The ones that got away

[LadyStardust]

:rage:
I was -SO- set on getting this dress. I had it in the snipe program, had uttered a prayer(silly I know, but eh), and was actually fairly confident of my chances because the price had stayed relatively low for almost the duration. And I know there's nothing you can do when the item goes out of your price range, but it still made me mad, because whoever it was that won waited until the last 30 minutes to swell up the price heftily. That way, it did crush me, because I had gotten my hopes up. Whoever got it, I hope they wear it proudly.

 

[Kim_B]

This sweet little skirt broke my heart. I saw it and knew I wanted it badly, but it was not my size. So, I decided if I couldn't have this one, I'd try to make on on my own. Only problem is, peach gingham fabric is nowhere to be found in enough yardage to complete the skirt! :eusa_doh:

Oh well...it's on my to-make list, which means I'll probably never get around to it...maybe by then I'll have found what I'm looking for!

 

[Liz]

I already posted about this on the Observation Bar "One That Got Away" thread, but I'm still upset about it so I figure I'll post about it again. It's only fair, considering that this dress got away two times!

A few weeks ago, this adorable Rudi Gernreich dress appeared on Ebay. He's one of my favorite designers and I've always dreamed of owning a Gernreich dress. To top it off, the dress had come from Paramount Studios and may have even been worn in a movie at some point! For the next week, I anxiously watched the auction and woke up early on the Saturday morning it ended. I bid at the last minute and was the high bidder...until someone sniped it in the last five seconds. As I'm sure you can all understand, I was quite upset.

Then, last week, the high bidder emailed me. She said the dress didn't fit her and that she'd like to sell it to me if I was still interested, which of course I was. I immediately replied to her email and got a message from her the next evening, stating that she'd changed her mind and decided to keep the dress after all! This time, I was really upset! My only hope is that she decides to resell it on Ebay at some point, and then I can have yet another shot at it.

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

Looking at all of your lost purchases makes me sad I know what it's like to find the perfect dress and lose it to some ridiculously high bid. The thing that gets me is when I'm searching through the vintage on ebay and I see a beautiful item that I immediately fall in love with, I click on the link and scroll down to the measurements and it's not my size!:rage: This seems to be happening a lot lately. I wish that sellers would just put the size in the item description so I don't get my hopes up, and then end up disappointed![huh]

 

[Pink Dahlia]

Amen Daisy! Why don' they just put the measurements in the title? Someone's not going to buy something that doesn't fit them. So why not? This is frustrating to me because I find many things I just love but they are not anywhere near my size.

I don't think I can read through this whole post without feeling remorse for my lost items (which I'd like to forget).

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

Well, this darling dress brought tears to my eyes when I lost it. I had a feeling I was gonna be outbid, even with my quite high maximum bid. I should have put in a higher one, I would have, I really wanted this dress. Everything about it from the cut to the lace details to the little bakelite apple buttons. It was the ultimate vintage dress, and I lost it by $2! Well, the winning bid was $2 more than my max bid, I don't know what the winners actual max bid would have been, for all I know it could have been a lot higher. Oh well, I just save myself a bit of money. But, I'll never see another dress like this again. The bakelite apple buttons alone were worth the high price. Darn it I should have put in a higher max bid!![huh]

 

[Pina Bridgette]

This sweet little skirt broke my heart. I saw it and knew I wanted it badly, but it was not my size. So, I decided if I couldn't have this one, I'd try to make on on my own. Only problem is, peach gingham fabric is nowhere to be found in enough yardage to complete the skirt! :eusa_doh:

Oh well...it's on my to-make list, which means I'll probably never get around to it...maybe by then I'll have found what I'm looking for!

Kim,

I was looking through fabrics on-line and remembered your plight.

Here is a link that has 1/4", 1/8" and 1/16" cotton-poly gingham. The 1/8" gingham is $2.89/yd and they have it in orange (was it really peach?). I haven't purchased from them before but it might be worth checking out.

http://www.fabricdirect.com/acatalog/Gingham-1-4-inch-by-the-yard.html

P.

 

[exquisitebones]

i would just like to say how much I HATE auction snipers.
its such a cheat!

I was watching this
and refreshing adn refreshing and refreshing.
and i lost it at 7 seconds.

its not fair, its cheating

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

i would just like to say how much I HATE auction snipers.
its such a cheat!

