eBay gets a bad rap!!!!! Not me!

What about this auction?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200020634228

It looks like a decent deal to me, an amateur....

Oh, this is fun, how about this one?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=45403&item=130022057233

I occasionally see things that look like good deals to me, though I rarely bid since I really really don't need more jewelry! :rolleyes: But sometimes if the bidding stays low I'm forced to bite, and I have gotten what I believe are a few good deals. This one I was curious about but it was too expensive for me....

Yep, there are always people who believe in deals like that. The same ones who buy lottery tickets....

Anyway, I think maybe this was the OP's point. Sometimes in the process of rightly discrediting those evil lying sellers, the few honest ones (or ignorant ones) are left out. But I, for one, appreciate your even-handedness.

I have my own little area of expertise (not pearls!) and I often get great buys on Ebay. But even more often I see people getting royally ripped off, or good stuff that goes for more than it would fetch at a B&M. There's no telling why. You have to know your market.
 
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That auction is over--that was the winning bid. So right here there are two Ebay strands that you think were at least pretty good deals. Fair to say?
 
Oh, by the way, I go by shinju-ga-suki on ebay and the person who tested my so-called pendant is Elias11. You can see the opal pendant if you go to jewellry discussion board and check on prior discussions with Elias11. He posted my pendant. These are some of my own purchases from ebay:

Brooch1.jpg


Brooch5.jpg


Brooch9.jpg
 
There are certain eBay sellers I have touted since the day I got here- like Druzy Design?s- Care Ehret.

The only eBay questions were from people who had made mistakes, gotten ripped off. So many people posted with these issues, that it got its own forum! Go back and read a few.

So, I understand why the quality sellers here take the position, ?don?t take chances on eBay for pearls; buy from experts at no risk to you? .I think some of them even formerly sold on eBay, before, when it was better. They really do know how bad it gets over there. That is their position and they have good reason for it.

Nevertheless, this is a forum and others of varying opinions are also welcome to express them- and they mean something to the pupose of the forum if you have good arguments and pix.

I think many, many people like to buy on eBay and an educated pearl buyer is better than one who is not. And this forum is the place to get educated, share opinions, and get them.

I looked at that most recent link- the seller has gone to the trouble to get a GIA cert in pearls. That doesn?t mean a whole lot, but it probably means you can ask questions about her merchandise and get an answer that isn?t off in LaLa Land. Maybe..

I am thrilled at someone revealing respectable names on eBay. I hope we see more of this.

Lyra
Thanks for your pictures. I hope people will take guesses about them and then you can reveal what you paid and what they are, etc. I do not have an eye for that kind of jewelry, at all, but you obviously do, and know how much to bid on what. I hope you will continue to share your POV with us.
 
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I am one of those sellers who was on eBay, once upon a time. Several years ago it used to be a great spot to sell pearls. It was basically how I started selling pearls.
But about 4 years ago it started going downhill. eBay started allowing people to post auctions from other countries - enter the Chinese.

For those of you who have ever had the pleasure of visiting a pearl market in China, you know what it is like to walk from stall to stall with people yelling at you, pulling on your clothes, and basically doing everything in their power to convince you to buy from them. This is what they do on eBay. Everything is gem quality, worth $12k at a famous local jeweler, natural color, from Japan... the list goes on. An honest seller can no longer sell high quality freshwater or Akoya on eBay. Tahitians and South Sea - maybe They are too expensive for those operations to carry when they are used to price points around a dollar for freshwater and ten dollars for Akoya.

Just for a test, go to eBay and do a search for "akoya pearls" Look at every auction for the first 3 pages and see if you can find one that is actually truthful. Also, count how many obvious freshwaters are sold as Akoya. See if you can find even one high quality strand.

I think an important distinction has been missed earlier in this thread regarding all the scam artists on eBay and those 'good deals' that can be found. The good deals and honest depictions are from sellers that have a single piece to sell. Find me a seller of Akoya or freshwater that has pages and pages of auctions that is honest in their descriptions.
 
Caitlin Williams said:
If Op will post pictures to show us, it will go far to help educate other wannabe eBay bargain hunters pick out good pearls from pictures on eBay--- assuming the pearls the buyer receives are the ones pictured in the eBay ad.
Click to expand...

