| Please read through our Frequently Asked Questions List for information you may like to know about Earthetarians policies. If you have a question that is not answered here, please contact us through the CONACT US link and we will do our best to answer it right away. |
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Are the inks on the water bottles safe?
What is BSCI Certification
Earth Friends Dolls Return Policy
Shipping Discount info and exclusions
Are Chinese Wooden Toys Safe and Socially Responsibe?
Is Hemlock wood safe?
Product Care
What do these certifications mean?
Are Pure Fiber’s Bamboo Towels certified?
Why isn't everything local?
Return Policies- for ECOLUTION, Buckwheat Pillows and Bamboo Towels
What's up with the shipping boxes?
Return Policies for all items. (Ecolution hemp, Buckwheat hull pillow and Bamboo towel policies differ and are above)
Q: Are the inks on the water bottles safe? Are the inks used to print the Earthetarian logo on your stainless steel water bottles safe? A: Yes, they are. Here is some info from our printer: "Only the highest quality pad printing inks are used in our process. All of our inks have a MSDS report, this separates us from most companies over seas, which allows us to show that our inks come to the standards of the FDA" Q: What is BSCI Certification The Oaki items, (PVC-free rain suits and waders) are certified by BSCI. What does that mean? A: These items are made in China. The BSCI members express their wish to do business with suppliers who take social responsibility seriously. Our Code includes the ten following key elements to improve the worker´s situation: * freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining * prohibition of all forms of discrimination * prohibition of child labour * prohibition of forced labour and disciplinary measures * compensation: minimum wages/living wages * working hours * health and safety at the workplace * environmental and safety issues * implementation of a policy for social accountability * establishment of an anti-bribery and anti-corruption policy China's commercial success has employed millions, and the great need for skilled workers has caused manufacturers to be competitive in offering good working conditions and benefits. The way to tear down communism is to empower the people in a capitalistic way, and I feel our manufacturer fits that role. Q: Earth Friends Dolls Return Policy Below id the return policy for Earth Friends Dolls, although we doubt anyone would need it. These dolls are gorgeous! A: returns(at)theearthfriends.com The Earth Friends want you to be happy with your purchase. If you are dissatisfied please contact us so that we can help to solve the problem. If we are unable to find a solution we will give you a Return Authorization Code. Please include this code with the merchandise and send it back postage paid and insured. When shipping please select a shipping method that provides a tracking number, confirmation of delivery and insurance. Exchanges can be made within 30 days of purchase provided the product has all its hang tags and packaging intact. Q: Shipping Discount info and exclusions Are you lucky enough to have been shopping while I got a wild hare and decided to offer free shipping or $4.99 shipping? Make sure you sign up for the newsletter or you will turn to a pumpkin at midnight. Lucky You. Read on my friend... A: If you saw the FREE SHIPPING offer, use the special code but know it excludes the following: hemp clothes or blankets buckwheat pillows, etc... more than one salt candle- c'mon, they're heavy! For the $4.99 shipping, I will refund you all but $4.99 of your shipping cost through Paypal. If paying by check, place your order and then contact me for you updated total before putting the check in the mail. Doesn't count for: hemp clothes and blankets buckwheat pillows, etc Q: Are Chinese Wooden Toys Safe and Socially Responsibe? Are your toys from China safe? What about working conditions and the materials used? A: Yes, our toys are safe and the people who carve them are well. From the manufacturer: "What we have to learn here in the West, is to start realizing that how we look at the world can be damaging. We're so wrapped up into the media culture here, even people who "want to make a better world" see things one-sidedly. We cannot have a black and white world. And it's a bit arrogant to believe that the whole of China is like that, when it's actually rather rare cases now. Further, our norms can not be imposed on people everywhere. There are countries where if you send children away of factories, their families' subsistance is endangered. And our good intentions can mean that we send children into worse conditions (prostitution, maybe). So please, educate your clients that a simplistic way of viewing things has consequences regards other people's lives. The world can not be a paradise, and it takes a long time to improve things. And we consider that its not by withdrawing from it that we can change the world, rather start working with where things are at. Also, our toys were tested with the most sophisticated equipment, which allow to view the quantities of ALL existing substances in the world. Everything was ok." Q: Is Hemlock wood safe? Is hemlock wood safe? A: We've researched it and, yes, hemlock wood and bark is safe. The needles of some species can be toxic to some exotic birds, but our toys are meant for people and don't have needles anyway. Traditionally, Eastern Hemlock was used for its medicinal properties: "Eastern hemlock contains tannins, which have been used commercially for the tanning industry, and may be responsible for some of its medicinal properties. The bark has astringent activity, and the leaves contain significant amounts of vitamin C. Traditionally, Eastern hemlock was used to treat digestive disorders, mouth/throat disorders, and diarrhea. Preparation methods for Eastern hemlock include steams, teas, ointments, and poultices."