I was watching this
and refreshing adn refreshing and refreshing.
and i lost it at 7 seconds.

its not fair, its cheating

Sorry you lost the dress I mean no offense by saying this but auction snipers aren't cheating for they are readily available to everyone. It's each persons choice whether they decide to use one or not. If they were only available to a select few then they wouldn't be fair. I have lost equally as many auctions as I have won using a sniper. They do the same thing that anybody else does, like you wait to put your bid in at the last minute, the sniper does this too. It's not about how fast one gets their bid in, it's about who has the highest maximum bid. So, whether you use a sniper service to put your bid in at the last minute for you, or you wait til the last few seconds to put it in yourself, you're not gonna win if someone gets there bid in at the same last second as you do, and it's higher than yours.
I don't use them all the time. If I'm home at the time an auction is ending then I put the bid in myself. If an auction is ending when I'm not around, or late at night, I'm not gonna change my entire plans or stay up all night to place my bid. I'll either put it in early, which pretty much guarantees that I won't win, or I'll pay the 20 cents to a sniper to place the bid for me.
Yes, it does stink to lose an auction. But cheating, no. Again, it's only cheating if you didn't have the same access to snipers that everybody else does. I lost the darling black dress with the cute bakelite apple buttons even though I used a sniper. It wasn't because they didn't get my bid in at the right time, it was because my bid wasn't high enough. That's why auctions are lost.
I would suggest, if you're sick of losing auctions, to use a sniper service. But, they really don't make any difference at all. They just place bids for me when I'm not around to do so. Again, I've lost just as many auctions using them as I have won.

This is just my opinion. I and others have stated this in other threads. I'm not passing judgment on anybody who uses or doesn't use them. But what you have to remember is if you can't beat em' join em' Some people don't like to use them, that's their choice. But, they do have the choice and complete access to them. This choice is each individual bidders, so it really isn't cheating. Again, just my opinion or thoughts on it....

 

[exquisitebones]

Sorry you lost the dress I mean no offense by saying this but auction snipers aren't cheating for they are readily available to everyone. It's each persons choice whether they decide to use one or not. If they were only available to a select few then they wouldn't be fair. I have lost equally as many auctions as I have won using a sniper. They do the same thing that anybody else does, like you wait to put your bid in at the last minute, the sniper does this too. It's not about how fast one gets their bid in, it's about who has the highest maximum bid. So, whether you use a sniper service to put your bid in at the last minute for you, or you wait til the last few seconds to put it in yourself, you're not gonna win if someone gets there bid in at the same last second as you do, and it's higher than yours.
I don't use them all the time. If I'm home at the time an auction is ending then I put the bid in myself. If an auction is ending when I'm not around, or late at night, I'm not gonna change my entire plans or stay up all night to place my bid. I'll either put it in early, which pretty much guarantees that I won't win, or I'll pay the 20 cents to a sniper to place the bid for me.
Yes, it does stink to lose an auction. But cheating, no. Again, it's only cheating if you didn't have the same access to snipers that everybody else does. I lost the darling black dress with the cute bakelite apple buttons even though I used a sniper. It wasn't because they didn't get my bid in at the right time, it was because my bid wasn't high enough. That's why auctions are lost.
I would suggest, if you're sick of losing auctions, to use a sniper service. But, they really don't make any difference at all. They just place bids for me when I'm not around to do so. Again, I've lost just as many auctions using them as I have won.

This is just my opinion. I and others have stated this in other threads. I'm not passing judgment on anybody who uses or doesn't use them. But what you have to remember is if you can't beat em' join em' Some people don't like to use them, that's their choice. But, they do have the choice and complete access to them. This choice is each individual bidders, so it really isn't cheating. Again, just my opinion or thoughts on it....

the thing is tho,
I waited and bid at the last min. and then refreshed and refreshed.. and then was sniped at the last second. I did not have time to up my bid anymore than that.. that is where i think its unfair, i can not compete with something that comes in so late that i have NO CHANCE of winning. it jsut irks me.
why do they have to invent something like that when everyone could just play fair and do it themselves and win on their own accord.
i am jsut bummed i guess.
i have lost everything i have bid on in the past month to snipers.

 

[Kim_B]

Kim,

I was looking through fabrics on-line and remembered your plight.

Here is a link that has 1/4", 1/8" and 1/16" cotton-poly gingham. The 1/8" gingham is $2.89/yd and they have it in orange (was it really peach?). I haven't purchased from them before but it might be worth checking out.

http://www.fabricdirect.com/acatalog/Gingham-1-4-inch-by-the-yard.html

P.

