Posted by I sell things online, but also buy a lot online–including clothes, toiletries, vintage stuff for myself and inventory for my Etsy store. And obviously I am always looking for what I think are fair prices. The same goes for when I buy vintage things in person at a flea market, yard sale or estate sale.
But sometimes I see prices that make me do a double take. My first thought is “do they know something I don’t?” which is highly possible. But my second thought is “they don’t know what they’re doing” which is also possible.
Let’s look at some examples.
Example 1 – Milk Glass Jars
For the first time ever I bought a piece of milk glass–a lovely lidded jar with stars. I’ve always avoided milk glass but thought this was both pretty and useful and perfect for both summer and winter decors. Back at home I start researching it and was unable to find any with this exact pattern.
So after poking around more I googled “vintage milk glass jars.” One listing came up that surprised the heck out of me–over $1000 for a milk glass jar?? And Etsy has it pegged as a “Rare find.”
So I did what anyone would do and did a Google Lens on the piece. Turns out this jar is made by Anchor Hocking and it’s not rare. There are dozens for sale from $18 to $90.
So why did this seller price her jar so high? It’s a HUGE difference and her’s has a chip! Additionally she never identifies the maker which everyone else does. It’s a mystery.
But we’ve all seen that type of thing before in the vintage and antique world–fantasy pricing and wildly inaccurate pricing. Oftentimes it comes down to a lack of knowledge or a lack of research. I think too some sellers overpay for an item and in an effort to make some profit price it too high. And sadly some sellers slap on over-the-top prices just to see if someone will pay it. (I saw this a lot in the Beanie Baby craze.)
It behooves online shoppers to research items
before clicking the Buy button.
Example 2 – Vintage Sterling Silver Charm Bracelets
Because I both collect and sell vintage sterling silver charm bracelets I am always looking at what’s available online. In the past Ebay has been a good buying source for me. But sometimes I do stumble upon bracelets with jaw-dropping prices.
Take this one–it would be a fun, heavy, jingly bracelet to wear, but I have a couple of issues with it. First, most of the charms (and coins) are not antique but circa 1940s to 1970s. Second most are not rare (the European enamel shields are very common). Third, there are 11 coins of nominal value. Fourth at this price (even without shipping and import fees) it puts each charm at $40 USD, which is wildly overvalued.
Okay, now this is a bit cheeky of me but I am going to highlight one of my bracelets that is similar size, weight and theme though with fewer charms. These are all fairly common European charms, but each is well made and a similar size making it an appealing bracelet with a fair price.
Example 3 – Vintage Stone Grape Clusters
Let’s say your looking for vintage stone grape clusters for your coffee table. There are hundreds available for sale online from a variety of sites–from high-end 1stDibs and Chairish, to Etsy and Ebay and everything in between and you’ll see prices all over the place.
Having sold a number of stone grapes myself I can tell you that the quality does not vary a lot. The grapes on 1stDibs are no different than those offered on Ebay. Most were made mid century, many in Italy, though there are newer pieces. It is more a preference choice–what color stone you want and what size and shape.
So here we have a collection of three on Chairish for $1,212 plus $108 delivery. And I don’t know about you but that’s a spit-out-my-coffee price. They are lovely with deep, rich colors…BUT, not worth this price or the delivery charge IMHO.
Here’s another pair offered on Chairish for $400, but I don’t find the colors or shape desirable.
But here’s an appealing pair on Etsy offered by Finds From All Decades for $90.76! Same quality, condition and general size, but priced fairly. If I were looking for grapes this is a pair I would consider.
Here’s an alabaster cluster I sold on Etsy for $98 a few years back that I thought was a bit special because of the real stem, symmetrical grapes and the clean look.
Vintage and antique items can vary in price for a host of real reasons which include condition, original vs. reproduction, age, rarity, material, and provenance.
Yes, there are many legitimate reasons for similar items to be priced differently and you need to keep that in mind.
Years ago I had a woman contact me about a vintage sterling silver charm I was selling. She wanted to know if I would match an Ebay price of $11.95 with free shipping! My first thought was if she could buy it on Ebay for that price why was she bothering me? Well, it turns out the Ebay charm she was referring to was newer and silver-plated. And that dear lady is why mine is priced higher.
All this to say if you’re in the market to buy a vintage or antique item, take time to research it before you spend your hard-earned dollars. There are many variables in pricing and not all sellers are created equal!
Hunting for Vintage 