Etsy removes link to Vintage located at the top right of all pages -- permanent change or test?

The link to Vintage is missing as of today.  None of the Forums posters have noticed.  So funny!

I don't think it matters much.  Of the 9 curated featured thumbnail images formerly at the top of page one at the link, between 4 and 8 of the items shown were NOT vintage.  And more than half of the items shown on page one -- the most relevant to "vintage" on the site -- were actually new products.  

Am laughing so hard.

Will update here with links to any Forums threads that may show up about this test/change.

UPDATE JUNE 5:  after more than 24 hours passed since the Vintage link was removed from the top of Etsy's pages, a post appeared in the Forums:  Etsy what happened to the Vintage section on the main page?  So far, most of the responses show that the Etsygirls are okay with this since, like, shoppers never want to simply look through Vintage items generally.  Everyone knows that's what happens at bricks-and-mortar shops, co-ops, shows, etc.:  shoppers come up to the desk or info booth and ask if anyone has some blah-blah to sell and where it is.  And if no one can tell them double quick where that item of choice can be found, the shoppers simply leave.  Yeah, right?  

One Forums comment notes that there is now no mention of "vintage" on the home page at all.  If you type the word "vintage" in the SEARCH box, you'll see a page of items that are a mixture of Vintage and new, including several brand new face masks and brand new prints of (maybe) vintage images.   Of course it's so very Etsy that a search for "vintage" would return a page of items mostly listed as "handmade".

If you are serious about selling Vintage and Antiques in a professional setting, it's long past time to leave Etsy.

UPDATE JULY 3:  During the last week in June, the Vintage link re-appeared at the top of Etsy pages only to disappear again in the early morning hours of July 1.  I think the Vintage seller community on Etsy should be commended (?) for their efforts to keep a link to Vintage on the Etsy Home Page.  In other words, they did NOTHING, and now the link is gone.  

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.