Top Secret Peek Into My eBay Process™️ AND a Giveaway (video)

How it goes from inspiration to research to purchase

It starts with an image. Or a movie scene. Or someone I pass in an Uber for a split second. Maybe at one point it happened for me in Vogue or in the middle of a Ralph Lauren runway. Now, is mostly happens in real life, on this platform, or on an actor dashing into an airport in 1978.

Me, a fashion girl in love with eBay and a dramatic hooded dress.

I think in eBay search terms. So when I clock the cool person in a bob on DeKalb, I’m not wondering if her dress is Ganni. I’m dissecting the look into adjectives for research. Maybe “midi” “leopard” “100% cotton” to start then “vintage 80s sundress animal print” after a few tries.

So now that you know I’m incredibly laidback and laissez-faire about how I build my wardrobe, we can begin. Best to start with an example, I think. So here’s how I went from dreaming about aviator sunglasses to making a Tom Ford pair my own for $89.26. And how you can think about your own daydreams turned closet staples.

A snapshot of my brain

History: Have I owned this kind of item before? Did I wear it? Do I wear something similar now?

There’s nothing new under the sun. And thinking you’re exploring a totally novel category is a trap of consumerism. “Oh I’ve never owned a tweed mini skirt. Fun! I should try it!” Wrong: you owned one in 2014. You tried to wear it with a Smiths tshirt and found the whole look to be way too preppy for you. So owning one now, ten years later, would likely be the same tune.

POV I was your babysitter in 2018

In the case study at hand, my apparent obsession with acquiring a pair of vintage aviator sunglasses, I’d had exactly two pairs before. One was wire-rimmed and cheap, maybe from Forever 21, and I was 14 and shy as Hell. Pass. The second pair was from Unique for $3. I wore them on a public bus one morning, felt cool and a little annoying, then lost them, never to be found again.

At the moment, my sunglasses are mostly black, pretty angular, and all pulling their weight in the rotation. But what about when I want my all white outfit to feel more…well Outfit-y? That’s where these come in.