snufflepig
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2013
- Messages
- 47
I really have been in the market for some pearls I could wear, and I mean, wear without having to worry about them. I mentioned in a previous thread that I find a full strand to be a little too formal for daily wear, I don't go out much and I'm a stay at home mom (of a seven year old boy, so wearing expensive pearls could lead to bad places very fast). When I started looking on eBay I was actually looking for, well, costume jewelry that wasn't full of gaudy rhinestones? The thing that interests me about pearl jewelry is that even "fake" pearls can be really beautiful. I've always thought of fake jewelry as kind of trashy, my mom is from "that era," so I'm only now learning to appreciate "good fakes" and find them acceptable to wear. But even the decent fakes are hard to understand on eBay! Here are a few things I've learned in the process -- I've learned a lot from these forums already, so I thought I'd share my experience here too.
From the start, I knew that it would be nearly impossible to tell a real pearl from a fake one on eBay. They don't have to send you the exact item that's listed, and it could have come from anywhere. I also knew I wouldn't be looking for expensive jewelry or anything that would have an appraisal with it. I'm not opposed to pre-owned, either, not that a pre-owned pearl is necessarily harder to trace than a "new" one these days, what with the many sources of fakes. And even the TERM "fake" is so, so differently used from person to person... some people call cultured pearls fake, while others will only call it so if it's made of glass or plastic. Some define "natural" as having come out of a shell without any human help, others will label almost anything as natural as long as it isn't color treated (or doesn't look color treated). It depends on the seller, on the consumer, and to an extent, how knowledgeable both are about what they're looking at. And let's face it, the real value of our items is what we give them -- and how much we want to wear them.
My first rule when I began browsing was that I wouldn't bid on anything that I wasn't willing to accept as a fake. I checked the return policies, made sure there was feedback on each seller from many different sources, and checked the creation dates of the accounts. I also looked at other items in the store. Checking to see how many other people are bidding on their various items is also helpful, you can tell which eBay accounts are new, so if there are a lot of higher-rated eBay buyers bidding happily on jewelry from a seller with 100% positive feedback, good detailed descriptions, and a satisfaction guaranteed or your money back policy, I'd be pretty comfortable bidding--at least I'd know that the seller really thought that what they had was worth what they were asking, and so did other people who were bidding. (Note: if you're really diligent, you can actually check the other bidders' profiles to see what departments they've been bidding in. I'd be more likely to "trust" a bidder who frequents fine jewelry sites than miscellaneous "found item" stores).
Many listings themselves are a little hard to understand. Some listings don't acknowledge that their pearls are crystal unless you read the description, and some of them don't say what they're made of, but might be listed under either fine jewelry or costume jewelry. I've noticed a lot of people list items in the jewelry section with very, very short auction times, I'd be wary of that--they may be pushing people to bid before asking questions, fearing the auction will end before they get an answer. Don't be afraid to ask! Furthermore, it's sometimes wise to ask a question that isn't necessarily on point -- you could inquire about the piece in relation to one you already own, for example, and make it clear you have some knowledge about pearls. I've noticed that the questionable auctions I've asked such questions about don't tend to get responses, ever. This includes inquiries about the seller's definition of the terms "vintage" and "antique," as well as where the seller obtained the piece. A seller who outright ignores questions from prospective customers isn't someone who needs my business--at least send me an "oops, so sorry I missed your message before the auction ended!" That's especially true if they have another similar item, and it's always possible that nobody bid on the item -- in which case, "are you still interested?" might be a good response, especially if it's another chance to sell the piece at the full value that nobody else was willing to pay. Just a thought.
Beware of "real" brand name pearls. Some auctions, intentionally or not, will list an item as "real," when what they really mean is that it's a genuine vintage brand-name item... google the brand, you find out that they only made glass pearls. However, sometimes you find out that certain items of that brand can have a much higher resale value than what you buy it for on eBay... and if it's something you actually want to wear, you're definitely not wasting what you put into the auction. If you love it, you'll love it whether the pearls are glass or nacre (or a combination of other materials, for that matter). And most of the people around you will never know the difference. The history of pearls is very closely linked to the history of fake pearls, and I honestly find both stories to be equally interesting. Learning about fake pearls can be just as useful as learning about the real ones.
I agree with many of the previous posts that say "if it looks too good to be true, it probably is." On the other hand, it's also possible to bid on a 99c auction from someone clearing an estate sale and come out with real pearls. You're less likely to be disappointed if you only expect what you can glean from the photos, description, and other information available on the ebay listing/whatever must be looked up on Google, and if you make sure the seller is honest about accepting returns (you can usually find one or two if you read through their feedback carefully--and if they don't accept returns, you can find out about that, too). Another note here, I've noticed that there are a lot of "positive" feedback listed that actually have negative comments. Snooping on eBay is your friend. And I mean that in the least creepy way possible.
