Processing time

*Low inventory may cause more time in Processing time.

*Not following the proper direction may result in the shipping delay.

Estimated shipping times

Payment Information

We accept all major credit cards with the service provided by Square & Paypal (with Account payment as well). You may send us a check as well. When you choose the "Payment with Check" option, we will contact you shortly after you placing the order. We cannot edit the order as we do NOT keep the card information on our end. Also, please be advised that the processing will not be refuneded when the refund is requested by the customer. Full refund is availabe for our Store Credit.

Please Also Read Full Version of Shipping Policy:

Shipping Information & Policy

Our philosophy in wrapping and shipping received many comments and feedback. I appreciate the empathy I received. On top of our philosophy, it is our responsibility to deliver the ordered items to the customer. In order to avoid any unfortunate misunderstanding, here is a summary of our Shipping information, procedure, and policy in addition to the description below each product page. (Last Update: October 2019)

Human prepare & deliver the order

We are not a big wear house with an automated Robot picking up the items. Upcycle Stitches LLC is a single-member LLC (by Atsushi). Atsushi is responsible for all the orders in the USA & from the USA. Keiko, as a Sashiko artisan - sole entrepreneur, is responsible for all the preparation of the order in Japan & from Japan. As much as we try out best to be speedy to meet the market expectation, we sometimes have an unfortunate situation to prepare as speedy as we want. Your understanding that the human prepare the order would be very much appreciated. We will do our best.

Sashiko Shipping Fees

I understand that "Shipping Free on all orders" by including the shipping fee on the price of each product will be the optimized solution for the online business in Today's world. However, I choose to apply the shipping fee and keeping the product pricing as low as possible to sustain our activity. I believe it is a lot fair - since shipping itself never is "free".

The U.S. Domestic Shipping Fees

The most case scenarios, I will use the USPS for shipping your package. The shipping fee will be calculated based on the item's weight, size, and destination. You may upgrade to the USPS Priority Mail for better service, faster delivery, and more accurate tracking.

International Shipping Fees

Most of the orders will be shipped from the United States with USPS. Depends on the destination, however, the package may be shipped Japan for the speed & safety of the shipment. If you do not find your tracking in USPS, please try Japan Post here. There will not be any additional fees for this change on our side. All of the packages out from Japan will be shipped with Regular Air (with tracking). Please contact us if you would like to upgrade your shippig. Customs and Import Taxes: Buyers are responsible for any customs and import taxes that may apply, and all the process required. We are not responsible for delays due to customs. We cannot solve the case from a foreign country when the issue occurs. Of course, we will provide the documents required.

Customs and Import Taxes:

Buyers are responsible for any customs and import taxes (& related fees) that may apply. We are not responsible for delays due to customs.

Possible Contraband Items:

Each Country has a list of Contraband goods. Before placing the order, please make sure that you check the list of goods that can be imported to your country. Once we receive the order, we will do our best to research. When we find out the order contains the contraband items, we will consult with you for what we can do. In a case of cancelling the order, please be advised that the retular cancel/refund policy will be applied (The refund will be total minus Processing Fee - The Payment Processing Fee will not be refuneded).

We will do our best in researching, but please be advised that we are not responsible on missing the information on Possible Contraband Items. In case of package returning to us due to the Contraband Items, we reserve the right to request for the additional shipping fee to complete the order.

Buyers are responsible for checking if the country can import the specific items they are about to purchase. We are not responsible for delays or even rejection by customs when the items are not importable. Please double check with the policy for possible Contraband items.

Shipping and Handling

Estimated Shipping Times: Most of the orders will be shipped on the next business day after confirming the order. The actual shipping time varies from the shipping address as well as the shipping method.

• The USA Domestic: 2~6 business days via USPS
• International: 3~25 business days via USPS or Japan Post

I’ll do my best to meet these shipping estimates but cannot guarantee the accuracy of timing. Most of the orders will be shipped out within a few days unless there are no announce made. The actual delivery time will depend on the shipping method you choose.

*The "Transit" time website state is the "Transit time" of USPS receive the order and complete the delivery to your address. This transit time doesn't includes days of us preparing the package. It usually doesn't take days to prepare. However, when we have workshops, the delay will happen in preparation. I will make an announcement when the delay is expected.

Some of the international orders may be shipped from Japan. When you receive the shipping confirmation email, please go to "Japan Post Tracking Website" if the tracking number ends with "JP".

Customs and Import Taxes:

Buyers are responsible for any customs and import taxes (& related fees) that may apply. We are not responsible for delays due to customs.

