To avoid huge lines of text if several things are done to an item however, maybe have a toggle on the piece to allow you to decide what specific aspect is detailed in the short description? As an example, let me use a wool shirt.
Say I ended adding a fur trim to it, and maybe some bone buttons and decided on having the trim show.look shirt
You take a closer look at a fine ivory loose wool shirt (bloody) that you are wearing ...
A simple, loose sleeved upper garment.
All the adjustments could show on looking at the item, but not on the short. The player could "toggle" the item, and instead it would show...look shirt
You take a closer look at a fur-trimmed fine ivory loose wool shirt (bloody) that you are wearing ...
A simple, loose sleeved upper garment with carved bone buttons and trimmed with fur.
Showing: Fur-trimmed
Options: Fur-trimmed, with carved bone buttons
Or some combination of that. Perhaps these accessories could also be removed/changed by crafters and have different effects. For example, players may want to fur-trim a lot of clothing for an added benefit to warmth but it would slightly increase the weight. Maybe some players would just have a set of clothes they swap to for colder times of the year, others might decide to get the lining removed/added with the seasons.look shirt
You take a closer look at a fine ivory loose wool shirt with carved bone buttons (bloody) that you are wearing ...
A simple, loose sleeved upper garment with carved bone buttons and trimmed with fur.
Showing: with carved bone buttons
Options: Fur-trimmed, with carved bone buttons
I'm sure some more creative players who know crafting could come up with all sorts of other ideas on little accessories. I'd also like to see similar stuff done to weapons.
Two ideas for this might immediately be wrapping the grip, and doing something with the pommel.You take a closer look at a fine steel longsword that is in a rough pine crate labeled "Weapons" ...
A sword with a long, straight blade, wide crossguard, and a grip long enough to accommodate two hands if desired.
And so forth! Try to ignore my descriptions. You could potentially have woodcarvers do all sorts of stuff for hafted weapons, the same perhaps for wooden shields, with metalworkers doing so with patterns on shields, tailors doing stuff on tabards, etc, etc.You take a closer look at a fine steel longsword with a leather grip that is in a rough pine crate labeled "Weapons" ...
A sword with a long, straight blade, wide crossguard, and a leather grip long enough to accommodate two hands if desired. The pommel is of a tear-drop style and has been capped with a green tourmaline.
Showing: Leather grip
Options: Leather grip, tear-drop pommel, capped with a green tourmaline