I preordered an item, what does this mean? When you preorder an item, you are actively taking a role in the funding to produce the product. By preordering a product, you are accepting that the items will take several weeks (or longer depending on the product) to get to you. This is because they first need to be put into production and created. For pins, this can be a minimum of 3-5 weeks on average. Once they arrive to me, they then need to undergo quality checking to make sure there are no issues.
As a thank you for helping fund and make the product possible, all preorders are at a special discounted price and willin price after the preorder period has ended and when leftover stock is put up for sale.
All first wave preorders will usually come with a small thank you gift as well. After all, the product would not be possible without your help! The free gift is -only- available during the initial launch of the product and not during restock preorders.
I placed an order for an instock pin and a preorder. Will they ship separately? If you preorder a pin and your order includes an in stock item, by default your instock item will be held until the preorder product is available to send. If you do not want items to be held, it is highly recommended that you place a second order for the instock items.
If it is all in one, please include a note on your order stating you -do not- want the items held. I will then contact you about splitting the order and working out shipping for you. You can also email as well. Please be aware, you will be responsible for the shipping of the instock items.
What is your pin grading policy? Please keep in mind that everybody may have a slightly different grading scale, and this is how I -personally- grade my pins. Also, please remember that enamel pins are handmade items and there is honestly no such thing as a perfect pin. All pins will usually have some minor usually noticeable flaws in them.
I also grade all my pins based on their batches, so an A grade of one design won't necessarily be an A grade of another. These are just my general rules when I sit down to grade.
A grade - Contine little to no noticeable flaws. Free of air bubbles, stray paint/glitter in the enamel and plating defects, gouges, and low filled enamel. These are a great choice for collectors who like to display their pins rather than wear them. These pins are as close to perfect as one can get with a handmade item. So please be aware that small flaws may still exist.
B grade - May exhibit very minor imperfections such as, slightly under filled enamel, a spec of paint or dust stuck in the enamel that can’t be buffed away – or of the other types mentioned above. These ones are a little more noticeable when inspecting the pin closely. These pins are great for wearing as the flaws are typically not seen unless you are looking for them!
Seconds - Multiple minor defects or major defects of the types above. These pins are great for budget collectors and are heavily discounted. One person’s junk is another person's treasure, basically sums up a second pin. These are sold at a heavy discount of usually 50% off or more.
Fixer Upper’s - All pins with the fixer upper tag attached to their normal grading, are pins in which I needed to perform a little DIY. This is mainly for stained glass pins that are very prone to having their back posts fall off. In this situation, I use UV resin to stick them back on. The pin itself could be any grade from A-Second. Since I need to give these pins a little DIY love, they do tend to be discounted.
How long is your order processing time? I strive to get everything out within 5-7 business days, however, I do run Starcandy completely on my own. Due to this, orders can take up to a maximum of 2 weeks to ship due to the amount of orders I receive at one time, life events such as work, and school also play a role in this. Please make sure to check my “shipping updates” highlight on instagram if you are ever concerned about delays. You are also welcome to email me.
How will I know if you have shipped my order? An e-mail will be sent to you the moment your shipping label is created. This email will also include your tracking number. Tracking numbers are provided for all orders, domestic and international. Please keep in mind that I print labels in batches so it may take a couple of days for your tracking to update as I may have not been to the post office to drop the batch off yet.
Do you ship to countries outside of the United States? Yes! My shipping is worldwide and all shipping includes tracking.
I placed a second order right after my first. Can I combine shipping? Of course! By default, before I print labels, I try and go through and combine all orders placed by the same person. If there is then an overage paid for shipping I will then refund you. Sometimes, however, there is -no- overage because of the overall weight of the new package. So if I have combined your orders and you do not see a refund, this is why.
How long will it take for my package to arrive? Domestic (USPS) – 2-10 business days, includes tracking. International – 7-21 business days, includes tracking (tracked on the globalpost website).
Please remember that weather conditions and holidays could affect both domestic and international delivery times along with other major events. This is something I have absolutely no control over.
My item was damaged in transit, what can I do? Please contact me immediately upon receiving your damaged product to bring the issue to my attention. Please include a photo as well. I am always willing to work to resolve issues.
My package is missing, what can I do? The very first thing you should do is contact USPS. Once a package leaves my hands and is dropped off at USPS, I no longer have any control or responsibility for it – and they will be able to assist you with a search. (This is specifically for domestic orders)
Next, please ensure that you provided the correct shipping address at checkout. I am not responsible for packages that do not arrive because an address was entered incorrectly. If your package is returned to me for this reason, you will be responsible for paying the shipping charges again.
After you have taken these steps, if you need additional help, please contact me via email. Do not be afraid to bring any issues to my attention, I am almost always willing to work to help resolve the issues in a way that is fair to both you and me.
So please do not jump directly to trying to issue a chargeback without contacting me first about the missing package. 9.99999/10 times, I will work with you and get a new package sent to you. Issuing a chargeback for a lost package, something 100% out of my control really hurts me and my business due to the extremely hefty fees charged.
I received my order but I was sent the wrong item / items are missing? Email me as soon as you can and I will get the proper items or missing items sent to you immediately. Sometimes mistakes happen and I will always do my best to fix the issue. You are also free to keep whatever items I have sent you in error at no cost as the mistake is mine and not yours.
Will you be restocking __? As long as there is a demand for a certain product, I will always be willing to restock it unless I have specifically said that it has been retired. I also will announce when I plan to restock an item on my instagram (Starcandy.co) or my Twitter (Starcandypins). So please follow me on my socials for any updates about new products or restocks.
Why is your international shipping so high, can you lower it? As much as I would love to make international shipping lower, this is something I can’t really control. USPS is responsible for the cost of shipping to each country and zone so I need to charge rates that match theirs.
My international shipping is actually a lot less expensive than USPS’ as I pay a portion of each international order shipping out of my own pocket. If I go any lower it would severely financially hurt me, as I already pay several hundred a month out of pocket to pay for a portion of each international order myself.
Example: Buyer may pay $6.50 for an order to ‘Country X’, but the actual shipping cost for the order is $9.07. I pay the remaining $2.57 myself. It may not seem like a lot, but this adds up quickly since a large portion of my sales are international.
