Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the questions we get asked every day, along with the answers. If you can't find your question here, our e-mail address is at the bottom of this page.
- I don't like using my credit card online. Can I call in my order?
- I don't have a credit card. Can I send you a check?
- Is your website secure?
- What is your minimum order?
- How wide are your fabrics, and what is the fiber content?
- Do you ship to my country?
- Do you have a catalog?
- Do you send swatches?
- What the heck is a fat quarter?
- What is your privacy policy?
- I don't like using my credit card online. Can I call in my order?
A. It's better if you use the shopping cart to place your order, and just call us on the phone to give us your credit card number. When you check out, you'll see the options for payment, and you can select "I want to call you with my credit card number."
We will take the entire order on the phone if you insist, but there will be a $4 telephone order charge. There is NO extra charge just to give us your credit card number by phone.
- I don't have a credit card. Can I send you a check?
A. Yes, you can. You should place your order online and check the option to call with your credit card, but put into the comments a note that you'll send a check. We will hold your order until the check clears, before we ship your order, but we will do our best to hold your fabric for you, but there is a chance it can be sold to someone else. That's why we don't recommend this option, but we do know it's the only choice for some customers.
- Is this web site secure?
A. Absolutely. It is simply impossible for anyone to get your credit card information from your using it on this web site. In fact, it's far more secure than using it at a restaurant. Media hype about the dangers of using your card on the Internet ignore the facts that (a) a smaller percent of fraud occurs through Internet shopping than mall shopping, and (b) only sites that are not secure can leak your information. When you check out on our website, you will be entering your information safely on a secure site.
- What is your minimum order?
A. We no longer have any minimum. You may place an order for a 50-cent item, if you like. However, we do have a $3 handling charge on all orders under $11. Since we only charge actual shipping, that means that your 50-cent appliqué, for example, would only cost about $3.38 for the complete shipping and handling. We wouldn't want to spend that much ourselves, to ship such a small order, but so many customers begged us to remove the minimum, that we've added this option for them. This way, we can cover our costs for the credit card charges and shipping supplies, and our customers can have exactly what they need without taking time to add a spool of thread or pack of needles to make up a minimum.
- How wide are your fabrics, and what is the fiber content?
A. All our fabrics are 44"/45" wide, except for a few that are wider, and the wider fabrics are listed on their own page and are also marked on their pages with the width.
All our fabrics are 100% cotton except for specialty fabrics like lace, velour, or metallics.
Each fabric lists its width and fiber content on the lower right of the page, under the picture.
- Do you ship to my country?
A. Yes, we ship internationally, to every country in the world. Because of problems in a few countries, we do have to charge postal insurance when shipping to them. This includes Italy and Mexico. For most other countries, we charge $1 per package to insure the package ourselves. This is quite a bit cheaper than the insurance charged by the Post Office.
The cost to most countries is $10 for each 9 yards (approximately) that you order, and this includes the $1 insurance fee. We ship by Global Priority, and you should receive your order in about a week. The Post Office does not offer Global Priority to Italy, United Arab Emirates and a few other countries. In that case, we have to ship by air letter or air parcel post and it may cost a bit more.
- Do you have a catalog?
A. Our catalog is on-line. Because we add new products every day, a printed catalog would be obsolete before it came back from the printer. Also, printed catalogs are very expensive and if we had one, we'd have to raise our prices.
We hope our easy search feature make the website as easy to use as a print catalog.
- Do you send swatches?
A. We send up to 8 free snippets of our fabrics, if you send us a stamped, self-addressed envelope. The snippets are roughly 1-1/2" by 2-1/2". If you need a larger piece, or if you can't wait for your mail to get to us before we send out your sample, then you can order a fat quarter (18" X 22") or our new 2½ wide strip (2½" X 44").
Mail your SASE to us at:
The Craft Connection
PO Box 1088
Onley, VA 23418- What is a fat quarter?
A. A fat quarter is 1/4 yard of fabric. But instead of cutting a long skinny piece that's 9" by 44", we cut it more square, so it's 18" by 22". This is a more useable piece for most uses, especially if the fabric has large motifs on it, which would be cut in half by the skinny strips.
- What is your privacy policy?
A. Under NO circumstances will we share your personal information with anyone for any purpose. We also will not add your name to our own mailing list except at your express request (we do have a newsletter and you may subscribe if you like.) If we should sell The Craft Connection to another party, the new owner will be required to abide by our promise to you, and they also will not share or use your information except to fill your orders.
If you have any problems using the site, or if you have any comments, please e-mail us at faq@craftconn.com.