Buyers are responsible for checking if the country can import the specific items they are about to purchase. We are not responsible for delays or even rejection by customs when the items are not importable. When the package is returned to the sender due to the Custom Issues (such as rejection), we will do everything to complete your order. However, extra fee for the used shipping fee may apply unless it is clearly the errors on our end.

Possible Contraband Items:

Each Country has a list of Contraband goods. Before placing the order, please make sure that you check the list of goods that can be imported to your country. Once we receive the order, we will do our best to research. When we find out the order contains the contraband items, we will consult with you for what we can do. In a case of cancelling the order, please be advised that the retular cancel/refund policy will be applied (The refund will be total minus Processing Fee - The Payment Processing Fee will not be refuneded).

We will do our best in researching, but please be advised that we are not responsible on missing the information on Possible Contraband Items. In case of package returning to us due to the Contraband Items, we reserve the right to request for the additional shipping fee to complete the order.

Return Policy

We strive to deliver the best items for your Sashiko experience. Please contact us if we can help to improve your experience. Please contact us when the items you order is defective. We would accept exchanges or returns when a customer:

• Contact me within 5 days of delivery
• Ship items back within 7 days of delivery (exclusive to international shipping)
• For cancellation of the order, I accept it before the order has shipped out unless specifically mentioned such as one of the kind orders.

However, please be advised that we will NOT accept any returns unless the item is defective. To sustain our business, we do not accept the returns for the "Color Difference in Expectation".

Please contact me if you encounter any problems. We will do our best to be reasonable for your request.

Most of our items are "one-of-a-kind" made by hands. As much as we want to keep creating the exact same materials, it is not possible to do so because we are human. Especially for those Naturally Hand-dyed Sashiko threads, please be reasonable for the “Color” of Natural Dye or hand-made products. The color of items can vary based on the monitor & device setting.

Disclaimer on Color of our items on the website

We try our best to match the color, and often, we offer the several photos in different photo shooting setting to avoid the misunderstanding. Please be advised that we will not accept the return for the "Color Difference" (If the order was Blue, then if you get Red, then it is mis-handling, so I will exchange the item - however, the shade in same color will not be covered under this agreement.) The following items cannot be returned or exchanged regardless.

• Custom or Personalized Orders
• Digital Downloads
• Items on Sale

Conditions of return:

Buyers are responsible for return shipping costs. If the item is not returned in its original condition, the buyer is responsible for any loss in value.

Payment & Refund Policy

We accept major credit card (via Square) and Paypal. In either case, I do NOT keep the credit card information on my end. Therefore, it is not possible to charge you extra without you putting your card information (if you find unknown charge, please contact to the credit company as it is fraud by someone else). As the Square and Paypal update the policy, I also updated the refund policy. Please be advised that the processing will not be refuneded when the refund is requested by the customer. Alternatively, I am happy to issue Full Amount in form of our Store Credit (same monetary value that you can use on our website). All of the refund will be processed only after receiving the agreement from the customer in wriring (email is fine). If the package is shipped out already, the refund will be made only after we receive the package back from you. If you wish to cancel the order & get the refund, please contact us as soon as possible.

When trouble happens

As much as the fact we are human, the delivery person is also human. She/he could make a mistake, and the unfortunate event (trouble) could happen to any of us. We will do our best to solve the troubles, and your support for the unfortunate event is much appreciated. Here is a standard procedure when trouble happens.

When the item you receive is defective.

Our items are very "primitive". No computers or no mechanic. So it is a rare case to have the defective items delivered. However, when it happens, please contact Atsushi as soon as possible so we can submit the accident report to the carrier. With some photos provided by the customer, we will send the same item as a replacement if it is possible.

When the package doesn't arrive

If you are ordering in the USA, you should receive the package no later than 6 business days. Please contact Atsushi if you do not receive the package after 10 business days or so. (You could contact me much earlier if you choose the priority mail.) International delivery can be tricky unless you order with the express option. It can take up to 30 days to get the package delivered. If the custom clarification occurs in the process, the delivery time can be a lot more. It is completely outside of our capability. However, if you encounter the possible delay or a missing package, please contact me via the email address on the invoice. I am here to ask around, to USPS, to Japan post and will get the situation update for you. *In a case of missing package, I promise we will do everything. However, we are not "Amazon" or other big retailers. We will not be able to refund without contacting to USPS with Missing Mail Search and/or claiming it to the insurance company. I sincerely appreciate your understanding for this. *In 2020, due to covid, the shipping time can be delayed by many days. Please be patient… The system is definitely stretched thin. *USPS First-Class package does not include the lost package insurance. Please upgrade it to Priority Package if you would like to have insurance on → We will add the insurance to all the package by adding a small mark-up fee on the shipping fee starting on Dec.25th.

