If you look at any number of threads where people are selling things these days, many people are asking that you send payment as “gift” or to add on 4% of the purchase price to cover the fees that the sellers will end up out of pocket for. For small things, it may seem like, ehhh, why not? 4% of $10 is only $0.40, after all. What if you were paying for a custom doll though? Let’s say that the doll is $500 (shipping included – a bargain by today’s standards) – that doll would be $520. And why should you, the buyer, be responsible for another $20 when you’re already paying $500 for a doll and shipping?

It’s the norm now for sellers to ask for this – payment as gift or adding on the fees associated with using Paypal’s services.

Pros for the seller:

• They get the full amount that they priced their item at

Cons for the buyer:

• There is no recourse if something goes wrong and whatever it is that you bought goes missing – Paypal assumes you’re telling the truth when you say it is a gift and not payment owed
• The seller does not have to prove to Paypal that they really sent whatever it is that you bought
• You’re out an additional 4%

Additionally, Paypal frowns against users violating their Terms (you know, the ones you agreed to when signing up/registering an account). By sending “payment as gift” when the payment is not a gift, they don’t like that very much. So you could put yourself at risk for having your account suspended – especially if you’re the seller and the one having people send you ‘gifted’ money all the time.

Secondly, a lot more people nowadays in the Blythe community are frowning on those who request ‘payment as gift’ and are actively avoiding purchasing from those that do that on their sale threads. I get that it’s tempting to have someone else pay your fees for you, but that’s part of the cost of doing business. If you really want to not have to pay the fees, you can just add the fees into the overall cost of the item itself. So if you’re selling a dress for $9 and don’t want to pay the additional fees for it, just do a little math to figure out how much you should sell it for. That way you end up with the amount that you really want and the cost of fees with using Paypal come out of what you asked for from the buyer. Another bonus of receiving payment for goods through Paypal is that, if you wish to print out shipping labels directly – you can! If the buyer pays as a ‘gift’, you’re not given that option because the money was a ‘gift’.

Lastly, there are people who do get burned (badly) from having paid for things (sundries, dolls) as a ‘gift’. This results in Bad Dolly Deals and public shaming in the community from the BDD. But, of course, it is always a good idea to find out if someone you’re dealing with has ever had a BDD written up about them and, if so, how was it resolved.

Much like the saying that ‘good fences make good neighbours’, there’s also ‘protecting yourself in a sale makes for less Bad Dolly Deals’.

I get negative comments about my dolls, like I’m sure other people in the Blythe community get. I get negative comments from some family members, random strangers, people who think that the internet allows them a sense of anonymity because they’re not “really” speaking out loud. It’s not a generally “accepted” hobby, I’ve found. For some reason, it’s more acceptable to spend money on other things (like booze, clothing, shoes, etc. – not that there’s anything wrong with spending money on these things – I have to say that as I spend money on all three) – but it’s more acceptable to spend money on things like that. Why, I have no idea. But that’s really not the point of me writing this (There’s supposed to be a point to this blog? Oh yes, Blythe!) as I’m supposed to be talking about how I deal with the negative comments about my Blythe dolls.

I try to think the best of people (I really, really do), but sometimes it’s hard – especially when people are trying to bring you down or goad you into an argument about how your dolls are ugly, weird, a waste of money, etc. I try to remind myself that people must not have very interesting lives if they get their kicks from insulting things owned and enjoyed by others. Because, really, they can’t be very interesting if they need to get their amusement at the expense of others. Let’s remember that, and feel pity for the boring people who need to hold onto petty little things to make themselves feel better.

How do you cope with the negative comments regarding Blythe?

Thank you everyone for your kind comments (both on the blog and on Twitter!) about my interview with Pablita. It’s always great to know that you all enjoyed the interview as much as I enjoyed conducting it!

There was a total of 41 entries. Thank you to everyone who commented, Tweeted and blogged! It really helps us to get the word out about the interview and the giveaway.

Thank you to Pablita for generously offering one of her dresses. Just a reminder, the prize is a dress in this style and fabric (but not specifically this one):

And the winner is…

Click to read more of this entry.

I’m looking for some fresh talent in the Blythe community to feature on BlytheLife.com as part of this year’s March Talent Showcase! In the past, I’ve featured various people that have included customizers, dolly seamstresses, knitters, crocheters and eyechip painters! I love doing the Talent Showcase because it gives me the opportunity to meet new people online and it also gives you the opportunity to get your name out there!

In order to be considered “new” at whatever it is that you do (customizing, sewing, knitting, crocheting – all for Blythe!), you must have been doing it no earlier than January 2012.

This year, there will be a maximum of five (5) spots available in the showcase so email me now if you want to get in on it!

The interview process is really simple and takes place via email. Most interviews are 9-12 questions long and you can send me whatever relevant photos you want included (if photos are not taken by you, please get permission from the photographer[s] prior to sending me the photos with links to photographers).

If you are interested, please head over to the How to Get Featured page and let me know! Please include links to any blogs/sites/shops/pages that you want me to look at so I have an idea of what to ask you and be sure to mention that you want to take part in the March Blythe Talent Showcase!

Shopping Saturday is a feature on BlytheLife.com to help you either shop or promote your shop’s sales. If you want to have your sale included in Shopping Saturday, submissions must be made by 12pm Pacific on the Friday before and all coupon codes must be valid for the entire weekend that they are featured.

For more information, you can check out the Shopping Saturday page or send questions to michelle@blythelife.com.

• Sew Do Something has a 10% off coupon code until Monday, January 28 2013 (at least): BLYTHELIFE