Vintage sellers on Etsy start social media campaign -- as always, shoppers beware!

Vintage listings are a small portion of the millions of active listings on Etsy:  just 17.5 percent.  This includes all the listings where the seller backdated an item for promotional visibility ("vintage handmade") and supplies listed as "vintage supply" whether or not the item is 20 years old.  Also included are millions of brand new items deceptively listed as "vintage" because that is the safest way to resell new products on Etsy.  I would guess that about 40 percent of all items listed as vintage, aren't.  And maybe half of all Etsy shops selling items listed as "vintage" are intentionally deceptive sellers.

More than 3 million items on Etsy are listed in two or three categories. as

• handmade supply
• vintage supply
• vintage handmade
• vintage handmade supply

If 1 million of the multi-category listings involve "vintage" -- even though they are actually not 20+ years old -- subtracting those 1 million items from the current Vintage listings count reduces the percentage of Vintage listings on Etsy to just 15 percent of all items listed.  If 40 percent of those are actually newer than 20 years old, authentic Vintage items listed on Etsy could be less than 10 percent of all items listed!  

This is just my guesstimate.  I have no way to know for certain how many listings on Etsy sell authentic Vintage items.  For comparison, when Etsy had an actual Vintage Category -- and before the listing process allowed deceptive sellers to claim their craft projects were "vintage handmade" -- Vintage listings on the site made up between 24 and 27 percent of the total active listings on the site, depending on the day.  At that point in time, Marketplace Integrity still removed listings for items less than 20 years old if they were reported with documenting links -- something that rarely happens now.  

Read the Forums thread Etsy Sells Vintage - Social Media Campaign  Will post links to non-vintage sellers being promoted by mendacious Etsygirls as they appear on various sites.  

March 2017: Etsy search results show the most relevant Vintage items are brand new

March 01 Super Relevant Fauxtiques

Just listed today, this set of brand new makeup brushes is one of the most relevant items in Etsy search results for all Vintage items.  As I type, 5 units have already been sold from this listing, with 47 "vintage" units in stock.  The (re)seller is CometDepot could definitely teach a thing or two to the silly Etsygirls asking in the Forums for help in making sales with a new Etsy shop!

Described by the seller as a "premium" and "high quality" brush set, the listed price is $12.99.  I guess I don't know where to shop because the brushes I use sell for more than $12.99 each!  Here's the manufacturer's listing on Alibaba  Not vintage!

March 20

As all my readers should know by now, Etsy considers PDFs to be "vintage" as long as the content of the file is at least 20 years old.  Likewise, a photocopy of any vintage paper item you can make at your local big box office supply store is "vintage" on Etsy.  Taking full advantage of the twisted guidelines of the Etsyverse, this PDF of a knitting pattern dated to the 1920s sold by patternsalacarte is one of the most relevant items today in an Etsy search for all Vintage items. 

The only photo included in the listing is shown above -- note that there is no information in the image that dates the pattern to the 1920s.  Even more hilarious, the seller has "completely" rewritten the instructions and added a list of resources for purchasing the purse frame -- so what is for sale is a contemporary knitted purse pattern based on a (maybe?) design from the 1920s.  Listed as a "vintage handmade supply from the 1920s" which is, of course, an impossibility. 

Overview

• Vintage handmade supply from the 1920s
• Instant Digital Download: 1 PDF included
• Feedback: 1263 reviews
• Favorited by: 338 people

Not vintage.

Etsy gives top relevance to brand new items pretending to be Vintage -- February 2017, part 2

Yup, still happening on Etsy!  Some of today's most relevant items in a search for all Vintage are brand new.

Like this pendant light handmade by LightLadyStudio

Listed like this...

Overview

• Vintage handmade item from the 1960s
• Ships worldwide from United States
• Feedback: 140 reviews
• Favorited by: 180 people

...but described like this...

Cool antique industrial pendant light designed and constructed exclusively in the LightLady Studio. 

Fixture is handmade and should be ready to ship within one week of purchase.  

 ...so not "vintage from the 1960s".  It's made to order, actually, not made 40+ years ago.  "Vintage handmade" is Etsyverse code talk for "I am going to make this item show up in searches no matter what a shopper is looking for".  Mendacious and unprofessional.

Only in the Etsyverse can sellers purchase their "vintage" products factory fresh from China!  Like these panda squishies mendaciously listed as "vintage" by squishy reseller ScentedSlimeByAmy -- it seems her handmade slimes act as shelter items for the hundreds of brand new "vintage" squishies being resold. 

Buy them new on Ali Express and save.

Another mendacious seller has a super-relevant brand new item pretending to be "vintage".  Meet LaterOperator whose shop is stuffed with brand new Asian import junque jewelry.  This pair of punk style screw earrings is at the top of Etsy Vintage search results today.  The title says they are "90s Style" which does not mean "made in the 1990s". 