It's sad that eBay has become such a harbor for fraud and deceit, but if you live by "hope for the best, expect the worst," and are really ready to accept either outcome, it's a great place to find unique pieces.
Sorry if any of these hints are repeats from other posts. Feel free to move this to another thread if there's a better place for it, and I'm looking forward to reading more about others' experiences & great finds!
From the start, I knew that it would be nearly impossible to tell a real pearl from a fake one on eBay. They don't have to send you the exact item that's listed, and it could have come from anywhere. I also knew I wouldn't be looking for expensive jewelry or anything that would have an appraisal with it. I'm not opposed to pre-owned, either, not that a pre-owned pearl is necessarily harder to trace than a "new" one these days, what with the many sources of fakes. And even the TERM "fake" is so, so differently used from person to person... some people call cultured pearls fake, while others will only call it so if it's made of glass or plastic. Some define "natural" as having come out of a shell without any human help, others will label almost anything as natural as long as it isn't color treated (or doesn't look color treated). It depends on the seller, on the consumer, and to an extent, how knowledgeable both are about what they're looking at. And let's face it, the real value of our items is what we give them -- and how much we want to wear them.
My first rule when I began browsing was that I wouldn't bid on anything that I wasn't willing to accept as a fake. I checked the return policies, made sure there was feedback on each seller from many different sources, and checked the creation dates of the accounts. I also looked at other items in the store. Checking to see how many other people are bidding on their various items is also helpful, you can tell which eBay accounts are new, so if there are a lot of higher-rated eBay buyers bidding happily on jewelry from a seller with 100% positive feedback, good detailed descriptions, and a satisfaction guaranteed or your money back policy, I'd be pretty comfortable bidding--at least I'd know that the seller really thought that what they had was worth what they were asking, and so did other people who were bidding. (Note: if you're really diligent, you can actually check the other bidders' profiles to see what departments they've been bidding in. I'd be more likely to "trust" a bidder who frequents fine jewelry sites than miscellaneous "found item" stores).
Many listings themselves are a little hard to understand. Some listings don't acknowledge that their pearls are crystal unless you read the description, and some of them don't say what they're made of, but might be listed under either fine jewelry or costume jewelry. I've noticed a lot of people list items in the jewelry section with very, very short auction times, I'd be wary of that--they may be pushing people to bid before asking questions, fearing the auction will end before they get an answer. Don't be afraid to ask! Furthermore, it's sometimes wise to ask a question that isn't necessarily on point -- you could inquire about the piece in relation to one you already own, for example, and make it clear you have some knowledge about pearls. I've noticed that the questionable auctions I've asked such questions about don't tend to get responses, ever. This includes inquiries about the seller's definition of the terms "vintage" and "antique," as well as where the seller obtained the piece. A seller who outright ignores questions from prospective customers isn't someone who needs my business--at least send me an "oops, so sorry I missed your message before the auction ended!" That's especially true if they have another similar item, and it's always possible that nobody bid on the item -- in which case, "are you still interested?" might be a good response, especially if it's another chance to sell the piece at the full value that nobody else was willing to pay. Just a thought.
Beware of "real" brand name pearls. Some auctions, intentionally or not, will list an item as "real," when what they really mean is that it's a genuine vintage brand-name item... google the brand, you find out that they only made glass pearls. However, sometimes you find out that certain items of that brand can have a much higher resale value than what you buy it for on eBay... and if it's something you actually want to wear, you're definitely not wasting what you put into the auction. If you love it, you'll love it whether the pearls are glass or nacre (or a combination of other materials, for that matter). And most of the people around you will never know the difference. The history of pearls is very closely linked to the history of fake pearls, and I honestly find both stories to be equally interesting. Learning about fake pearls can be just as useful as learning about the real ones.
I agree with many of the previous posts that say "if it looks too good to be true, it probably is." On the other hand, it's also possible to bid on a 99c auction from someone clearing an estate sale and come out with real pearls. You're less likely to be disappointed if you only expect what you can glean from the photos, description, and other information available on the ebay listing/whatever must be looked up on Google, and if you make sure the seller is honest about accepting returns (you can usually find one or two if you read through their feedback carefully--and if they don't accept returns, you can find out about that, too). Another note here, I've noticed that there are a lot of "positive" feedback listed that actually have negative comments. Snooping on eBay is your friend. And I mean that in the least creepy way possible.
It's sad that eBay has become such a harbor for fraud and deceit, but if you live by "hope for the best, expect the worst," and are really ready to accept either outcome, it's a great place to find unique pieces.
Sorry if any of these hints are repeats from other posts.
Feel free to move this to another thread if there's a better place for it, and I'm looking forward to reading more about others' experiences & great finds!