(www.naturalstandard.com) You may be thinking of the poisonous hemlock PLANT (Conium maculatum) which is an herb that was used to kill Socrates! Q: Product Care Can Pure Fiber’s product be machine washed? How do I dry my bath/bed linens? Can I use bleach? What type of detergents should I use? A: Yes, our products can be washed just like cotton (cold or warm water) and tumble dry low. You can tumble dry our bath/bed linens in low heat or hang dry. We do not recommend using bleach on natural linens. What type of detergents should I use? Though using regular detergent is fine, we do recommend using natural detergents. Q: What do these certifications mean? What do these certifications mean? A: The SKAL Oeka-Tex is an internationally respected certification of sustainable textiles. They certify that these textiles are made with the lowest practical ecological impact in a safe and fair working environment. These products are made in Pakistan Q: Are Pure Fiber’s Bamboo Towels certified? Are Pure Fiber’s Towel certified? A: The material used to make Pure Fiber’s products is certified by SKAL and/or Oeko-Tex. Q: Why isn't everything local? You say you are an Earth Friendly company. Why do you have items for sale that come from long distances? A: Good question! We are earth friendly and care about out environment deeply. In our home and office, we do everything in our means to protect the environment and its inhabitants, including heating with a USA grown soybean oil blend to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, we buy local, organic foods, we consolidate car trips when we can, recycle, heat with wood, don't fertilize or water our lawn, buy second hand when possible, the list goes on. The items we offer that come from long distances are supporting small communities and the individuals in them. Everything we offer has been researched and is bought through fair trade and the workers are paid above average wages and have good working conditions. (For example the Himalayan Salt Candles, Mexican Break Your Own Geodes, and Wooden toys that come from Russia.) We feel it is important to support all the world's people. We are extremely lucky in the US to have the opportunities that are available to us and we want to do our part to help those who don't. We understand not all will agree with our foreign buying policies, and we invite you to choose only items on our site that are US made or local. Q: Return Policies- for ECOLUTION, Buckwheat Pillows and Bamboo Towels What is the return policy for Ecolution, Buckwheat Pillows and Bamboo Towels items? A: ECOLUTION: Due to the fact that the Ecolution items we carry are drop shipped from the Ecolution warehouse in Santa Cruz, the return policy for these items is that of the Ecolution company. We want you to LOVE your hemp and strongly suggest you grab the tape measure and measure yourself before ordering. The clothing measurements are in the size drop down. I also have available the complete measurements for hips, rise and others, if you would like them. Please email us and we'll get them to you right away for the perfect fit. If, however and item arrived that just doesn't fit you, you may, of course exchange it or return it for a refund of the purchase price, minus a 25% restocking fee. We can not refund the shipping charges, sorry! All returns must be made within one week of receipt of item. Additional shipping fees will apply for exchanges, so PLEASE keep this in mind when ordering. Please take the extra time to do the measurements! BUCKWHEAT PILLOWS AND ACCESSORIES: Due to the personal nature these items, returns can only be accepted for manufacturing defects and items that are unused ans still in original packaging within 30 days of purchase. There is a 25% restocking fee for returns and exchanges. If you try one and decide you just don't like it, we suggest giving it a week or two to get yourself used to it and if you just can't, passing it along to a friend. BAMBOO TOWELS AND ROBES: We stand behind the quality of our products and services. A FULL REFUND is given to any order returned within 30 days. We stand by the products we make, so if you are not happy with your purchase for any reason, please return them for an exchange or refund. Let us know what went wrong, so we can make sure it doesn't happen again to you or to anyone else. If it's not right, give us the chance to make it right. Please note that we charge a 25% "restocking fee". Q: What's up with the shipping boxes? The box my stuff came in a box that said organic peas on it. What's up with that? A: Where ever possible, Earthetarian and our handcrafts website, www.ElementalHandcrafts.com use recycled packaging to mail our goods. That means you may get a reused box from some incoming mail, a carton from our food co-op or any other number of places we can find a box to re-use. We also use newspaper or other stuffing to pad the boxes with. No virgin paper, here. If you are lucky, your package will be padded with none other than the Kanab, Utah local paper. Makes for good reading. Especially if you are lucky enough to get the police report. It can be pretty dang comical. Check it out!! We ask that you reuse the boxes we send you, too. Reduce-Reuse-Recyle. It's the way to go. The items in your package will be in tip-top, brand new condition! Q: Return Policies for all items. (Ecolution hemp, Buckwheat hull pillow and Bamboo towel policies differ and are above) What is the return policy for Earthetarian products? A: We want you to be happy with your purchases. Period. We want you back and if you buy something you decide not to keep, we'll take it back! Here are the rules: (Ecolution hemp and Buckwheat Pillow policies differ slightly, so please read those above.) If you buy it and it is broken due to a manufacturing defect, we will exchange it or refund you 100% after return of the item. We'll refund all shipping costs, too. If you buy it and just don't like it, as long as it is in resaleable condition, we will exchange it or refund you 100%, minus shipping. You are also responsible for the shipping back to us and we suggest you insure it just in case. Please let us know it's on it's way so we are on the lookout for it. If it's an exchange, we'll cover the shipping back to you, because we're cool like that and want you to come back and tell all your friends about us. For sanity sake, lets say all returns must be made within 30 days of purchase date. Someday when we are a huge enterprise, we'll cover all the expenses, but can't right now because we are a Mom-n-Pop and if we paid all the shipping and what not our bunnies wouldn't get all the fresh organic parsley and lettuce they are used to. (Actually, they'd still get it, but you know what we mean.) Thank you. |