Nobody's Perfect

I am so fortunate to have so many wonderful repeat customers. most are pen pals.. some have become friends over the last 10 years (ELEVEN years next month!). my family & friends all think my "job" is a piece of cake.. and essentially it is. Shop for a living? you betcha its fun!

but they really don't "get it". its a lot of work too! i'm not complaining. not for one second. i absolutely love what i do, i love what i sell, and when i'm not shopping, i don't have to put on makeup, i don't even have to get dressed ~ unless a repair man or someone is coming over. lol.. friends popping in already know to expect me in a zip robe, lounger, or in summer ~ a long maxi cotton sleeveless comfy vintage sundress.

after an estate sale, my procedure is to leave everything in the garage. everything. then the bags go to the back porch, where each item is inspected and hung. despite being in the most beautiful homes in the area, i have still detected a bug or two. and momma does NOT like cockroaches, moths, carpet bugs or anything creepy-crawly.

So the goodies hang outside to be aired out. i'm anal. everything is hung color coded.. all the whites on one side of the porch, pink on another, blue yet a third area.. pretty crazy, but it helps when i wash them, after they have aired for a day.

Then the laundry begins.. everything is washed by color; thus the time saving color coding as mentioned. then hung back outside to air dry. Usually a whole day is spent on washing then steaming or pressing.

Next the mannequin is drug out, and i try to take as many pictures in one day as possible. after the photo shoot, the clothing then precisely folded and added to the "ready to go" tote.

Did i mention inspection?? yep. lots of it. of course i try to check at the estate sales, but its hasty. then its checked again when its hung originally. another after its laundered and hung. again while its being put on the mannequin.

As i write each item up for the listing, i inspect AGAIN as i'm measuring it. Once sold.. yep. i try to check it over again as i'm packing it for shipping.

That's a lot of scrutiny isn't it?? i know i'm not alone in this habbit.. i bet i could name 5 other sellers just off the top of my head that also inspect just as much.

and yes.. very occasionally something slips past. pretty hard to believe, but it does. hey, we're all human. do our customers understand this? most times.. occasionally we get someone unreasonable, but for the most part.. again.. our customers are understanding.

i recently sold a new with tag miss elaine nightgown..my customer was absolutely wonderful. i got the nicest email imaginable as to how happy she was with it ~ but.. under the collar, along the seam it was un-sewn. NOOOOO! how on earth is this possible? did i "assume" since it was NWT, even tho it was vintage, it was perfect?

and the incident put me on my toes.. don't think because something has the tags on it, its perfect. :D

after the photographing, there is downloading the pictures, croping, editing, and uploading them. Have i complained lately that i'm working with an almost vintage, hand made circa 1998 computer? lol.. and yes, its slow as molasses. in fact, i recently took it to my little computer guy and he laughed. he actually remembered installing a cd drive (not a dvr, just player) in it a few years ago. and he said he loved me, but had the right to refuse service.

and i have aol.. and i'm on dial up. uhhhh huh. big time slow.

so each listing takes at least 1/2 hr. just to write it up (ok, i admit, my listings are WAY too lengthy!) then uploading the picture. then the item is assigned a number, added to my running inventory list, and noted which site it is listed on. so at least an hour per item most likely. i honestly don't like to think about it, cause it would mean i probably only make fifty cents an hour.

then the item is stored.. again.. anal.. i have shelves marked for items. nightgowns, blouses, robes, slips each have their own shelf; and are stored numerically per the assigned number when listed.

huge totes store listed coats, long dresses or anything bulky.

it would seem to the average person that i would never make a mistake listing. that i would be able to find an item just by the number and the appropriate shelf.. but it isn't always so! every once in a while, something is placed in a tote instead of a shelf.. or worse.. the wrong tote. meaning i have to tear everything apart to find one item.

yesterday was the day! i heard from my kind, understanding (and forgiving!) customer about the split seam in the nightgown, Then i discovered a payment in paypal for an order they never notified me of, so i had no clue the item was sold. a hasty apology to the customer for the "over sight".. grab and pack that order, then spent 1-1/2 hours trying to find a maxi dress for another order. how on earth do you loose not only something big, but bright! it was yellow, blue and red.

i finally found it.. packed the items, and made it to the post office before they closed to ship. .. but you'd think with all my "wonderful" organizational skills, eleven years of doing this, my little business would run a whole lot smoother. but i realized.. everything turned out well, and nobody's perfect.

New Years Resolution in June?

i realized this morning i had started a blog. Took a huge amount of searching, recovering passwords, finding the "correct" email associated with it, and accessing it. Sure did! found it. lol..

and i am embarassed, yet its kind of funny. my last and only post was 2 years ago. i think i got side tracked?

Did i get to busy to blog??? Why, I'm an "empty nester" now! My last daughter left for college ten years ago. There are no more responsibilities of the children. Sure, i still have the house. a wonderful neighbor does my much smaller lawn. the daily responsibilites now are much less.

So how on earth could i forget i started a blog and there are masses out there waiting to read my every word.. REALLY lol now!


when the kids left, and i found myself working from home i was organized. i had goals. i would discipline myself to take pictures of minimum 10 new items a week, and list them on my "secret" nights on ebay when i thought my items would get the most attention.

then ebay ended. i set up selling sites on other venues. there was no longer the need to list at certain times ~ i could list during the day or the middle of the night! it was wonderful. i loved my new found freedom, but missed the regular sales of course. It is WAY more difficult to promote items on a web site verses the international exposure of a site like ebay.

i started a blog. did twitter and facebook. the social media thing. Facebook is fun..its not a chore and has not been neglected in two years. I have found friends i havent seen since kindergarten ~ in fact, 6 of us from elementary school had lunch together in Mich a few months back.. it was like we had just seen each other yesterday, not 30 years ago.. too fun! I'm in the middle with the black print shirt.




i digress..anyway.. this social media thing on line is fun. Since i have limited computer skills, my daughter the college grad started a face book fan page for me..


http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fort-Worth-TX/Vintage-Pretties-Ruby-Lane/32988219942?ajaxpipe=1&__a=4 (yes.. i'd love you as a fan, or a "like"..)

and since i love to write, i can't imagine how i could forget my blog!

So even though its June, and its unconventional, i'm making a new years resolution. i am now going to post a new blog (realistically) once a week; although i'm shooting for more.

i am going to keep up with my social media projects. Twitter regularly as well as the Vintage Pretties Fan page.. (the personal face book is already a daily routine, lol)

i am going to list at least 5 new things a week, and start getting this overwhelming inventory of racks and racks and totes of vintage inventory, both women's and mens; boxes of hats and shoes and even tons of estate jewelry out of my house.

Just because i don't "have" to do things.. i should.. and i really want to! And if i commit to it like this, why i'll just have to do it, won't i??

let the games begin!