Well, you have two options:

One is to claim that there's something wrong with the auction and disolve it. I've done this in the past, particularly with a piece of fabric that I didn't realize had been peed on by some creature in the past and I couldn't offer the fabric for auction in good conscience. Ebay gives you pretty good outs in situations where you have to end an auction early, even if someone has already bid on it.

The other option is to tell the person you were corrosponding with that someone has placed a bid and therefore negated their informal bid. These are the rules of the game, so if that person can't deal with that, it's not your fault. Since the person you were corrosponding with hasn't placed a bid on the fabric (which they're still welcome to do, I might add), they can't exactly claim that they have priority in this situation. It might piss them off, but you won't get negative feedback over it.

I'm glad there's an out. I hate to piss off the person I've been e-mailing with, but didn't want to rush and end the auction when we were just talking. I e-mailed the person who bid to see if they can take the same about in two pieces, but now I'm inclined to tell the e-mailer, sorry!

Once I e-mailed someone after their auction had closed with no bidders. It was one of those deals where I was waiting to bid - and then forgot to. She said she'd sell me the thing for the opening bid price; then e-mailed me saying she had also promised someone else the same thing and was selling it to them. It happens.

I'm complete;y Not Help...just wanted to commend you on a good use of "Poo"

wow, I'm grammatically impaired!

POO

Thanks, I do want to get it right, it's such a great word!

easiest option....

Tell your wannabe buyer to outbid it high, he buys it for the price agreed no matter what the auction sells for "officially", plus your auctions fees if it goes to a bidding war when it's done. Do your paypal as a seperate payment, for goods, but not an auction so you dont have to put in the item number and has it ring up that full price.

The other bidder is none the wiser and you don't have to cancel an auction, or get a complaint filed by the bidder to ebay, both of which.

See, I knew you guys would know what to do!

So, why didn't the other person just bid on it? I've never sold anything, so I don't know 'seller's etiquette'.

Tune in tomorrow...