Storybook Knits question

[somany]

I found a sweater at a rummage bag sale.  It's ramie/cotton and has the typical issues associated with a 10-15 YO ramie/cotton sweater--loose threads and some color loss.  No holes or anything like that.  So my question is how picky are Storybook Knits buyers?  I will disclose the issues and will probably do an auction with a [relatively] low starting price, but if buyers expect pristine, I don't know that I want to do it so thought I'd check to see if anyone has any experience/insight to share. 

[Deleted]

I sold one a while back, with issues. Some staining and loose beads. Sale went fine.

[Deleted]

What's the theme? Unless it's something really timely (like Easter) or rare, I'd probably not bother -- too much risk for too little $.

[Deleted]

Isn't this the brand that Judy person buys? I'd make sure to block those IDs first, especially b/c it has issues.

[somany]

Feb 14, 2015 23:45:57 GMT @fashionboulevard said:

Isn't this the brand that Judy person buys? I'd make sure to block those IDs first, especially b/c it has issues.

Oh, I remember that thread now that you say her name.  I will make sure she's blocked.  Not sure what size she bought but mine is I think a 2X. 

The theme is, I don't know.  I have been trying to figure it out.  It has animals, and what looks like it could be an angel and what looks like a double face of a man.  There are not two of each animal so I ruled out Noah. 

I was thinking to go ahead and list it and emphasize the buttons.  Is there ever an interest in just the buttons?

Here's a pic:

[Deleted]

I was so traumatized by the Judy episodes that I have not picked one up in years. I think I have all of her known id's blocked, but ....

[Deleted]

Is it zodiac?

[Deleted]

Somany,

Look behind the neck label and see if there is a smaller label with a title there.

[parelex]

Looks like a zodiac theme to me too. That is pretty neat, I love celestial theme things.

On another note, have you guys successfully washed a Storybook knits? I know they're hand washable, but I had a nightmare washing a Michael Simon once and I don't want to risk it again. It's a beigey Noah's Arc one and has an old-lady perfume smell I'd like to see removed.

[Deleted]

Feb 15, 2015 0:31:31 GMT @elly said:

Is it zodiac?

That was my thought too, before I saw your post. 

[Deleted]

I was assured at ECSF that Storybook and Quacker can be sucessfully washed in gentle in a lingerie bag. I have not tried it yet. If I do, I will probably skip the spin dry. Let it agitate, take it out and blot it with towels, and dry flat.

[Deleted]

Ditto what Odyssey said - most have that label. I have washed quite a few. Cold water, gentle wash, hang on drying rack or over the back of a chair to dry. They turned out fine. I even used stain remover on some spots. I probably also used vinegar.

[Deleted]

Zodiac and the buttons look awesome

[Deleted]

Oooh, that looks like a good one (and in a great size)! Possibly older/rare - I can't find any others on Ebay, and only one on Google that someone sold 2 years ago for $25: mellissa-rose.blogspot.com/2013/09/recent-ebay-sales-92113.html

[somany]

Oh, boy, now I don't know what to think! No label that says Zodiac, but the one says "exclusively for HomeShoppingNetwork" if that makes a difference, but it is definitely the same one in mellissa-rose.blogspot (the tag on the pic in the blog says freshbloominclothing-that's our fresh, right?). I washed in the washing machine, but I generally just let it soak and agitate it myself a bit (washer supplied by apartment complex does not have a gentle cycle). I am using vinegar on everything--actually spraying items with a mixture of vinegar and water before I put things in the wash because the thrift sprays them with some awful smelling stuff to control bedbugs, and it doesn't come out in the wash very well since I don't agitate them (although this one did not come from the thrift, I still treated it the same). I used the spin and then laid it out to dry on a drying rack. It's not horrible condition, but ramie/cotton is getting further away from its heyday and the stuff just doesn't hold up that well (and I'm certainly no expert but can recognize that).

Haven't ventured over to the other board yet to look up the thread, but I will and make sure I have all the id's blocked before I list it. I didn't realize sellers were actually shying away from listing Storybook because of her. This is the first one I've found, and I enjoyed looking at all the different patterns. Maybe she already has this one so it won't be a problem or maybe she's given up collecting it.

[Deleted]

Oh wow, that IS "our" fresh! I didn't even notice the watermark on the photo. Her most recent blog post talks about moving to Florida -- sounds like she's doing well

[Deleted]

Isn't Fresh Lavender Clotheslines daughter? I think they're in PA.

ETA: OK, I see now they are in PA for now.  I'm pretty sure that's Lavender's daughter.

[Deleted]

She always said she wanted to move to FL. I remember that she posted a link to her blog back in the day. Didn't realize she was keeping it current. Off to check it out.

[Deleted]

Yes, Lavender is her mom. They're in central-ish PA (somewhere east of Pittsburgh, west of Philadelphia).

[parelex]

Phew thank you guys for the reassurance, I'm gonna take a leap and wash it. The Michael Simon was a bright red thing that bled all over the place.

[denise15601]

I like to hang stuff outside to air out-once had a vest that reeked of mothballs. Had to hang it out for a month!
Funny part is that I hang things from my back porch light by my back door. A new neighbor moved in and their house was facing my backyard.

When I finally got to talk to them, I told them why that fancy vest was hanging out everyday. They were really relieved to know what it was, since they thought it was a weird kind of flag. Guess they thought their neighbor was whacky.

well....maybe they were right....

[homecomforts]

Very cool sweater!

I hit the motherlode of nwt Storybook knits at a great price and have sold most of them. Most of the buyers were quite lovely. I only had a small problem with one buyer. She gave me a 1,2,3 under IAD but then turned around and listed it for double the price in her eBay store. She has, currently, 62 nwt Storybook knits in her eBay store and buys them on eBay to flip. I reported her twice but the defect still stands. Of course, in her listing, she says it is from her personal collection but she is moving to Florida and can't keep them all. What a lying .....

So I've found most buyers to be lovely but have to watch out for resellers.

This is my reseller:
www.ebay.com/itm/251746595775?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

My listing was 141433257788 but I was running a Markdown Manager sale to thin the herd so she paid somewhere around $30 including shipping.

I made some profit and the defect will fall off eventually. Still pisses me off that eBay lets it stand and, if I was on the edge, it could have caused me to lose my discount. If you sell NWT Storybook sweaters, I would block this one from buying.

Proof since this is a public forum and the buyer/reseller can find this topic:



And, theresa, if you do find this and read it, shame on you for giving me a low mark for a new with tag sweater that you bought to flip. As a seller, you knew EXACTLY what you were doing.

[Deleted]

I can only say this. Maybe 4-5 years ago I found scads of Quacker Factory and Storybook knits sweaters to sell. Various sizes as well as themes. I machine washed every single one of them AND dried them in the dryer. No fading, shrinking or anything. NO mesh bag to protect. No nothing. Again they were all fine.

I did read the labels.....all said they could be machine washed so initially I just washed one. I took measurements before washing just to see if it would/did shrink and it didn't so about 2-3 loads of them later they were all washed and cleaned.

I did turn them inside out as many had funky buttons that I didn't want scratched. I am NOT a handwash/air dry type person. Matter of fact I will leave things at thrifts it is supposed to be handwashed or dryclean only.