Ah, thank you! You know, the more I look at the dress, it doesn't really look peach in the photo - maybe it just faded over time and really was orange? I did find a mango colored gingham...that might work too! Thanks for the link though, I'll have a closer look when I get home!

 

[Kim_B]

the thing is tho,
I waited and bid at the last min. and then refreshed and refreshed.. and then was sniped at the last second. I did not have time to up my bid anymore than that.. that is where i think its unfair, i can not compete with something that comes in so late that i have NO CHANCE of winning. it jsut irks me.
why do they have to invent something like that when everyone could just play fair and do it themselves and win on their own accord.
i am jsut bummed i guess.
i have lost everything i have bid on in the past month to snipers.

You too can sign up to use a sniper service. They are relatively inexpensive to use and obviously have great results considering all the auctions I've lost at the last minute! lol

 

[Nashoba]

Well, this darling dress brought tears to my eyes when I lost it. I had a feeling I was gonna be outbid, even with my quite high maximum bid. I should have put in a higher one, I would have, I really wanted this dress. Everything about it from the cut to the lace details to the little bakelite apple buttons. It was the ultimate vintage dress, and I lost it by $2! Well, the winning bid was $2 more than my max bid, I don't know what the winners actual max bid would have been, for all I know it could have been a lot higher. Oh well, I just save myself a bit of money. But, I'll never see another dress like this again. The bakelite apple buttons alone were worth the high price. Darn it I should have put in a higher max bid!![huh]

OMG Daisy I had my eyes on that dress too!!!!!! I watched it and watched it....I feel your heartache!!!

 

[Viviene]

For those who don't like snipers, Specialist Auctions does not allow sniping programs. They are blocked.


The reason sellers don't put measurements in their titles is because they only have so many spaces and they use them for key words like rockabilly, pin-up, etc. Subtitles cost more to use and because sales are so dead on Ebay right now many sellers don't use them. Using XS, S, M, L, XL, etc. usually does not work either because one person's XL is another person's medium.

It's a lot of work finding vintage!

 

[Kim_B]

For those who don't like snipers, Specialist Auctions does not allow sniping programs. They are blocked.

You should also give Etsy a try...no auctions at all, just beautiful goodies for sale!

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

the thing is tho,
I waited and bid at the last min. and then refreshed and refreshed.. and then was sniped at the last second. I did not have time to up my bid anymore than that.. that is where i think its unfair, i can not compete with something that comes in so late that i have NO CHANCE of winning. it jsut irks me.
why do they have to invent something like that when everyone could just play fair and do it themselves and win on their own accord.
i am jsut bummed i guess.
i have lost everything i have bid on in the past month to snipers.

I really don't mean to harp on this, but if you were willing to pay more for the item, you should have just put your higher maximum bid in the first time you placed your bid. In the end the highest bidder is the winning bidder, no matter when they get their bid in.
As for you losing a lot of auctions, well that does stink, I totally understand that. It is quite possible that you lost out to people not using snipers, they just got their bid in at the more strategic time at a higher maximum. There's really no way to know if we are losing our auctions to snipers, or just to people with better internet connections than us.

 

[Tough Cookie]

the thing is tho,
I waited and bid at the last min. and then refreshed and refreshed.. and then was sniped at the last second. I did not have time to up my bid anymore than that.. that is where i think its unfair, i can not compete with something that comes in so late that i have NO CHANCE of winning. it jsut irks me.
why do they have to invent something like that when everyone could just play fair and do it themselves and win on their own accord.
i am jsut bummed i guess.
i have lost everything i have bid on in the past month to snipers.

Perhaps I feel little bit of a desire to defend myself because I use a sniping service, but you tried to snipe too by bidding at the last minute, you just tried to snipe manually rather than use a 'bot.

Even using a bot you can lose out if your bid is not the highest. [huh]

I lost out on some darling earrings, but I can't post the picture just now grr.

They were fruit. With a bunch of bananas.

 

[positivelypinup]

i lose a lot of stuff off of ebay because i'm never at my computer when the bid ends or i just forget.:eusa_doh: Usually everything i really want ends up being way too expensive.

 

[Liz]

I don't personally use a sniping service, though I do try to get my bid in as close to the end of the auction as possible. I can see both sides of the coin here. Something interesting I recently found out though is that Yahoo! Japan's auction site tries to discourage sniping by extending the auction for several minutes if anyone tries to snipe at the last second!

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

Snipers...

I figure, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Plus, it's a way to avoid bidding wars, or to avoid forgetting an end time of something you really want, or staying up past your bedtime just to win an auction.