Buy these on Amazon and save $9 over the price listed in LaterOperator.  But, wait!  The Etsy pair is also pretending to be "handmade":

Overview

• Vintage handmade item
• Ships worldwide from United States
• Feedback: 945 reviews
• Favorited by: 850 people

Bet you didn't realize that you are "hand-making" your pierced earrings when you put them on?

February 22

One of the most relevant items today in an Etsy search for all Vintage items is this brand new tiger face pouch manufactured in China.  The seller WhiteWolfAlchemyShop has correctly deduced that reseller products listed as "vintage" are much more likely to go unreported, allowed to remain even if they are reported.

2 "vintage" units in stock, priced at $6.55 each.  Many varieties of this item wholesale from this merchant on Ali Express priced at $1-2 and change.  The current line up of faux vintage Chinese import reseller products in WhiteWolfAlchemyShop is in their Just For Fun! shop section. 

Etsy Forums Follies: AttiCuties insists that all items listed on Etsy as Vintage are 20+ years old. Even though she sells contemporary products as vintage in her own shop.

Yet another Etsy shop owner feels that the use of the keyword "vintage" in item titles is a waste of space!  Only in the Etsyverse could it be true that the best keywords to use are the ones that don't apply to your item!  Here's the Forums thread:  Does It Make Sense to use VINTAGE in a TITLE since All Items Must be Vintage to Qualify  The original post says:

Because ETSY requires items that aren't handmade to be at least 20 years old to qualify for posting on the site, does it make sense to use the word Vintage in your listings?

So many of us do but the thought occurs that it could be a wasted word since it has to be vintage.

The amusing thing about the post can't be found in the Forums topic, though:  the owner of Etsy shop AttiCuties who posted the bit quoted above sells fake vintage:  such as items you can buy right now, as I type, from a big box retailer.  Many of the items listed as "vintage" in her shop are not yet 20 years old, and some of the listings actually use images "borrowed" from the manufacturer.  Maybe she feels awkward claiming items she knows aren't actually 20+ years old are VINTAGE in her titles? 

Let's have a look at some examples, shall we?

Here's a listing for a (maybe used?) Disney Sing and Giggle Minnie made by Fisher Price pretending to be "vintage".  The photo below belongs to the manufacturer, and does not show the actual item for sale -- a huge no-no when selling "vintage".

Priced at $34.95 by AttiCuties, just 5 cents less than the price of the same item sold on Amazon brand new in box.  May be out of production since listing pages at WAL-MART, toysRus and Target say "no longer available".   40 pages of customer reviews on Amazon date as far back as 2011. 

More:  take a look at this Just Married glass ball ornament that AttiCuties dates to the 1990s.

The seller's Description for the item says "there is the Glory Halls (sic) manufacturing logo" on the piece, but it clearly says Glory Haus, a brand that dates from 2008 according their Our Story page.  Even if this ornament was one of their very first products, it's not even 10 years old as I type in 2017.

This candle lamp by Lexox is part of their Linen Closet line, and the listing's tags date it to the 1990s.

Once again, AttiCuties is being deceptive.  The Linen Closet line was discontinued less than 10 years ago and produced 2004 -- 2008.  Once again, not vintage.

Another AttiCuties item listed with a photo belonging to the manufacturer is this decor block that says "Grandparents so easy to operate even a child can do it".  The item's tags again date it to the 1990s.

Available from Houzz brand new, made by Adams and Co., a brand that was started in 2002 according to their About Us page  Anyone else starting to see a trend here?

AttiCuties came to my attention about a year ago as a major seller of contemporary Fiesta ware, all listed as "vintage" of course. 

Here is a pair of Scarlet Red salad plates produced in the 21st Century;  Scarlet was introduced in 2004.

AttiCuties makes up a color name for this green saucer which looks like it could be Shamrock, introduced in 2002. 

This Fiesta ware creamer in Sunflower is tagged as "collectible".  But Sunflower was introduced in 2001, and is still being made.  Definitely not vintage.

Once again AttiCuties creates a fake name for the color of this orange 9 inch plate using both Fiesta color names "Tangerine" and "Apricot" in the listing's title and tags.  Two very different colors, Apricot is retired, but Tangerine (the color of the plate in the listing) was introduced in 2003, and is still being made. 

AttiCutie's shop is proof that items listed on Etsy do not have to "qualify" by being 20+ years old.   

