Taobao

Taobao highlights
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Auv2fkA6DdppdHQ4dTY4c1ZMZmlTVTlidDBjakxDV2c#gid=0
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ah--YzOvA37wdDFLclhpelRRbFlkTnNVaGk0X2tJbkE#gid=0

FAQ
*What the heck is taobao and what is this moonspeak
Taobao is basically Chinese ebay. Use a translator like bing or google translate and it suddenly becomes like any other website.

*How do I order?
99% of shops will only ship within China, so you'll need a shopping service to order from there. There are lists on egl (livejournal) and hellolace of shopping services, as well as guides on how to use taobao.

*Who's the best shopping service?
There is no "best" shopping service. It's all subjective. There are reviews online of just about every service under the sun, but ultimately it just comes down to personal preference.

*But I want to know people's personal experiences
Google them.

*IS THAT THE REAL PRICE?!?!
Yes, those are the real prices. The catch is you'll need to factor in international shipping.

*BUT GOOGLE TRANSLATE PUT A DOLLAR SIGN ($) NEXT TO THE PRICE.
Ignore it. The prices are in Chinese yuan. The end.

*How do I find ________?
I find thatGoogle translate is pretty accurate when it comes to search terms. Another trick I use is I copy listing titles of similar items and things I like, and save common keywords to use to look more similar things up that way.

*I just found these [so and so] on taobao and I really like them. Does anyone know where I can find more?
See above answer.

*Does anyone know how much ____ and ____ and _____ would cost to ship to _____?

Most shopping services have shipping estimators on their sites. If you have similar items on hand, and a scale, you can weigh them to figure out the weight and roughly how much you'd pay. If you don't have a scale, you can also try taking them to the post office and asking them to weigh it for you, which I used to do all the time. SAL and Airmail are the cheap alternatives to EMS. SAL is best if your package is very heavy, airmail if you're only getting one or two things.
Replies to this post:

*Is [such and such] shop reputable?
Okay, the rating system for taobao goes like this: Hearts (new store) < Diamonds < Silver Crowns < Gold Crowns (well established and long running store)
Instead of measuring feedback percentages like ebay, the ratings measure the amount of transactions completed, in addition to ratings. You can click on these ratings to be taken to the feedback page, and can seperate positive (red flower) neutral (yellow flower) and negative (black flower) feedback, and translate. This can also be done from individual item pages by scrolling all the way to the bottom for item-specific feedback.

*Where are all the sizes?

They don't use traditional sizes like we do. Instead they list the maximum measurements of the clothes. You'll need to get a tape measure and measure yourself.

*How do I find plus size shoes and clothes?
This: 大码

You can also add xxxl to your search for clothes instead of the chinese character.

*I read this whole FAQ but I still don't know what to do because hurrdurr

Google. Google is your friend. There is an endless resource of reviews and guides out there, all you need to do is do a little research.