SHERMAN JEWELRY: TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY?

I never cease to be amazed both by what buyers will pay for Sherman jewelry, and conversely, what sellers think they should get for Sherman jewelry. Sometimes the two are miles apart!

Take that magnificent cuff bracelet shown here. This one was listed as a "BUY IT NOW or Make and Offer"on Ebay for $3500. To my shock, it sold less than 2 days to that buyer who's buying up all the rare Shermans on ebay for an offer of $2700. Now granted, if you have no holds on your budget, I guess you can spend that much on one piece of Sherman and yes, Sherman cuff bracelets are the be all and end all for savvy investors in Sherman. But gee, $2700?! I'd baulk at paying that for a 22k gold 2 carat diamond necklace! Come to think of it, I could probably buy that fine jewelry for less!

Getting prices like this for Sherman, on ebay yet, is unquestionably pushing the prices of Sherman higher and higher. Honestly, Sherman should be spelled $herman these days! I can't help but wonder if what's happening here could possibly go the way Oil and other things went last year i.e. it caused a balloon and suddenly it burst. Personally, I'd be rather cautious of possibly paying too much. "What goes up, must come down" as the song says.

But now, to return to my opening statements i.e. what buyers will pay and what sellers ask can be miles apart. Take this example: shown on the left is one very lovely Sherman set that failed to sell on ebay last week. It's gorgeous. What happened?

I thought it was exquisite: beautiful, unique design; a 3-piece parure yet and the bidding got to $271 USD and stopped dead. The seller had a reserve on it, which does often stop buyers. But I think buyers only stop if they can't see paying more for the piece than the most they feel it's worth. It's just like selling a house: you might think it's worth far more than the market does. So it sits there forever with the vendor sticking to his price and no-one buying. This sure can happen with Sherman too. I've watched one on ebay that I've mentioned elsewhere in this blog. It's been listed 3 times now and hasn't sold yet. It's lovely; the colours are desirable; the design is different and the condition superb. Why hasn't anyone bought it yet? Obviously what the seller thinks it's worth and what the buyer is prepared to pay are miles apart.

So, of course, as both a buyer and a seller, I'm always battling the dilemma of "to buy or not to buy". If I come across a piece that I know is a steal, I don't hesitate. But when the dollar is way up there, I have to weigh up that decision pretty carefully. If I spend $250 buying a piece of Sherman, will someone else pay me more ... or heaven forbid ... less when it's time to sell it? I often waffle back and forth, looking at piece, reading the description over and over if it's online, and being so hesitant to make the decision that I've walked away more often than I've bought. Actually when I think of it, that's a bit for a rule for me: if I take 48 hours to decide and still can't decide, I walk away.

I'm the same with buying a dress: if there's something that just isn't making me feel "I've got to have this", I walk away. Most of the time, I'm glad I made that decision. But it's different with a dress or anything you can buy in a retail outlet where you can try it on, touch it, turn it and see if it feels right all the way. Buying online can be very difficult. All you have is photos and a description and the hope that the seller is being honest and accurate. And unfortunately, not many sellers are honest and accurate about what they're selling.

Well time to wrap this up but not without quoting what one of my regular Sherman buyers once wrote to me. She said the reasons she buys so much Sherman from me are:

1) fabulously good photos showing all sides of the item 2) my willingness to disclose the exact condition of the item even if it's not the best ie. wear to the plate backing, damaged or cloudy stones, accurate details re lengths etc 3) my prices are in line with the desirability of the piece ie. rare or common color? signed or not signed? excellent or mediocre condition; single piece, demi or parure?

All of those factors are important when buying Sherman or any designer vintage jewelry, especially if you're buying online. She who hesitates too long might lose out but conversely, jumping in when you're not sure isn't wise either. The adage is true: asking questions is a sign of intelligence. So ask questions, clarify details, and make sure the item is within your budget before you invest in your next piece of Sherman.

We are always adding "new" affordable Shermans to our shelves in OUR SHOP AT RUBY LANE, and our site at SHERMAN JEWELLERY SHOWCASE. So bookmark those sites and check them often. Coming to our shop soon ... the gorgeous set shown below in citrine and topaz!

SHERMAN JEWELRY IS FETCHING HIGHER & HIGHER PRICES. ARE OURS TOO LOW??

Have you been watching any auctions for Sherman jewelry on ebay lately? I have. In fact, I desperately wanted the gorgeous bracelet shown below but it just went too high for me:

It has all the elements collectors are looking for: great color (lavender); wide (1 1/8" wide) and from the vendor's description, it's in "excellent condition". The winning bid was $357.52 USD.

The seller also had the matching stunning earrings shown on the left in a second auction finishing shortly after the first. The same bidder won both auctions and that, quite honestly, was a smart move as they obviously belong together. I think there was even a brooch in yet another auction but I don't know the outcome of that one and couldn't find it later. The earrings went for $75 USD.

So add it up and this bidder has paid $432.52 for what is now a "set". Is that a good price? I'd say the winner got a good deal for Sherman jewelry in this color and condition. But as you can see, it didn't come cheap.

