Broken Salviati Cordials :(

[TxSilver]

I bought a set of four early, delicate, and rare Salviati cordials. They were gorgeous. The seller (Grrrrr!) packed all four in a small priority mail box. Surprisingly, two made it in one piece. I am so angry and upset with this seller. I wish people who don't love glass wouldn't handle it. Saving a couple of dollars in postage is not worth breaking 100+ year old glass that is never going to be made again. Packing it in too small of a box was about the same as throwing it on the sidewalk.

I feel better now. I know that people here will understand. I think we ought to make glass abuse or endangerment a crime.

Anita

[publius71]

I wholeheartedly agree! I have also purchased a vase, and it arrived broken, it was packaged so poorly there was not way it would not have arrived any other way. I always leave negative feedback, especially if its obvious that the seller was lazy in packing it. Its a shame to hear that a piece of handmade glass that has been around so long was broken because of the sellers carelessness. :mad:

[TxSilver]

A vase is the saddest thing of all. Artists can really put their hearts into some of them, and it shows.

Your message reminded me of something that happened a couple of months ago. I bought a F Toso carnivale vase. The seller packed it in a box that was about the same size as the vase, with nothing but a few pieces of broken foam to protect it. I was really nervous when I opened the box. The vase survived! The only thing I figured was that the good glass fairy hovered close by, protecting the vase.

I think many people don't know what a box goes through during shipping. One of the people at the post office told me that they often drop several feet and can have other boxes land on them. He told me that something needs at least two inches of cushioning on all sides in addition to the bubble wrap -- even more if the glass is fragile.

Negative feedback the seller will get, for sure. I had been looking for glasses like these for a long time. They were beyond gorgeous and now they are gone.

Anita

[fossilfly]

That is a shame, I have been shipping glass for years, and have had very few broken items. I can probably count them on one hand. If its particularly fragile, I double box it and use extra peanuts. Its all common sense really, not much of an excuse for not doing it right!

[brwvabell]

When I pack anything and Most especially glass, I pack as if the package was going to be Kicked all the way to its destination :)

Brenda

[glassman]

When I pack anything and Most especially glass, I pack as if the package was going to be Kicked all the way to its destination :)

Brenda

:D Thats a great way of putting it! I wish more people thought in the same manner!

[biddaeverything]

When I pack anything and Most especially glass, I pack as if the package was going to be Kicked all the way to its destination :)

Brenda

ha ha, that's great Brenda because, often it is. i've had countless boxes arrive that were smashed, dented, crumpled and otherwise obviously abused in transit. i was told that any package sent through USPS needs to be packed so that it can safely be dropped from 3 feet on any edge, corner or side without causing any damage to the contents. i never, ever pack my glass with paper because it compresses in transit and can allow the contents to rattle around. if one can hear any movement when shaking the packed box, they need more packing material. bubble wrap, foam peanuts are best and what i always use and when an item is particularly fragile or heavy i double box as well. i pack as if the piece were making a round-the-world trip back to me.

it's such a heartbreak to have something arrive broken. obviously, we buy it because we want the piece more than we want the money so a refund (even in the rare occassion that the seller offers to refund s/h as well) doesn't cut it. i would feel miserable if i was ever the cause of someone feeling the way i have felt when opening a box of broken glass so i do absolutely everything i can to make sure that never happens.

bidda

bidda

[shandiane78]

Anita, have you asked the seller for a partial refund, and if so, did the seller comply? If the seller is difficult, and if you paid with Paypal, you can open a dispute as the items that arrived were "Significantly Not As Described". You can dispute the payment.

Good luck, and so sorry this has happened! It has happened to me too, but not with something as special as these. I try to only buy "chunky" glass on ebay. Sometimes it survives and arrives safely even with the WORST packaging.

[TxSilver]

Hi, Shanediane. This is an old thread that was bumped up. The post office reluctantly paid me for the two broken glasses. I was surprised, since it really wasn't their fault. I still would have much rather had the glasses. They were from ca 1900, so irreplaceable. I am always concerned about the amount of glass destroyed in the mail.

Anita

[alphagemo]

On small items I like to take thick carpet roll tubes and cut them to size, wrap the item in bubble wrap until it's just snug inside with plenty of room on both ends. Then in the box I reinforce the sides and roll cardboard into support pillars inside and pack it all tight in peanuts or foam or something. They have to run over them to break anything, you can stand on my boxes. I'm not going to have an old rare piece of glass or anything else broken on my account. I've made wooden frames, packed in metal cans I reinforced even more. If you build it like an architectural structure thats going to take a load, they almost can't break the item. I sent a very old glass lamp shade to Australia in a hard thick plastic bucket with a lid, and more support in the box outside of it, some time ago. You know I've had complaints for ugly packaging when there was no way their item could have been damaged? Who cares? There is just no pleasing some people. :rolleyes:

PS, sorry about your Salviatis Tx, that's a cryin shame.

[TxSilver]

I don't mind ugly packaging at all. One thing that drives me crazy is when someone mummifies delicate glass with tape. It is hard to dissect the glass without breaking the glass. I use only a single piece of tape when packing, with a piece of paper tucked under the end, so the recipient can just lift to open.

The only glass that I have had to break was a beautiful Salviati glass that was double-boxed. I did not leave enough room between the outer and innner box, so the inner box broke the glass when the outer box was compressed -- dumb of me with this rare glass. I don't double-box anymore. I just use a large outer box and a lot of bubble wrap and peanuts. It seems to work better making the inner box out of bubble wrap.

Anita

[fossilfly]

I don't mind ugly packaging at all. One thing that drives me crazy is when someone mummifies delicate glass with tape. It is hard to dissect the glass without breaking the glass. I use only a single piece of tape when packing, with a piece of paper tucked under the end, so the recipient can just lift to open.

The only glass that I have had to break was a beautiful Salviati glass that was double-boxed. I did not leave enough room between the outer and innner box, so the inner box broke the glass when the outer box was compressed -- dumb of me with this rare glass. I don't double-box anymore. I just use a large outer box and a lot of bubble wrap and peanuts. It seems to work better making the inner box out of bubble wrap.

Anita

For certain items I double box, but more often than not, I add a flat sheet of cardboard between the packing material and the box when closing it. It acts like a 2nd box, and strenghthens the walls considerably. The extra cardboard doesn't have to be the same size as the wall of the box, just large enough to buffer any sharp jolts. I use old boxes that can't be reused. I've been selling glass for years, and VERY rarely have broken items.

However, the best idea in a long while is Instapak. Its not cheap, but really cannot be beat. Heres a link: http://www.sealedair.com/products/protective/instapak/instapak.html

[jelicanefertiti]

I bought 2 weeks ago four venetian glasses on eBay and they came in homemade box inside empty toilet paper tubes ,and believe me or not only one was broken , seller was new on eBay , I paid it really cheap (just £2 )and I didn't have hart to left negative feedback

[fossilfly]

Thats a shame. But shipping glass is an art. In all the years that I have been shipping glass, I have had only one large sculpture broken. Not a bad track record, if I say so myself.

A few tips:

Use peanuts, not paper.
Have at least 2 inches between the item and the wall of the box.
Wrap the item in bubble wrap and then place it in the box with peanuts.
For very fragile items, add additional cardboard to the inside of the box to strengthen the walls of the box. It doesn't have to match the dimensions of the box, but it adds significant strength for minimal weight. Its essentially a double box, but you can use scrap cardboard and weights less than a double box.:)