Warning: That "vintage silk" seller on Etsy is selling polyester and getting away with it

Found out the hard way after ordering a supposedly 1960s silk scarf for $45 from a shop in Portland. When it arrived it felt weird so I did a burn test on a loose thread - melted into plastic beads and smelled like burning hair. She has over 2000 sales and 5 star reviews. Now I'm wondering how many people just never checked. Has anyone else caught a seller lying about fabric content on vintage items?

2 comments

2 Comments

richard_hall16d ago

Blame the reviews honestly, people leave 5 stars for "cute" and don't do any real testing so the seller keeps getting away with it. I've started asking sellers directly about fabric content before buying and waiting for a real answer, if they dodge the question I just move on. Makes me wonder how much "vintage silk" on Etsy is actually just re-labeled polyester from China that someone found in a thrift pile.

sean_murray16d ago

Oh man, "just re-labeled polyester" hit me right in the wallet (and my dignity). I had this exact thing happen with a "vintage silk" scarf I bought off Etsy last year - got it home, did the burn test on a loose thread, and it literally melted into hard plastic beads. Smelled like burning plastic too, not hair at all. I was so mad because I specifically asked the seller about it and they just sent back a generic "yes it's vintage silk" with no details. Now I follow your rule too - if they can't tell me the exact weave or origin within a day, I'm out. The reviews are useless for this stuff, you're totally right. People just see something cute in a photo and toss up a five star without ever touching the fabric. I've started leaving detailed reviews about actual material quality just to try and balance it out, you know?