After a few years with E-Bay, I have to tell you, it's still all about packing!

Becoming a power seller, I have seen packing material that is unbelievable. Diapers, Newspapers, Toilet Paper, etc., etc.,

I believe that the most important step after a sale is the packing, especially when we talk about expensive porcelain figurines and sculptures. I specialize in European Porcelain and Figurines. Here are some tips:

• Never use a small carton to pack a porcelain figurine
• Never use newspapers to pack a porcelain figurine
• Never put more than one porcelain figurine in a carton unless the carton has ample room
• Never pack a porcelain figurine too tight, however, make sure it cannot move around in the box
• Never forget that unwrapping has to be done just as careful as wrapping

Now, let's give a real example: An exquisite porcelain piece, such as an Augarten Lipizzaner and Rider:

Never use a newspaper to wrap the porcelain figurine. If you have to, make sure you wrap it with some soft tissue first. By the way, my suggestion is never to use newspapers - period - when packing porcelain. Delicate figurines like Augarten, Meissen, Dresden, Wallendorf, Hummel, etc., require special attention to detail. A rearing horse or a waving Art Deco figurine leaves too much space inbetween the design of the figurine. Tissue paper is the solution to wrap each individual part.

Choosing a carton is important! For those of you who don't know, the US Postal Service (USPS) provides several sizes of cartons for free (Priority or Express Mail) along with other paraphernalia for packing and sending. For the rest of you packing needs, U-Line is a good and affordable source.

Back to the carton: Any fragile item should have at least a few inches between the item and the wall of the carton. Use packing peanuts - they are the safest and safe you money on shipping weight. Be careful with double boxing, because a fragile items is pretty much confined. Remember, the chances of breakage are much higher if you do not use a big enough carton.

I sell pretty much very fragile items, which are pricey. Someone who buys a Meissen Centerpiece for a few hundred Dollars cares more about the safe arrival of the item, then the shipping cost. In my years on E-Bay I have had many broken items arrive due to irresponsbile packing. I am not just a seller, but I buy many of my items also on E-Bay.

It is my believe that out of all steps selling on E-Bay, the packing is the most important. Trying to safe money on packing, shipping and handling does not pay off in the long run. Naturally, there are exceptions, depending on what delivery system one uses. I have made the experience that UPS has cost me a lot of money, because of their neglicent handling of my packages. On the other hand, USPS has been pretty good in delivering my merchandise safe to the customer. Of course, the packing is 90 percent of that success.

Happy Packing