Policies

Guarantee:

I ship with insurance and delivery confirmation, so full refunds are available for items lost or damaged in shipping. If you are not completely happy with your purchase, return it within 30 days in the same condition as when it arrived and I will issue a refund less shipping cost. All of my jewelry is guaranteed for one year against defects (pieces that have been dropped and broken, or have been subjected to abuse are not guaranteed). If a piece breaks due to a defect, it will be repaired or replaced, or a full refund will be issued minus shipping costs. Simply return it via any insured, trackable method, I cannot be responsible for items lost or damaged in the mail. I will also repair pieces that are older than one year or have been damaged due to abuse, contact me with a description of the piece and purchase info, and I will provide a quote (please note that some unique beads are not replaceable).

Payment

I accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express and PayPal via my PayPal merchant account (same as my email address). You DO NOT have to have a PayPal account to pay with a credit card instead of PayPal. I also accept e-checks through PayPal, but the item will not be shipped until the funds are released by the bank. Texas residents are subject to 8.25% state sales tax.

Shipping

Shipping to all U.S. states and territories is free. I will ship outside of the U.S., but there is a charge. Please contact me with a list of items you wish to purchase, and you location information and I will send you an invoice which includes shipping.

For items that are in stock (everything in my Etsy shop is currently in stock), your purchase will ship within 2-3 business days. If I have to make a piece, it will take longer, typically 1-2 weeks if supplies are in stock, however if I have to order supplies it can take as much as 4-6 weeks, just depending on the supplier. I will notify you with an estimated time frame for delivery. You will receive an email when the item ships.

International shipping: Many types of merchandise, unless sent as unsolicited gifts, require import licenses that the addressees must obtain from their respective governments. Before purchasing an item, please make sure you can obtain the required licenses if needed. There will be no refunds for merchandise not delivered and not returned due to your country's restrictions. If an item is rejected by your country and returned to me, a refund will be issued less shipping cost.

Materials:

I use .925 sterling silver and gold filled wire in my jewelry designs. Gold filled is higher quality than gold plated, with a much thicker layer of gold (5%) over a brass core (100 times more than plated). It will not wear off like plating, and will last for many years. For strung bead pieces, I use 7 strand nylon coated steel wire, except for knotted pearl strands in which I use sturdy silk thread.

Sterling silver is a little softer than the metals used to make manufactured jewelry, because it is so pure (92.5% to be exact). Pure gold, for example is 24k, but you mostly find it in 14k and 18k because it is mixed with other metals to make it harder and stiffer. It's best to remove sterling silver jewelry before taking clothes on and off, that seems to be the primary cause of breakage. I've only had to repair 3 pieces so far (out of several hundred), and all were broken due to getting caught in clothing.

Most quartz beads are lab-grown (synthesized). They are real quartz which has been melted and reformed and/or hand faceted. Unless my listings say natural quartz or rock crystals, the beads are synthesized. Some gemstones (rubies, green amethyst, blue topaz, chalcedony, for example) are heat treated to change or enhance the color. Most freshwater pearls that are not white, cream, champagne pink or peacock are dyed. I use both natural and dyed pearls, but unless stated otherwise, all pearls and gemstones I use are to my knowledge natural. However, I must rely on the information provided by the supplier. Although I have not experienced any problems, I cannot guarantee that the color enhancement and dying processes described above produce lightfast colors. To be safe, I recommend that all colored pearls and gemstones be kept away from strong light and stored in a dark place when not being worn. It is also best not to use harsh cleaning chemicals. An excellent pearl safe jewelry cleaner I recommend is Jewel Brite.

With the exception of abalone shells purchase from a sustainable source (farm raised) in New Zealand, I do not use any purchased coral or seashells in my designs because I cannot verify how they were obtained. The huge market for red coral jewelry worldwide is depleting the species. There has been a movement to put red corals on the threatened species list, but the proposal has been blocked by nations who are benefiting financially from the sales of red coral (the US is the biggest buyer of red coral). A new campaign to increase awareness in the fashion and design industry —aptly titled "Too Precious To Wear"— has been launched by SeaWeb, one of the Coral Reef Alliance's allies in the reef conservation movement.

All sea glass used in my designs was collected by me on Caribbean beaches during my scuba diving trips, and with the exception of drilling holes and some occasional minor touch up, it is unaltered. I do not use glass that has been frosted in a rock tumbler, or purchased at craft stores.

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Links:  I actively trade links with quality web sites with content related to jewelry making. With the exception of a few friends, I do not list individual jewelers. I always ask for permission, so please ask for permission before linking to me. I do not knowingly link to sites with adult or offensive material, excessive popup windows or invasive marketing techniques.