We’re going to try something new this week: The Sequin Lead Mailbag. If you like this format, let us know and we’ll consider making this a recurring thing. Have a question? Send it our way.

Q: Is jewelry resale on the apps just as lucrative as clothes?

It depends what you mean by “lucrative,” but let’s start by saying that resale jewelry is 100% a prolific thing — you just gotta find your match. For costume, everyday, and — I won’t mince words here — cheap jewelry, Poshmark and Depop are great places to explore, and they have extensive filtering and search options that really help buyers find exactly what they’re looking for (thin: a $5 lei, a $17.10 vintage statement necklace, etc). Poshmark and Depop also have higher-end jewelry options, but authentication is a little more of a gamble on these platforms. If you’re looking for designer or fine jewelry on Poshmark, I recommend searching exclusively in the Luxury marketplace and insisting the seller provide evidence of authenticity (cards, dust bags, serial numbers, receipts, etc.). Poshmark will also authenticate, free of charge, anything over $500.

My go-tos for higher-end investment jewelry are Rebag, Fashionphile, and The RealReal. They’ll take care of the authentication automatically for you, so you know you’re getting a quality item. Plus, they work with certified gemologists and jewelers who inspect and report on the materials (stones, gems, metals, etc.) carefully. If you’re interested in selling your jewelry to one of these platforms, be sure to check out their commission structures. As of this writing, The RealReal, for example, keeps 25% of the sale price of any branded item over $995 and 35% of the sale price of any unbranded item over $196.

Outside of those three resale apps, there are several collectors who scour estate sales to build impressive collections of jewelry — from costume to high-end to luxury investment pieces that can be passed down over generations. One of my favorites is dkf estate jewelry.

Q: Do you have a sense of how people do selling baby clothes on Mercari?

The short answer: no, because I intentionally don’t use or recommend Mercari.

The long answer: There are soooo many options for buying and selling baby and kids clothes. For a low-effort option, I recommend mailing in your baby or kids pieces to thredUP. Just pack ‘em up in a box, and thredUP will take care of processing, listing, and donating whatever they don’t accept. Note that processing times do take several weeks, so if you’re looking for quick cash for your goods, this isn’t a great option.

Shop Tomorrows is a digital consignment platform specifically for baby and kids. From onesies to dresses, outerwear to shoes, it’s a great option for busy parents who don’t want to have to navigate around other types of items listed on resale apps. Shop Tomorrows uses a token system that in my opinion adds an unnecessary layer of complexity, but it’s not a huge hurdle to figure out.

I come back to Poshmark a lot as a generally solid option, but for busy parents looking to sell baby and kids items, Poshmark might be a little too high-effort. For buying baby and kids items, it’s a no-brainer.