-D

[msmaggie060]

Happy New Year everyone! Let's keep this thread going - thanks for starting it Lyd! Any predictions for 2007?

[southshoreartist]

I have been trying to read this entire thread,but man, there is a lot to digest!!!! I have a box or two of old old needlwork magazines (crochet and knit) that were my mothers. I don't knit or crochet and would like to sell these, but gosh.......how is a person supposed to know the value of these things. 50's, 60's and 70's and I suppose if I look hard maybe the 40's. I don't know.

[pukmis]

Hi Southshoreartist...
Jazznut is the expert here...but I can tell you what I do when
I want to know values...
do a search on the presently running auctions same or similar to
what you have...then do a past auction search to see what sold
and for what price.
It will give you a small idea of what it is going for and how
saturated the market is with it...
Good luck , hopefully Jazznut will be by to help you out more!!!

http://www.littlekenadie.com/main.html

[nanamarnie]

Hello everyone. Glad to see this is still alive & well

I could use some advice here, please.

I have a buyer that ordered 16 patterns, costing $156.00. It's been 15 days now & still no payment or correspondence.

I have sent an original invoice plut 2 reminders. Also a couple of emails. One to answer a questions regarding an additional pattern, one to offer a sh/h reduction because of the quantity of patterns ordered & the last one advising that I will report it as a non-paying bidder with a deadline of Mon.

Does anyone have any suggestions on dealing with buyers that do this? She has purchased numerous items from other sellers & has paid almost immediately. What's up with my order? I don't get it?

I sure could use some help on this one. Thanks

[southshoreartist]

Thanks for the advise pukmis. I'll start researching. Hopefully I will find something similar. 🙂

[msmaggie060]

nanamarnie: I would get her phone number through eBay and give her a call before I do anything else.

[nanamarnie]

Thank you so much for the suggestion. I was all set to get her phone number, & I thought that I'd send her one more email. I told her that this was her last email & that if she didn't pay within a 3 day period I would file a non bidders report.

Amazingly enough, within less than a 48 hrs, she paid in full & ordered and paid for an additional pattern book. I was very shocked & very, very pleased.

Thanks for the advise. I didn't know I could even get her phone number from ebay, but now I know, I won't let things go so long if it ever happens again.

Thank you,

Marnie

[pukmis]

Hi Marnie and Msmaggie and Southshoreartist...
Marnie glad to read your buyer finally came through!!! I have been finding
lately folks are buying but waiting for payday or something
to hit the pay now button...

Now Jazznut where are you hiding???

http://www.littlekenadie.com/main.html

[jazznut2]

I'm still here Annie - well sort of - not all there mind you - but here.

Been a wee bit busy designing crochet patterns for dollhouses and having them published in a UK magazine 🐵 - they ordered 6 patterns and the first 2 will be featured in Dolls House and Miniature Scene in issue #154 - plus I'm not very big on eBay right now what with all the fee and postal increases and the double talk but hey - that's me...don't let it affect your enthusiasm.

What a great sale Marnie...something for all of us to remember is that the freakish weather has been affecting communications in many places, and the internet connections too. We always have the request contact information option and since eBay sends your contact info to your buyer as well through eBay messages if there is a problem between internet servers, the ebay messages usually get through and sometimes that's the first contact they have received. Some buyers have their security settings so high for fear of getting spammed and viruses that they don't realise the good emails are blocked as well.

"southshoreartist" - if you want to post a few pictures of a bunch of the pattern books we could give you an educated guess at what you might start them at, whether to list one on its own or if 2-3 in a lot might be better, how to word an auction title to bring in the various collectors (some collect 40's, others a certain name like Monarch or Sirdar etc, others a style - socks, baby layettes, hats and handbags etc...) some pattern books are more sought after than others - crocheted hats and handbags being one and the better the condition the more chance for a higher ending bid but even ones with some spine wear or a few marks in the page margins from a former owner may not be a problem however condition (missing covers, writing inside, stains like coffee cup rings, missing pages should be noted in your description).

Retro, boho (means Bohemian style) hippie, mod etc. are keywords that if they apply to your pattern books, will bring in buyers to check them out and hopefully bid. Bikinis, swimwear, shawls and ponchos are retro looks still in at this time.

Got a wicked cold....back later - maybe.

HUGS (for everyone 'cept you Annie 🐵 )

[jazznut2]

http://reviews.ebay.ca/Vintage-Sewing-Patterns-Buying-and-Selling-Tips_W0QQugidZ10000000001554871

By the way - some of this information is in my review on ebay and if anyway would like to, a vote that it's helpful would be appreciated....

:o)