Buying sets of Sherman jewelry is always a wise investment: they're simply worth more to collectors. These days, when I'm scrounging for Sherman, I'm always on the lookout for sets ie.. a buyer who wears her Sherman prefers a necklace to have matching earrings, or a brooch that comes with earrings. Sometimes people are new to buying Sherman, do as I did initially: they buy up a necklace here, a brooch there, earrings here, a bracelet there and end up with lots of nice individual pieces that have no mates. If you do that, then try to keep an eye out for matching pieces. Surprisingly, you can find them if you wait long enough. And it's actually fun and quite fulfilling when you do find a match.

But for the most part, while it's more expensive to buy sets, or better yet, 2-3 piece parures, it's always the better investment. This past week I've enjoyed sales on several pieces of Sherman from OUR SHOP AT RUBY LANE but most of those have been sets. Smart shoppers those! My pink grande parure from a couple of posts back is gone. So is my fabulous faux alexandrite Brooch/earring and bracelet set. The lovely emerald green and clear navette necklace/earring set has a sale pending too, along with a highy desirable fuschia baguette bracelet.

What is this saying about Sherman? It's still very much in demand. What's it saying about our prices for Sherman? That our prices are still very reasonable. What's should it be saying to you? Get over to our RUBY LANE SHOP now while we still have some good sets left at affordable prices, because quite frankly, with the dollars folks are paying on ebay, which is usually the cheapest place to buy Sherman, our prices are starting to look way too low! So get over to our shop now and grab yourself a bargain while you can. How about this gorgeous necklace/earring demi:

It's yours for only $295! What a bargain!

BUYING SHERMAN JEWELRY AT DEALER PRICES

Well this past week I really got an education about Sherman jewelry ... or rather about the prices I'm asking for Shermans on my site at SHERMAN JEWELLERY SHOWCASE and in my SHOP AT RUBY LANE. Seems I'm selling my Shermans to the public at dealer prices! Some business-woman, aren't I LOL!

Why do I say that? Well here's what happened. I had a lady who is a Sherman seller contact me about one of my pieces. I usually groan when they email me because invariably they want me to really drop the price on a piece for them so that they can take it and sell it at a profit. Well sure. After all, we sell to make some profit right?

So I replied with the usual explanation ie. I mark up my Shermans so little that I can't afford to give dealers special prices. Well lo and behold she came back and offered me only $10 less than I was asking on one piece. I was floored ... and I accepted. Then, it got even better. She asked about two other pieces. I gave her my bottom figures. On one of them, she said I'll pay you $10 more than you've asked! Huh? I thought I hadn't heard right. On the other, she offered again to pay only $10 less than I was asking ... that's $10 less than I'd sell it to you for! I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe a Sherman dealer would pay me fair value for my items.

We agreed to meet and make the exchange at the annual Christies Antique Show on Saturday. She was there selling her Shermans and other vintage jewelry. So were many other vendors selling Shermans. That's when the second part of my education came: there were vendors selling Shermans for 2-3 times what I ask ... and buyers were buying! I had to ask myself what on earth am I doing selling my Shermans for so little? Of course there is an explanation: I sell online. I don't do shows so I don't get to dazzle people with my gorgeous Shermans. There's nothing quite like seeing the actual item twinkling and glittering away under the sun or under lights. Even though I have superb photos, there's no match for seeing the real thing with your own eyes.

And of course, there's more explanations: my buyers come from around the world ... the online world. They come from varying economic backgrounds. They don't necessarily live in the ritzy areas of Toronto, Canada (e.g. Bayview, Rosedale) where buyers expect to and will pay huge prices for Shermans. Since I don't do shows in those areas, those buyers don't buy my items. But the dealers who sell to them would! HA! They will then take that piece, mark it up 2-3 times and walk away smiling.

So where does that leave me? Well it's got me thinking about my website at Sherman Jewellery Showcase for one thing. If my prices are that low, then maybe I should promote my site for what it is : a chance for you to purchase Sherman jewelry at dealer prices! Eureka. I think I'm onto something.

By the way, if you don't believe I'm selling my stuff too cheaply, please visit THIS SITE. When you're there, click on "SHOP" and then scroll down to "Sherman". Take a look at the prices this famous seller is asking and getting for her Shermans and compare those to my prices. What an eye-opener! I've just purchased her book. I need to learn more about all this stuff LOL!

Well, while I have you, I've got to tell you about that fabulous Sherman shown at the top of this post. It's my latest acquisition and I'm thrilled to have it. What a gorgeous Sherman red crystal bead demi-parure this is! It's in fantastic condition. All pieces are signed and just look at that color! The red aurora borealis Austrian crystals are superb. I'm offering it at $395. Now I wonder, if I were one of those other Sherman dealers I saw at the Antique show what I'd sell it for? Most of the items I saw at one stall started at $200 for a single brooch. One 3-piece set was $995!! What on earth am I doing selling my Shermans at dealer prices???!!!