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MATERIALS / FINISHES
FAIR TRADE PRINCIPALS
REFUND POLICY
Statuary:
Handcrafted and (mostly) Earth Friendly Materials
Our statues, flags, jewelry and gifts are made in India,
China, Nepal, the USA and Canada from a variety of organic materials including Ganges
clay, Gypsumstone, cast pewter and brass, cold cast bronze, pewter, marble and
wood. Polymer resins are used in a variety of our products as well.
Ganges river clay is rich in minerals and
history. The Ganges is considered a Goddess in her own right, entering the earth
after trickling through Shiva's matted hair and flowing out from under a glacier
high in the Himalayas. She travels across northern India to reach the Indian
Ocean near Calcutta and Bangladesh. Many holy bathing ghats line Her shores.
Hereditary artists harvest our clay not far from the sacred Kali Ghats from
which Calcutta gets its name.
Gypsumstone or Bonded Stone is an artist's
castable material used for making models and statues. Gypsum has the amazing
property of forming curved crystals in the earth called Selenite. Crescent
shaped Selenite is named after the Roman Moon Goddess, Selene. So when you buy a
Gypsumstone statue, it is made from crystals of the Goddess of the Moon.
Brass is mostly made of copper, a metal sacred
to the Goddess Venus since ancient times. As Aphrodite, she originally came from
the island of Cyprus, a land rich in copper deposits. Our brass statues harken
back to the smithwork sacred to the Goddess of Cyprus.
Our pewter is a lead-free alloy used for
jewelry and small statues. This gives them a weighty feel and deep silver / gray
hue. It holds fine detail well, and makes a durable figure.
Regarding copper
jewelry: copper does not rust, but it does oxidize, which means the color
turns darker. Some people like the darker color while others do not. The darker
color (oxidization) can be removed with a jewelry polishing cloth.
Resin is a modern matrix of hydrocarbons. While
resin is a man-made material we can still find the Goddess at work. The word
matrix implies the Great Mother in her birthing form, hydro means water and
carbon comes from the earth. And besides, it's a really durable and versatile
medium. OK, it's not the most earth friendly of the list, but we couldn't make
statues with projecting arms or ones suitable for outdoor use without it!
Cold Cast Bronze, Cold
Cast Pewter and Bonded Marble are usually foundry-cast and produced in a
pressure tank used to get bubbles out of the mold and the finished sculpture.
These products are essentially resin combined with bronze powder, pewter powder
and marble powder. The patina for the cold-cast bronze is built into the
material used for casting, but there is a lot of hand-buffing, a process done by
the artisan's hand. Finished pieces of both products are then often sealed with
clear polyurethane to protect the finish. They are heavy, detailed, and a little
shinier than 100% metals, and they actually look better than solid bronze. We
think this new material is a fantastic compromise that keeps the beauty,
substantial weight and quality, and detail of bronze while keeping replicas
affordable. Because metals on the world market have nearly tripled in cost in
the past few years, 100% metal statues of the same size would be several times
the cost of our cold cast bronze and pewter statues. 100% marble would also be
two to three times the cost.
CARE: Our artists are continually improving materials. Caring for this cold cast
bronze is done by wiping down with a clean, dry cloth. No chemicals, polishes,
sprays or liquids should be used, and we find that it shines them up nicely.
SCULPTING
Most of our items are original artworks created by our sculptors, carved out of
clay, stone, or wood. Here, one of our sculptors uses sculpting clay. |
MOLD MAKING
Once the original is carved, a mold is made, usually out of
silicon. Here a casting of the Egyptian Goddess Selket is taken from a silicon
mold. |
CASTING
Crushed stone in a liquid resin medium is poured into a silicon mold where it
solidifies into a hard stone that reproduces all the detail and texture of the
original. |
COLOR DETAILING
All the finishes are done by hand. Many finishes include color detailing, a
labor intensive process where colors are applied with small brushes by our
skilled artisans. |
JEWELRY
Pewter Jewelry: our
pewter jewelry partners are very conscientious about using the planet's metalic
materials. All of our pieces are handmade one at a time from pouring each piece
through the final touches of polishing each one individually. We take great care
and pride in creating our pieces by hand in an old fashioned manner. In this way
we are not only keeping the images and meanings alive but also the skill and
techniques of the Master White Smiths of times past.
Gold Plated Pewter:
Gold plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of gold onto the surface
of another metal, in this case, lead-free pewter. Often copper or silver are
used in gold plating, and the surface is applied most often by chemical or
electrochemical means.
Pewter Jewelry - Final Clear Coat:
When finished our pieces are dipped in a tarnish shield designed to protect the
surface from darkening. We find that some environments can effect this clear
coat. If you find a piece begins to tarnish just treat it as you would Sterling.
Find a nice quality jewelry polish cloth, or silverware polish cloth and rub it
once in a while. Avoid liquid metal cleaners as it will remove the dark
oxidation in the lower parts of the design and loose the nice contrasts between
the bright and darker parts of the piece.
Our pieces feel different than other pewter because we choose a Lead Free Pewter
which is very close to the ancient Britannia mix. This mix is famed to have been
created in England around 2000 years ago. In essence it is the flip of the old
world bronze and brought about an abundance of a beautiful white metal. It
contains copper which helps with the color, feel, and overall vibration of the
metal. Also we take the time and care to polish the pieces to our unique very
bright finish.
