I want to sell all my Red Hat items (clothes, purses, bling, shoes, etc.) on E-bay. I notice there is a category devoted to just Red Hat items. Several have listed the cost of the item plus there is an indication of what the shipping will be which would be paid for by the buyer. I know I can be dense at times - I don't know how people can figure the postage without taking everything to the post office first to weigh it. Anyone sell on E-bay? Will someone, if they can, give me tips on how to figure in the cost of postage without taking things to the post office first? Thank you.

There are several ways I have done that in the past but to me far and away the easiest is to just have a bunch of 'flat rate' priority mail boxes around and see what size the item(s) fit into. No matter how far inside the US the package goes or how heavy it gets, the fee is the same (thus 'flat rate'). It may not be the cheapest way, but it is the most predictable cost. The cost is different for different size boxes and the various flat rate boxes are free from USPS.

If you are planning to use the USPS shipping shops to cover the postage, be aware that the above will not be acceptable as you are NOT to use the USPS provided boxes and the clerk is to 'suggest' priority mail. In that case, a kitchen scale with a non-USPS box can give you the weight. It has been a while but if I recall there is a calculator you can link to your ad that when a potential customer puts in their zip they can see the cost as it will be automatically calculated based on the weight you put in and the number of zones from your zip.

i sell online. definitely get a scale so you know the weight range. the USPS website has a shipping calculator now. i use my zip and a zip in the furthest zone from me to get a high estimate to avoid surprises. The shipping calculator on USPS.com does not provide as many options as the ebay calculator. To see everything, i keep an old sale visible then pretend as if i am going to print another label to open the ebay shipping options window.

the BOTTOM line is most important to me so i keep all my shipping options open. I list ALL my items as shipping FREE ECONOMY with an option to ship Priority upgraded buyer paid. I ship 2 day (since ebay removed the incentives to ship faster). This allows me flexibility to choose the best shipping option for my bottom line.

1st class shipping is cheapest overall if under 16oz. i make every effort to ship 1st class when weight allows. SmartPost (a USPS/FedEx hybrid) is the next cheapest, slower. Use your own boxes for SmartPost. My last option is Priority. Note that there is also a Regional Flat Rate service that can work out better that Regular flat rate. The regional flat rate boxes are also a bit bigger. I am an origami expert now! MAKE IT FIT if it won't break or destroy your items over 1 pound.

Bubble wrap is a must. I swear by tyvek envelopes (super lightweight). I avoid boxes where possible. AND YES, get all the USPS shops you can. I am overjoyed when a shop coincides with a sale!

i hope i could help. happy selling

I love eBay (and hate the fees). You can get a "free" scale from Stamps.com when you sign up and try it out. Even if you pay for a full month of the service, you'll probably come out ahead because they give you a scale, usually free postage, and the paper to print your postage on. I'm with FLASH on being an origami expert. I can fit an XL Frette bathrobe into a large flat rate box. Good luck!