Selling Buttons on Etsy

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Zen Hen on June 11, 2010 at 12:28pm

I am in the same situation I have buttons that belonged to my great grand mother... I just dread the thought of going through them all...
Interested to hear what folks have to say as well.

Permalink Reply by Linens and Things on June 11, 2010 at 12:37pm

Selling buttons can be so much fun, but also obsessive! I have spent some happy hours sorting buttons into similar types and learning what they are by doing research. There are some very informative websites.

One way to approach it is to identify what you have that is most rare or most unusual or most attractive, or most some thing, so that when you list it in your shop, right off the bat, yours stands out from all the rest.

Listing by color is always easy for the shoppers. Listing mother of pearl and listing glass is also very desirable.

I can't wait to see what you list!

Permalink Reply by Three Chicks Vintage on June 11, 2010 at 2:48pm

I'm of a similar mindset as LinensandThings.
Sort out the best and finest first and sell as sets. You may have a few singles or pairs that really stand out for their design, material or size, and it's okay to sell those as just singles or pairs - collectors love them!
I have had luck selling matched sets. These are sets large enough for someone to use for sewing projects. Folks on Etsy like vintage sewing supplies.
Once you get past the outstanding singles or pairs, and matched sets, I would sort by color and sell in batches by color. They are perfect for crafters and for sewing projects as well.
I would tag them: vintage>supplies>buttons . . . and then add descriptive tags from there!

Here's some great websites on buttons:
http://buttonbug.com/index.html
http://www.buttonbuttononie.com/

DebB

PS - Zen Hen: I just don't understand the concept of 'dread' when it comes to sorting buttons! :) I can get joyfully lost in them for hours!

Permalink Reply by Jill Ruth on June 11, 2010 at 5:09pm

I'm with Three Chicks Vintage...I love sorting buttons. A lot. I will admit though that listing them isn't as much fun so have been slow to do that.
Jill

Permalink Reply by Endless Collectabilities on June 11, 2010 at 8:36pm

Thank you all so much for the information ... I've sorted by colors (of course setting aside the ones I want to keep), now I have to do a little research.

I do like sorting them and researching them but I have to agree with Jill that listing them isn't quite as fun. I was going to list them in larger groups but when trying to pick out tags I kind of figured out that most buyers probably are searching for specific colors, sizes, materials. You have all verified that and I will break them down into smaller groups and try to make them stand out.

Thanks also for the reference websites!
Kim

Permalink Reply by Zen Hen on June 12, 2010 at 8:54am

thanks to all who replied ~ and thank you three chicks for the links...yes, I had better change my mindset when it comes to sorting, lol...

Permalink Reply by Gizmos on June 14, 2011 at 9:10am

Many an hour as a child sorting, playing with my Grandmother's buttons. ..........