I was reading another blogger's post about a bag that looked great in the photos online but arrived smelling like smoke and mildew and had marks all over it. I don't care how good the flash made the item look. What did the seller think would happen when the package arrived and the buyer found out the truth?
I had a similar bad experience on Craigslist the other day. A seller listed a set of chairs and said, "Four Beautiful mid-century dining chairs. May be later reproductions, so we priced them low. In near mint condition." I decided to check them out, because if they were heavy and well-made enough for her not to be sure, they might be worth buying.
The minute I walked into the seller's house, she started a rehearsed spiel about how pretty the chairs were, what good condition they were in and what a good price she had listed them for. I put my hand on the back of one of the chairs, and it wobbled. I picked it up, and it was incredibly lightweight and flimsy. I looked under the chair, and the seller was still talking non-stop, pointing out that "someone evidently replaced the vintage bolts with newer ones," saying they looked like more 1970s bolts to her than ones from the 1950s. Huh?
The last straw was when she said, "You know, these could be genuine Danish Modern chairs, and if they are, they're worth a fortune"...as I was reading "Made in Malaysia" on the bottom of the seat.
Some sellers are misinformed. Others walk a fine line between telling the truth and exaggerating a bit to sell an item. This seller had crossed that line long ago. She knew exactly what she had and either considered me gullible or stupid or both.
Of course, I left without buying the chairs. Perhaps I should have confronted her, but I have a feeling someone who can rationalize telling that many untruths in less than five minutes doesn't have a very high setting on her Shame-On-Me meter.
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| Made in Malaysia, not Denmark |
This is such a great site! I like the way you set this up! Great content and images as well! Thanks for sharing this!...Daniel
ReplyDeleteew! they look like they're from the fingerhut catalog. :P at least with craigslist, you can see before buying anything ~ with ebay etc you're taking chances.
ReplyDeletei've looked at photos posted on auction house sites for upcoming auctions and you would not BELIEVE the difference between their photos and what the pieces look like when you get there. the difference is astounding (and not in a good way either).
@Daniel: Thanks! Glad you like the blog.
ReplyDeletei like your post. lovely greetings
ReplyDeletehttp://design-elements-blog.com/
@Maria: I visited you blog, and it is breathtakingly beautiful. I'm very happy you visited here, and I hope you come back.
ReplyDelete@stacey: We had offered the woman $60 for the chairs, sight unseen, and she was terribly offended. I think she should have taken the money and run, because they aren't worth $10. I'm thinking Fingerhut is being generous. :) And I know just what you mean about auction photos. They know how to cover a multitude of sins with a camera and then sell things "as is, where is."
ReplyDeleteUgh. I too have had probs with sketchy sellers. I love people who claim "not to have researched, could be worth a fortune". Some guy selling an abstract painting I liked pulled that line. And he claimed he had spent money professionally cleaning the piece. I asked for verification of the cleaning (because he incorporated it into the price) and he told me to bugger off. He said he didn't owe me any proof. Seriously! I did tell him show shady he sounded and the piece, months later, is still languishing in the classifieds. He reposts every week. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteI'm that blogger! :)
ReplyDelete(or should that be a sad face?)
What did you say to get out of there? I'm just too polite for my own good, I think. I'm always worried about offending people which is ridiculous as I'm the one who has been offended. I will be contacting the seller tonight.
My tale of woe can be read here - http://moon-doggie.blogspot.com/2011/03/bags-not-mine.html
@Tanya: I'm amazed at the elaborate lies people will tell to try to sell something. If the guy had been honest and had offered the piece at a fair price, it would probably have sold already.
ReplyDelete@MoonDoggie: Yes, you are indeed that sad faced blogger, and your plight inspired me to out the dishonest seller I dealt with. Somebody should buy these folks a moral compass, because theirs is obviously broken.
ReplyDeleteI used to have an "oh well" attitude about these dishonest sellers but now I refuse to accept anything that is even remotely not as described. Sadly, there are lots of scammers out there these days. And folks who have no moral conscience.
ReplyDeleteLove your blog, by the way!
@VintageDaisyDeb: I think we all ought to take a harder line where dishonest sellers are concerned. Welcome to the blog. I'm glad you like it, and I hope you're here commenting often.
ReplyDeleteDana -i hate when this crap happens. I went to a craigslist post that read "mid century hoarder with excellent pieces". I showed up to find mid century inspired IKEA furniture, and a fiberglass lampshade with cigarette burns.
ReplyDelete@RetroKeith: I've found Ikea furniture listed as mid-century too. Is it possible there are people out there who really don't know the difference???And how does anybody burn a lampshade with a cigarette? That had to be one hell of a party...:)
ReplyDelete