Do you sell Barbie Dolls on eBay? I recently acquired a few copies of Barbie Bazaar—a Barbie Collector magazine. These are from 1989 and beyond (first published in late 1988—I do have the premier issue, too!)—I just about have them all listed.One issue has an article on selling guidelines. Remember, this was 1989 when there was no eBay and very little internet. Some dealers would sell Barbies and accessories by mail. This article gives suggestions for uniform grading of collectible Barbies. The purpose was to grade the dolls & clothes; and to list the flaws any item might have. (Kind of sounds like how I talk about descriptions on an eBay listing to my students.)
They suggested that these acronyms be used for descriptions:
NRFB - Never Removed From the original Box
MIB - Mint in Box
MINT - Unplayed-with condition. Doll may have been displayed, but never played with and looks like it just came out of the box.
EC - Excellent Condition. It may have been played with but has no flaws.
VGC - Very Good Condition. A nice doll that may have some minor flaws.
GC - Good Condition. This may make a decent display item, but has some major flaws like cut hair, green by ears, fingers missing, etc.
Fair - Item could be dirty, buttons missing, or may be torn or stained.
Interesting list, isn’t it? I personally would combine the last two. And, remember to list (and photograph) every flaw that you see in your listings.
