The one that got away...  

I've
lost a pair of 1904 Robert Jarvie "Beta" patinated brass candlesticks, to theft. They were a wedding gift to my grandparents, and a sought-after gem of the Arts and Crafts movement. I loved them. They're probably sitting on someone's mantel, somewhere, polished -- and ruined.

I lost a Hans Wegner dining...
I lost a Hans Wegner dining suite, 6 "the chairs" and an extendable table all for the grand total of 75 dollars (folks are dumb where I come from) It was in a thrift store with a sold sticker on it, I got the guys phone number but his wife would not sell for any amount of money, I still hate her.
I did buy a cool lounge suite today, its well made (teak cradles ) very comfortable, seats almost identical to Jacobsens 3300...for 80 bucks, highest one has hit on ebay is 100, what a stinker! Looks like another lounge suite on the pile 🙂
This is it (ebay pic, mine has slightly less offensive upholstery, I can't understand how its only worth a pittance, serious error of judgement, I still like it, though what do I need with MORE chairs? They loosely clip onto the frame with some nifty looking aluminium tabs.

Egg
Bragging about misses is the new black.
I've passed on so many bargains...
Two regrets that keep coming back to haunt me, both went for less then $100:
- The badly listed wooden Panton rocker on German Ebay.
- That old egg chair that needed new upholstery in my local thrift store about 10 years ago.

Over the years...
too many items I bid on on eBay that I didn't win. It's too painful to try to remember all of 'em.
With eBay, as you all know, you win some and you lose lots of stuff.

I'm more jealous of
Pieces fellow collectors have found. Case in point: a buddy found a mint Barcelona table in rare Stainless for $75....and a Bertoia bird chair, also for $75. The things you find when you don't have a 9-5 must be amazing.

.
I missed out on a pair of Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller dressers for $75 on CL because my incoming email wasn't working and I didn't know it. I found out after the impatient seller sold them to someone else that I WAS the first to respond to them too so they would have been mine. She waited a whole 4 hours before selling them. GRR.
Also made arrangements to pick up 4 Hans Wegner "the chair"s for $300 on CL and then they emailed to say they were no longer available and we found them on eBay that night.
Friend's of ours picked up a Nelson swag leg chair in a lady's garage sale leftovers (the stuff that didn't sell at her garage sale) for $2.

Eames Table
An early Eames plywood leg rectangular side table. It was listed on Ebay as "Thonet Style", but was definitely Eames. I bid it up to 300 then had to pull back - my only consolation was that it went to a big dealer who's history told me he would have gone HIGH. At least then it didnt feel like an "oh if only I'd bid 10$ more!" kind of situation. Still, a nerve wracking 6 day auction!
An Eames aluminum lounge chair for $200 - I'd just bought an LCW and didnt have room or money. A 20$ arm shell on Craigslist. Ahh well... better to have loved and lost, etc.

I saw a pair of chairs that...
I saw a pair of chairs that needed some repair, but were definitely in restorable condition on CL for $50. They looked familiar, but I couldn't place them. I called, asked if there were any markings (there were not), so I passed. 2 days later, I happened on them by chance on eBay...Wegner Sawback chairs, that had gone up to $1500. I called back, but they were gone.
That hurts.
fm

Yea Craiglist is notorious for people renegging...
I had so many things go awry on CL because I expressed interest "too soon" and scared off the sellers into either keeping their items or selling to a "higher offer".Hate when that happens!I was closing in on a beautiful Edward Fields custom rug,but the lady emailed that her husband thought it was really valuable and rather than endure the toture if she sold it,she bowed out of the deal in the name of preserving sanity.Sad thing is ,it was her mum's originally,and the rug is sitting in her garage-mouse bait.Well,what can you do?

Yeah, the only way you can...
Yeah, one of the ways you can minimize cold-feet with sellers is to call right away and calmly tell them you'd like to come and have a look. Act ambivalent. If you tell them "I'll take it" over the phone, that sends red flags. If you start asking questions about what marks are on the item, they start doing their own research.
I'm pretty sure that's what happened to the Wegner chairs I missed out on.
I also missed out on a sweet-looking Danish pedestal partner's desk for $500. I was the first caller. I made a commitment to go out there to look at it (and probably get it). I arranged for the truck for the visit the next day. I got halfway there and got a call from the guy who said someone (who'd been working him for a solid day) was on their way to buy both items that had on CL. I was so ticked, but what could I do.
Lesson learned...if you really want something, go NOW...don't wait around for some clown to work on the seller with aggressive tactics.
fm

I just missed a pair of...
I just missed a pair of Eames aluminum group management chairs in black in decent shape on craigslist for $10!!!!!! They labelled "office chairs." Shucks.

Plycraft lounge & ottoman: $30
I stopped into a church rummage sale and spotted a Plycraft lounge and ottoman with a price tag of $30. When I told the attendant that I wanted to buy them, I was told they'd already sold. I'm actually not a huge Plycraft fan--I'm saving to buy the 'real' Eames 670 & 671--, but I'd gladly have bought the set for $30. Pretty disappointing.

Just missed out on an Arco Flos floor Lamp with marble base
It was Craigslist and I asked a question as to its condition.When I responded back,it was already sold.Aargh.