Okay! Here are my latest buys and you all can go for it! In the first pic, the earrings look 100% better in person, and I knew that the pic wasn't good and took that chance. My jeweler said they are real Tahitians and A quality (their pearl gradings go down to B- and maybe even lower). I was happy to get them for $76 and consider them nicer than some Tahitians that I bought retail (for a LOT more money). GREAT 2x10.0mm TAHITIAN PEARLS PEACOCK EARRINGS, 14KG, 280021309196

Here is the second purchase that I am still waiting for.
Pair Of 10mm Green Sea Mabe Pearl Studs Earring (220017145740)
I know that the feedback isn't as high as some of you recommended, but I decided to take the chance anyway. Big deal $2.40! :p I know the shipping is high, but I chose the cheaper shipping and if I like the earrings, it's still a deal to me. I know what mabe pearls are and I liked the color. It doesn't bother me to pay with Paypal, using a credit card, because I know that I can dispute the charge with no problem in case of fraud or misrepresentation. That's the key to my shopping @ eBay.
 
Opera
Nowhere does that ad say they are Tahitians.

They are
Tahitian Peacock Color Pearl
Click to expand...
(I cut and pasted their exact words). Down below where they describe the pearls, they do not specify it is Tahitian, anywhere. You may not have gotten the ones in the picture, but they are off round in a way that bead nucleated pearls can't acheive. Therefore they are dyed UNIO posing as Tahitian.

I have been saying they do a good dye job on CFWP, which are of course, my favorite and I like the color on those.
You got what you paid for.
 
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Hi Opera,

I think your jeweler needs a little pearl course. Item # 280021309196 clearly shows dyed freshwater button pearls. Since Macy's is selling these at US$ 275.00 from Honora brand, however, you still got a great deal at the price you paid compared to retail. Furthermore, as freshwater pearls they are solid nacre and I prefer button style over fully rounds anyday.

Your second item # 220017145740 shows shell pearls. These are a type of imitation.
 
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I defer to Zeide on the second one. What did you think you got? If you read the ad carefully, it does not specify the type of pearls anywhere. That should be a warning. And in your case- made the shipping too much.
Anyway, In both cases I think you paid what is probably fair market value. I don't think the department stores and Honora sell for fair market value, they sell for far above that- which fuels my dislike for brand name mystiquery.

All in all you did good, except for getting fooled by the ad. Watch for that Tahitian peacock color trick, I have seen it before. and I don't buy from people who do that on principal.
 
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The first auction, all I can say is OUCH! Clearly a pair of dyed button freshwaters. The wording of the auction was done in such a way to make you think you were buying Tahitian pearls, but the picture clearly shows dyed 3rd of 4th grade buttons - available in Zhuji for about $3 per pair (before adding the gold).

I don't know what to say about your jeweler except this: Was that the same jeweler that graded your piece from ES? Maybe you should get a second, educated opinion. He obviously has NO right to advise you on pearls.

As for the second auction - you just bought fake pearls. Not a big loss, considering you are only spending about $20 with shipping, but you notice that no where in the auction does it state that the pearls are fake.

Still think eBay is great place to shop for pearls? Do you now see why so many of us tell consumers not to? You know pearls and just got ripped off and lied to twice.
 
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Hi Zeide
I think we are agreed, that an eBay deal is often good enough to make it worthwhile to pay the shipping at the least.

And we are agreed that Opera was not ripped off even if she did misunderstand what the ads were saying. She paid less than retail Honora, and that is a good basis of comparison.

But I still have yet to find a true bargain in pearls over there and I refuse to buy from people who jerk the ad copy around. Or what the shipping charges really are. When I find something I would buy, I'll run it by here first.
 
I feel she was ripped off because she was intentionally deceived, and comparing her prices to high retail, she did not really get a deal. She could have easily gotten a much better price on both locally.
 
While we are on the subject of ebay and while I await my genuine baroque tahitians from Amanda, could you all have a look at this trader.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/ALLURE-COLLECTION

I was looking (for amusement andwhile I wait patiently - naturally) at what was on ebay from UK sellers in the way of multicoloured Tahitians. I found one necklace and to check it wasn't someone selling on an unwanted ebay item I checked their feedback. It transpires the necklace they were selling came originally from these guys in HK.

