8 ITEMS I FREQUENTLY SEARCH FOR ON FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE AND THE KEYWORDS I USE TO FIND THEM

If you’ve been here before, chances are you’re well aware of my obsession with Facebook Marketplace. It’s one of the things I’m frequently asked about and I’ve done my best to share everything I know so that you, too, can find great things for your home. 

After my recent office makeover, which was furnished with mostly FB MP finds, I started getting an influx of messages that all sounded the same: “you’re so lucky, I never find anything good in my area.” It blew my mind because I know there’s stuff out there. Good stuff. 

But why wasn’t anyone finding it? 

I started doing what Emily from Emily Every Day does on her IG stories and began searching cities around the country on FB MP based on the locations I was told had “absolutely nothing good.” 

I was surprised that in most cities, I did find good stuff. And lots of it. 

I think it had to do with the algorithm and words I used to search. When I scoured other places around the U.S., the great items that popped up were based on things that I’ve personally saved and searched from my own local Marketplace. Interesting.

So, when I searched other cities, Facebook seemed to recognize visually similar images and words from my own saved items and that’s why I was able to find things that maybe not other people had found during their own search. 

Basically, in addition to the keywords I’m sharing with you below, I think it’s important to save items that are visually similar to what you’re looking for so that every time you open FB MP, great things appear in your feed and not diapers or something. Make sense?

Today I’m addressing the whole keyword topic and answering one of the most asked questions I receive about finding things on FB MP: what words did you search to find that?!

First and foremost, there’s sort of a keyword “formula” that I use when I search:

• 1st word: usually “vintage” or “antique” (because they don’t make things like they used to :))
• 2nd word: any brand, color, quantity or specifics you’re looking for. Including this really narrows your results but you also have a greater chance of finding exactly what you’re looking for
• 3rd word: the actual item (i.e. chair, rug)

A few examples:

• Vintage green Milo Baughman chairs
• Antique flame mahogany console table
• 2 Louis XVI cane chairs

I always search with at least two words and if I’m looking for something specific, I’ll add in a third word. The results are too broad with just one word and you most likely will need to comb through hundreds/thousands of results to find anything decent, like at a bad garage sale. 

I’ve found that it’s important to think outside the box with your terms because unfortunately, most people do not know WTF they’re selling.

I’ve seen some of the most beautiful vintage or designer items described in such a simple manner, such as “old chairs.” 

Like no, Stewart, those are Milo Baughman parsons chairs in pristine condition and they’re worth wayyy more than $45. But I will happily take them for $50. 

On the contrary, if Stewart knew that he was selling Milo Baughman parsons chairs, he would have probably labeled them as so and listed them for a lot more, because Stewart knows his shit. 

What I’m trying to say is…you need to know your shit too. It’s up to you to recognize what’s valuable, what’s junk and when you need to jump all over those Milo Baughman parsons chairs when they pop up for $45. Maybe you can reupholster them and create something fabulous.

There are plenty of things that I personally search for (depending on the room I’m working on), but today I’m sharing frequently searched items from the last year and a few of the terms I use to search for them. A lot of the terms are repetitive and most of them contain vintage and antique, but I figured I’d just share it all. 

1. SOFAS AND CHAIRS

Not that I can bring any home without being handed divorce papers, but it’s fun and slightly masochistic to see what’s out there. Check out this post on buying secondhand sofas and chairs. 

• Custom upholstered [chair or sofa]
• Designer [chair or sofa]
• Vintage [chair or sofa]
• Set of vintage chairs
• Old upholstered [chair or sofa]
• Vintage fabric [chair or sofa]
• Velvet [chair or sofa]
• Vintage [chair or sofa]
• Vintage loveseat
• Upholstered [chair or sofa]
• French [chair or sofa]
• 6 vintage dining chairs
• Louis XVI chairs

2. RUGS

I am superrrr picky about rug patterns and rarely find any vintage rugs that I love on FBMP, but they’re definitely there and very abundant.

• Heriz
• Lilihan
• Oriental
• Persian
• Vintage rug
• Floral antique rug
• Vintage Oushak 
• Muted hand woven rug
• Antique rug
• Old rug

3. MIRRORS

• Ornate mirror
• Vintage mirror
• Gold mirror
• Frameless mirror
• Venetian mirror
• French mirror

4. ART

I think we’re all picky about the art we bring into our home and it’s hard to find something that speaks to us, but I have found a few beautiful framed oil paintings that were definitely priced way lower than they should have been using these terms:

• Antique framed art
• Oil on canvas art
• Vintage floral art
• Landscape painting
• Gold frame painting

5. COFFEE TABLES

• Brass coffee table
• Vintage coffee table
• Heavy cocktail table
• Burl coffee table

6. LIGHTING

• Visual comfort
• Hudson valley lighting
• Solid brass lamp
• 2 vintage sconces
• Antique lamps
• Vintage chandelier
• Brass light

7. CHESTS

• Solid wood vintage chest
• Marble top dresser
• French chest of drawers
• Flame mahogany chest
• Burl dresser
• Antique drawers
• Stone top chest
• Marble commode (not to be confused with just a “commode”) 🙂
• Chester drawers (yes, this is the misspelling of chest of drawers. You’d be surprised at how many listings are under this term)

8. END TABLES

• Antique drum table
• Mahogany end table
• Vintage side table
• Old round end table
• Solid wood end table
• Marble top end table
• Vintage brass side table

Including a list of just a few quality brands to look out for and add to your search (some I originally shared in this post):

• Baker
• Bassett
• Broyhill
• Bernhardt
• Century
• Drexel Heritage
• Durham
• Ethan Allen
• Henkel Harris
• Henredon
• Hooker Furniture
• Kincaid
• Klaussner
• Knoll
• Kravet
• Lee Industries
• Mastercraft
• MCM
• Milo Baughman
• Mitchell gold 
• Sherrill
• Stanley
• Stickley

Again, feel free to get creative with these terms and add your own specific words based on what you’re searching for. These are all based on my own style and what I’m looking for. 

A few more resources that can help you find fabulous things on Facebook Marketplace:

• If you haven’t already, check out this post: 8 Tips for Sourcing Quality Furniture on Facebook Marketplace. 
• And if you’re interested in additional tips and some of the things I found around the country, check out my Facebook 1, Facebook 2 and Facebook 3 IG story highlights.

As always, feel free to comment with any questions you have. I really hope this post, as well as the other tips I’ve shared, can help you find great things on Facebook Marketplace.

Have a great week, friends!

xo

Alisa