My tracking says "delivered" but not received!

It is a rare case, but occasionally a parcel will be marked as delivered by the shipping carrier prematurely. If your tracking status says "delivered" and yet not received the package, please follow the direction below.

Domestic Shipping

If you receive this notice but the package is not in your mailbox, in your apartment office, or on the doorstep, here is the procedure to follow. Before contacting me, it would be great if you could check...

1. Please confirm the shipping address that you provided.
2. The USPS "could" delivered the package in a wrong mailbox in neighbors. It would be great if you could check with the neighbors if they received your package.
3. It could be a system error that your package is still in the USPS truck although it says delivered. Please contact the USPS for the package whereabouts. In a case that the neighbor received the package by error, there is a possibility that the neighbor will return it to the USP.

If nothing above fix the issue, please contact us so we may be able to help. Please read below for the help we can provide. I may repeat the same thing, but the package whereabouts is out of our control. We sincerely appreciate your understanding to keep our activity on-going.

The order shipped with USPS FIRST CLASS:

• USPS delivery trucks may have GPS that sometimes automatically updates a shipment as "delivered". Wait another business day or so because the package was most likely marked as delivered accidentally, and will arrive the following day.
• Please also contact your local post office. Make sure to call your Local Post office, NOT the USPS HOTLINE. Please ask them who delivered the parcel, and ask them details about that day's delivery.
• If the parcel does not show up (an extremely rare occasion), please contact the Post Office and file a claim. By default, Upcycle Stitches LLC cannot refund (or replace) orders that were misdelivered by the post office or stolen from a property. Of course, we will do our best to resolve the issue.
• Please contact me within 5 days the day your status gets updated to "delivered" so the Post Office should have the fresh memories.
• Please consider upgrading the shipping method so we can provide better service, like Priority Mail & Signature Service, and postage insurance.

The order shipped with USPS PRIORITY

• Please contact Local Post Office as well as Atushi as soon as you find out that the package was listed "delivered" and yet not received the package. After waiting for another business day for the "accidentally misdelivered" case, you and I will submit the claim to the Post Office.
• Please also contact your local post office. Make sure to call your Local Post office, NOT the USPS HOTLINE. Please ask them who delivered the parcel, and ask them details about that day's delivery.

International Shipping

The international shipping can take a long time because of various reasons such as customs clearance, connecting shipping carriers, and nation country factors. Please expect up to 30 days for them to make a delivery. Please contact us if you do not receive the package after 30 days. We will do our best to update & resolve the issue. *Depends on the country, it could take a LONG time to get the package delivered. Please ask your local post office about the estimate of shipping time from Japan and/or the USA.

Procedure to fix the problem

This is a standard procedure on how to fix the problem of missing (non-delivered) mail. It will take a long time to fix the issue, so please help us checking the package if the tracking says it is delivered.

Things you can do first:

• Please confirm the shipping address that you provided.
• The carrier "could" delivered the package in a wrong mailbox in neighbors. Please check with your neighbors if they received your package.
• Please also contact your local post office. Make sure to call your Local Post office, NOT the carrier's HOTLINE. Please ask them who delivered the parcel, and ask them details about that day's delivery.
• Also, if the tracking shows the record of cities, ask them to check the local post office where the tracking shows the last.
• Please also contact the customs because the package could be retained in the customs clearance.

The procedure we will proceed to fix the issue:

1. Upcycle Stitches LLC will file a claim to the Post Office with the tracking number we provided.
2. The post office will make a research on the package status, and inform us within 30~180 days.
3. When the post office identifies the problem, they will let us know the situation. By default, this is the time we make a replacement shipping. Upcycle Stitches LLC cannot refund (or replace) orders that were misdelivered by the post office or stolen from a property. Of course, we will do our best to resolve the issue.
4. In order to avoid the unfortunate result above, please consider upgrading your shipping. The post office will react much faster and better when we make a shipment in the Express Mail.

Thank you for reading our terms and condition.

It is our responsibility to deliver the package you order. We will do everything we can think of to fix the problem when it arises. However, please understand that the missing & miss-delivered & stolen package after the package get into the Post Office System is out of our control.

More than half of our items are hand-made and one-of-a-kind. Please consider getting the better shipping method so we will be able to fix the issue with less complication. We sincerely appreciate your understanding on our Shipping Information.

Instagram Post about the Shipping Philosophy.