As you know I'm a newbie and to me they look real and reasonable. So come on tell just how far off base am I ?

Susan
 
You guys have me so upset that I can't even see straight!!!! I would add one of those funny faces to look mad, but I can't even joke about this!!! If everything you are saying is true, I will GLADLY eat my hat.

You're right - the first ad did not call the pearls "Tahitian Pearls", but rather Tahitian Peacock Pearls. I have emailed the seller on this and if, indeed, they are freshwater pearls, I will dispute the charge on my Mastercard as misrepresentation. I don't need any more freshwater pearls - I have lots and bought them for a lot less than $76!!

Re 2nd, the description clearly calls them mabe pearls. Same thing, if they are fake, I will dispute the charge as fraud. On both of these, if they are fake or misrepresented, I would think that I am entitled to having shipping paid for by seller or I will dispute same on my credit card.

Of course, I was not expecting a AAA pearl for $2.40 or a top quality Tahitian for $76, but like I said, I have bought gorgeous 14mm South Sea pearls in the Philippines for $100, so I assumed that I was getting a good deal without the retail markup.

Re the jeweler, gee, I'm seeing red again! I've been going there for years. Yes, this is the same place that loved the ES pearl!! The jeweler who said item #1 are Tahitians is from the same jewelry store, but is not the same jeweler. She just looked at them without a loupe and gave me her verbal for free. Should a good jeweler have been able to tell just by looking at them like this?

Next, I am going to look for a GIA certified jeweler/appraiser and have these (and other pieces) looked at. If the other jeweler gave me bad appraisals, I will go back there and complain and, once again, dispute the charges on my credit card. I will get to the bottom of this and this is now costing me a lot of time and money!! I do have to work for a living!!!!
 
I think you are on the right track. Regarding the previous comments on your pieces, they are not opinions, and anyone versed in pearls should be able to tell you immediately (even just from a picture) that the first set is freshwater button. If they were round it would be a little more difficult for some to point it out, but there is absolutely no excuse for a jeweler who deals in pearls not to be able to determine that the set is dyed freshwater. The visual differnce to us is about as clear as the difference between a pearl and an opal.
I am not sure why the seller of the second item is calling a pair of "shell pearls" mabe. Mabes (except for the round collector pieces like Zeide's pair) are made by cutting a blister pearl from a shell, removing the nucleus, filling, and capping. The have a flat back - they are not round.
Honestly, you really do not need to find a GIA appraiser to get a second opinion. Just go to another jeweler. Although I have very little faith in most jeweler appraisals of pearls, any jeweler that sells pearls should be able to tell the difference between a dyed button fw and a Tahitian.
 
that sad truth is that 99% of all jewelers are clueless when it comes down to pearls :(
 
Just rec'd email back from seller of item #1:

"They are tahitians. freshwater pearls are deep dark black and there will be NO peacock Lusters. Thanks a lot."

Still, I will go to see another jeweler that I know today who offered to take a look. I will bring the ES pearl to him too. He said over the phone that sometimes it can be pretty difficult to tell the difference between a Tahitian and FW.

Gee, I'm wondering if I have to have all of my pearls appraised again? I only bought about 8 from eBay, but now I'm wondering if this other jeweler overappraised the others? I talked to a GIA certified gemologist (who told me that GIA only appraised gemologists, not appraisers) and I told her about all of my pearls and the recent appraisals that I got for insurance purposes. I have commented on this board about the 14mm South Sea pearls that I bought in the Philippines (from a reputable place) for $100. My regular jeweler appraised them for $1,430 and this new GIA jeweler said that the difference is too much! She said that appraisals are only an opinion in an unregulated business. Oh, great - who can I trust?! More to follow......
 
operavopera said:
Just rec'd email back from seller of item #1:

"They are tahitians. freshwater pearls are deep dark black and there will be NO peacock Lusters. Thanks a lot."
Click to expand...

Not correct. Here is a picture that I took last week of a pair of black Freshwater button earrings.
 

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