Some of the most relevant items in Etsy search for Vintage are actually brand new: Early February 2017

This was a recurring theme post in my other blog about mendacious Etsy, Fake Shaming Etsy and Its Resellers , and I intend to continue with it here.  By way of introduction, Etsy encourages certain select resellers to list their mass manufactured products as "vintage" rather than "handmade", for several reasons.  First, because the sale of the same product over and over again has been heavily promoted by Etsy's SEARCH algorithm since circa 2011 as more relevant, but authentic vintage items are mostly sold as one-offs by Etsy sellers.  Second, anything that dilutes the authenticity of Vintage on the site is seen as a plus:  the majority of the Etsy community from management, to the staff, to the sellers, know little to nothing about Vintage and, based on their lack of knowledge, have decided they don't like it.  Finally, any listings for products mass manufactured in an Asian factory are given an extra warm welcome by Etsy corporate.  Over the last handful of years, the increasing presence of brand new products pretending to be "vintage" has gradually led to the closing of authentic vintage shops selling similar merchandise.

I personally would guesstimate that about 40 percent of items listed on Etsy as "vintage", aren't.  This series of posts will show you why.

February 09, 2017

Pier Etsy Platform (resellers of native craft imports as either handmade or vintage) shop CultureCross has one of today's most relevant listings on Etsy in a search for all Vintage items.  This brand new, mass produced, Tibet silver and dyed Howlite bracelet has been reviewed, vetted, and approved by Etsy's mendacious Marketplace Integrity Team as a proper "vintage" listing. 

Listed as "Southwestern" turquoise jewelry, it is an Asian design with no turquoise or silver used to make it.  It's Tibet silver (an alloy) and Howlite stone dyed a fakey looking turquoise color.  The Overview information reveals that it isn't turquoise...

Overview

• Vintage item
• Materials: silver, brass, howlite turquoise
• Ships worldwide from United States
• Feedback: 1478 reviews
• Favorited by: 534 people

...but that isn't searchable.  The title and tags falsely state this to be a vintage turquoise bracelet.  Priced at a laughable $25.00, you can buy the same bracelet for just $4.19 on Ali Express with free shipping.  Need I mention that many more than one dumb bunny Etsygirl has purchased this item on Etsy?  Which is why it has become ultra-relevant in search results.

February 10, 2017

Another fauxtiques reseller on the Pier Etsy platform is CuteMatryoshka who lists newly made Russian craft items as "vintage".  Open for just over 2 years now, the shop has sold nearly 800 items -- this is a long term reseller.  Today one of the most relevant items in a search for all vintage on Etsy is this brand new hen with chicks painted wooden doll set -- 10 units in stock, all pretending to be "vintage".

For sale at Russian Crafts using the same photos, description and price, without any mention of it being "vintage".  This deception is reserved for mendacious Etsy, whose dim bulb employees working for the Marketplace Integrity Team can't see the shop's tag line which clearly states:

vintage style Russian dolls

The seller's About Page suggests she is the artist who handpaints these items...

A few years ago I had period of my life when I had enough free time. The friend of mine gave me idea to paint nesting dolls and gave me a lesson how to do it. I never painted before and never thought that I could create anything interesting. From the very first time I was fallen in love with it and soon I painted more or less good matryoshka dolls.

... so why are they all listed as "vintage"?  One of the many mysteries of the mendacious Etsyverse!


Since a few Ty Beanie Babies are now 20 years old, all Ty Beanie Babies are now considered "vintage" in the mendacious Etsyverse.  Which is why Etsy shop GertrudesVintage can list one introduced in the 21st Century for sale on Etsy.  One of the most relevant items today in a search for all Vintage on Etsy is Sonnet the Dog who was sold for about six months in 2003-04 as a Valentine's Day themed gift item.

Visit the shop for more newer Beanies pretending to be "vintage"!  Beanie Babies are super easy to date online; several sites have comprehensive listings including photos, descriptions, introduction and retirement dates.  There is no way a seller can't know the actual age of these collectibles, outside the Etsyverse, that is.

Etsy long term reseller fabthings10 claims necklace imported from China was handmade by her in the 1970s

Etsy long term (but small sales volume) reseller, fabthings10 , opened in 2015.  As I type, the shop has just one listing for a brand new mass made necklace imported from China that the seller pretends is "vintage handmade from the 1970s", according to the item's Overview:

Overview

• Vintage handmade item from the 1970s
• Ships worldwide from United Kingdom
• Feedback: 3 reviews
• Favorited by: 13 people

Nine units in stock, with 1 already sold.

Not designed or made by the seller.  Available wholesale from AliExpress priced at less than $4.00 per unit.  Although the Chinese merchant used the word "vintage" in their AliExpress listing title, it's new.  Note the contemporary lobster clasp in the photos, used by manufacturers of cheapie fashion jewelry beginning in the early 1990s.  Generally, describing any item listed on Etsy as "vintage handmade" is a sure sign the seller is deceptive -- which is definitely the case with the mendacious fabthings10,