Nebula:
An innovative new semi-precious metal alloy as a deliberate and specific
response to the economic times; but not for the reason or in the manner one may
think.
Nebula has a stunning Silver-like luster without the price point of Sterling,
giving everyone the opportunity to own the beautiful designs that inspire them!
This new Semi-Precious metal alloy is nickel and lead free as well as
Hypoallergenic.
Our Nebula Collection is a value-priced alternative to silver for the
cost-conscious. This patented new semi-precious metal is created to meet high
quality standards and each piece of the Nebula Collection is crafted with the
same attention to detail as our silver jewelry line.
With the same highly-polished look as Sterling Silver, but at a considerably
lower cost, Nebula helps to make stunning designs more affordable and just as
inspiring!
How Nebula is Crafted
Nebula is a tin based semi-precious metal alloyed with other non-toxic metals,
such as zinc, for incredible strength and luster. Nebula is nickel and lead free
as well as hypo-allergenic. Earring hooks are made of sterling silver.
Statuary Finishes: A Wide Variety:
Our finishes are hand applied
using water based pigments and paints. Handpainted statues are detailed and
polished by artisians. Other finishes are meant to replicate the look of a
specific material such as Terracotta or Red Bronze. Still others are made to
duplicate the original finish of an actual artifact, such as red/black or
silver/brown.
The handmade nature of our statues means that the finishes
will occasionally vary. Please view this as part of the artist's license with
his work. We are continually striving to improve our products, and this may
cause changes as well.
Water based finishes are best protected with a sealant such
as satin spray polyurethane (from any hardware store). If it is going to
be used near water for rituals or pujas, sealants will keep the paint from
running and the clay intact.
Flags and Banners:
Goddess flags and banners come from Bali,
Indonesia and Kathmandu, Nepal for the most part. They are either printed
(cotton flags from Nepal) or hand batik'd through a fascinating process that
involves wax and an artisans touch. The step by step process can be found at
this link: http://www.expat.or.id/info/batiksteps.html
Goddess
Jewelry: Our jewelry that features
semi-precious stones is American-made and comes to us from a variety of artisans
on the east and west coasts. Whenever you select a stone to be placed in a
pendant or earrings, our artisans carefully choose a stone to place in your
customized piece. Please allow extra time for delivery. Domestic orders will
usually be in your mailbox within two weeks unless you hear from us. Some of our
jewelry is also imported.
Fair Trade:
Goddessgift.net works with wholesalers who are dedicated to the principals of
Fair Trade. Fair trade offers an excellent means of ensuring that purchasing has
a positive impact on poverty reduction. Trade is one of the most effective ways
of reducing poverty. Fairtrade can make a significant contribution to helping
poor people receive more of the benefits of trade, improve the prices they are
paid and raise consumer awareness.
Fair Trade Federation (FTF)
members link low-income producers with
consumer markets and educate consumers about the importance of purchasing fairly
traded products which support living wages and safe and healthy conditions for
workers in the developing world. FTF provides resources and networking
opportunities for its members and acts as a clearinghouse for information on
fair trade. Find out more here: http://www.fairtradefederation.org
CHARITABLE
GIVING: Goddessgift.net spends it's
chartiable dollars helping entrepreneurs with micro loans through KIVA.org.
Refund
Policy: Global Gifts
offers a full guarantee of satisfaction on all items. Simply call us for a
return authorization number prior to shipping at (805) 540-9520. Please return
unwanted merchandise within 7 days of receipt for a refund, credit, or exchange
in its original packaging.
Please note in
your package why you are returning the item(s) so we can improve our service and
our website if discrepancies occur. We will issue the refund to either the
credit card you used originally, or to your PayPal account. You will be notified
when the refund is credited to your account.
For items that arrive broken, please send us a photo of the broken item. We may
be able to file a claim with just the photo, or we may need you to send it back.
We will pay you back for the postage on any broken or defective item, but please
note: we can only reimburse you for parcel post shipping, so please choose the
least expensive shipping method. We do not generally refund postage unless the
item is not as described or arrives broken.
Customized
jewelry items: sized rings or jewelry with custom stones are not refundable.
Garden
Statues: The bigger than life-sized statue shown on this page http://www.goddessgift.net/garden-statues-2.html
as well as other statuary, must be inspected as soon as received. We cannot
refund shipping charges on these statues unless they were received broken at
which time we will need to file a claim with the shipper, get photos of the
damage from you, and then proceed. Please keep all packing material. We have
never had a customer receive a broken statue of this material (on this
particular page) but we have had customers who changed their minds about the
purchase or did not care for the finish. These statues are returnable but a 25%
restocking fee applies, as well as no refund on shipping charges. Costs for the
finish on these statue ($175.00) is non-refundable.
Please contact us before returning any item in order to receive a return
authorization number. Many larger items are shipped to another location. Send
all items via least expensive shipping method to: Goddessgift.net, 200 Suburban
Rd, Ste. A2, San Luis Obispo, CA 93403 USA.
We appreciate you
letting us know you are sending something back at (805) 540-9520. We will
authorize your return at that time.
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