Questions:

• Do You Make These Wooden Items?
• What Kind Of Wood Do You Use?
• Do You Take Credit Cards? What About Personal Checks?
• When Will I Get My Order? How Much Is Shipping?
• What If I'm Not Happy With My Order?
• Do You Sell At Art and Craft Fairs?
• Do You Wholesale?
• What If I Have More Questions?


Answers:
• Do You Make These Wooden Items?
We do not make these items, but instead only select the best handcrafted items & purchase them directly from the talented artisans in the Philippines.  Because the rain forest is threatened, raw materials are becoming scarce.  These craftspeople are concerned about the environment and their own survival as making these products is their sole source of income. We are supporting the Filipino Cottage industry choosing this method of importing.

• What Kind Of Wood Do You Use?
We use various natural wood types from the Philippines Islands.  These are typically from the vines and twigs from trees that have fallen in dense areas of the rain forests.  Each artisan utilizes vines from their surroundings.  No fresh wood is harvested in the making of these specialty handmade items.

Wood-Types:

Hingiw:  Hingiw (ichnocarpus ouatifolius) is a prolific forest vine growing throughout the Philippines. Hingiw is traditionally used for the nose ring (tagikaw) of the buffalo. Due to it's strength, hingiw is extensively used as a means of tying bamboo in the construction of nipa huts.

Galtang:  Galtang (anamirta cocculos) grows extensively in the Philippines. In addition to it's use in basket weaving, galtang is used to make rope for tying livestock and hauling. The whitish fruit from galtang is used by fisherman as a poison. When dumped in a river or stream, the fruit temporarily renders the fish helpless. Once this happens, It's extremely easy to gather the fish.

Gogo Vine:  Gogo vine grows along streams in the colder mountain regions of the Philippines. In rural areas, Filipinos immerse the vine in water, flatten it by pounding it with a stone and the resultant residue is used as a shampoo and soap to clean clothes.  

• Do You Take Credit Cards? What About Personal Checks?
We accept MasterCard, Visa, Discover & American Express for phone, email and secure on-line orders. If you wish to pay by personal check or money order, call us at 763-574-0973 or email us for shipping charges and order total. Your order will be shipped on receipt of payment.

• When Will I Get My Order? How Much Is Shipping?
Most items are in stock and sent within a few days of your order. All orders are sent US Priority Mail (5-7 day delivery within the US). You will be notified by email if your order will be delayed longer than three days. Shipping rates for US & Canadian orders are shown on our shipping rate chart.

• What If I'm Not Happy With My Order?
Our return policy is simple: If, for any reason, you're not satisfied with your choices, simply return unused and undamaged products within 30 days of receipt and we will promptly refund your full purchase price less shipping. Please call or email before sending a return so we can watch for it.

• Do You Sell At Art and Craft Fairs?
For several years, we enjoyed traveling and meeting customers in Midwest six state area. We very much enjoyed traveling and visiting with you in person, but it became impossible to be away from the shop and keep up with orders. We appreciate your loyalty and offer phone, mail, email and online orders. To any of you visiting Minnesota, we invite you to visit us at our Minneapolis Gift Mart (Blue#165 & Blue#166) from mid January through October. Stop by and say hello! We would enjoy meeting you in person.

• Do You Wholesale?
Yes! We are the largest supplier in the Midwest for wooden planters and birdhouses.   We do have a limited number of select online resellers.  If you know of a store or gift gallery in your area that might be interested in carrying TrademakersMN products, please let us know and we'll contact them. If they decide to carry any of our items, you'll receive a thank you gift. To refer a store, please email us.  Please visit our wholesale information section.

• What If I Have More Questions?
If you have questions about TrademakersMN or our products, just let us know. Or if you have questions about caring for your wooden items, please get in touch with us. If we don't know the answer, we'll do our best to find out for you.