Please share your tips for making clothes look good for selling online

[Ed1n]

I’m trying to sell a few nice maternity and children’s items and my photos show every wrinkle! I’m hanging them up again a plain background and trying to get good lighting but I’m still making nice clothes look like rags!! I don’t have a steamer but am ironing them (and this in itself makes shiny marks on jersey items). Argh! Please share any and all tips (cheap ones please) thanks wise ones

You're ironing too hot if you're marking then

You need to reduce the heat on your iron its leaving shiny marks.

Use the steam function or spray function on your iron to help with creases (or iron while a little damp - be careful not to have the heat up too high though).

You can protect heat sensitive items by ironing below a pillow case or tea towel as well. Ironing inside out is also a good tip.

Natural lighting is best, photograph on a sunny day.

Don't tumble dry throughout the life of the garment.

Buy one of those half dummy things, quite cheap on EBay. Makes the clothes hang better.

This is so helpful! It’s a love ironing thread! I’ve turned heat down, ironed inside out and gone at outside with maximum steam. Much improved- any debobbling ideas please for wool and jersey esp the tiny little ones you get on jersey. Thanks 🙏

I bought a hanging mannequin bust for about £10. I hang garments on this, in good lighting and I move it to different lighting if it's not looking it's best.

My secret is to use a steam generator once it's hanging, just before a picture to get it to lay perfectly and crease free. I also pin it in at the back so the garment fits the form.

I don't iron as you get odd streaks in the photos if you do.

But it worth remembering, if you Can make it look ££££ you still always need a photo of the dress off the mannequin in its raw form. Otherwise you'll get lots returns and hassle.

@Ed1n

This is so helpful! It’s a love ironing thread! I’ve turned heat down, ironed inside out and gone at outside with maximum steam. Much improved- any debobbling ideas please for wool and jersey esp the tiny little ones you get on jersey. Thanks 🙏

Bobbles can be fixed with a bobble remover. I use an older style mens razor and put the bobbled arm or front on a well padded board. It has to be absolutely flat with no double layers. Then gently and carefully shave the bubbles off.

It's a bit risky unless you know what you are doing. The bobble remover machines are much easier.

A wool comb will move bobbles.

But selling bobbled jersey, better be high end and only small patches!

Iron them if possible.
Clothes that have been in a bag for too long can get dusty and will look better after a wash and ironing.
Oxygen bleech is great for brightening colours and removing old stains.
Make sure the environment in which you photograph the clothes looks tidy - or better photograph the clothes laying on a neutral (clean) floor or hanging with a white wall as background. Nothing that distracts or makes the photos look messy

@beautifullymad

I bought a hanging mannequin bust for about £10. I hang garments on this, in good lighting and I move it to different lighting if it's not looking it's best.

My secret is to use a steam generator once it's hanging, just before a picture to get it to lay perfectly and crease free. I also pin it in at the back so the garment fits the form.

I don't iron as you get odd streaks in the photos if you do.

But it worth remembering, if you Can make it look ££££ you still always need a photo of the dress off the mannequin in its raw form. Otherwise you'll get lots returns and hassle.

Agree you need one somewhere of it where you haven't pinned it and made it look its best

@Ed1n The back ground, lighting and take multiple pics!

Thanks so much all. The jersey bobbling is tiny, not like wool bobbles and at areas of friction. Don't worry I will describe it all for potential buyer. Thanks so much everyone - some really useful tips

When you iron, either do it on the inside of the garment or use a thin slightly damp cloth - I use an unused muslin square- between the iron and the garment.

In the listing, put the size in the title and keep the title fairly short so that all of it shows in the search.

Don't put gorgeous or stunning in the title.

Not to do with ironing but i sell a lot of clothes on ebay and my tips are take pics of details like logos, fancy buttons etc, the inside label, armpit to armpit measurements and shoulder to hem and if something has a defined waist the waist measurement as well

If it's shoes, photograph the soles and the heels, not just the uppers, and show the size if you can