PowerSelling on eBay

One of the reasons I feel confident about "quitting my day job" in order to pursue my mosaic art is that I have had an eBay business on the side for the past 10 years.

I started selling on eBay when I was working a very flexible part-time job from home while homeschooling my youngest child. I needed more income and eBay was something that I could fit into an already busy schedule. Besides, I've always delighted in finding good deals on vintage and antique stuff at thrift shops and garage sales, and I have a good eye for such things.

For a while, I also dabbled in having spaces in antique malls, but I found that the overhead is a lot more affordable on eBay. So I stopped trying to sell large items such as furniture and stuck to "smalls," as they are called in the antique biz, that I could ship to my customers. Eventually I decided to specialize in really small items-- things that can be shipped in an envelope--such as scarves, neckties, letter openers, swizzle sticks, etc.

Vintage designer silk scarves are my favorite thing to sell. It is very much like dealing in artwork. The designs are beautiful, the fabrics are lovely to handle, and it's fun to write up the descriptions.

Selling a lot of similar items, such as a batch of scarves, makes it easier and quicker to write up eBay listings. Since I found my niche, I've been able to boost my sales and become an eBay PowerSeller--that's someone who sells at least $1000 per month and maintains a very high feedback score from satisfied customers.

I waited a long time while raising my children to finally have time to do mosaic artwork. Now I'm finding that eBay and mosaic are a great combination! When I browse thrift shops and garage sales, I'm looking for both stuff to sell on eBay and stuff to include in my mosaics. Sometimes my purchases could go either way--for instance, today I purchased a complete set of Royal Doulton Fireglow dishes (see the cup and saucer above), not knowing how much they were worth. I figured if they were not worth selling, I could break 'em and use 'em in my mosaics! They have a nice retro floral design in bright colors and they're high-fired and will break into nice even tessera. Fortunately it turns out they will be worth my while to try selling them (I should about quintuple my investment)...but a few pieces may still end up in my artwork, if they don't sell.

I have yet to try selling any of my completed mosaic pieces on eBay, but that is definitely coming. Another thing I will try selling is some of the pottery tiles that I make. I made some beautiful oak leaf and acorn shaped tiles in a range of fall colors for a mirror, and I will try selling some of the leftover tiles on eBay. I've seen other artists' small handmade tiles sell for a lot, and I can see why. It's hard for most people who do mosaic to find unusually shaped tiles. Not everyone who does mosaic also has access to a pottery studio with kilns like I do.