How do I talk to a human?
Let me introduce you to Jane Cochran, our Director of Customer Happiness. She is really, really good at understanding what people need and helping them get it. She is also the Jane of Jane’s Hedgerow Socks and the blog Not Plain Jane, which is to say she knows her way around a skein of yarn and can shape a sentence like few others. We are truly lucky to have her on board our adventure. If you need anything at all, you can reach Jane using our Contact Us form.
If I have a question, how quickly will you get back to me?
Either Jane or I will do our best to respond within 48 hours—but if your question happens to fall over a major holiday, we appreciate your patience.
I paid but haven’t heard from you. Shouldn’t I?
Most definitely yes! Upon successful payment, you’ll be redirected back to the site to create a username and password. But some people’s browsers haven’t cooperated. If this sounds like what happened to you, simply contact us and we’ll get you squared away. Don’t worry, we have records of everything, and we won’t let anyone slip through the cracks.
Can I pay by check?
Sorry, no. We currently accept payment via Visa, MasterCard, and American Express, as well as through PayPal.
Can I gift a membership to someone else?
Yes, you can, and what a lovely idea. You’ll see a special gift option on the Join page. Follow the instructions and you should be all set. Any questions, or if you need a little hand-holding, just contact Jane and she’ll be happy to help.
Can I cancel my membership?
You can cancel within 48 hours of placing your order and receive a full refund. Then, until January 10, 2013, we’ll happily refund your order minus a $30 processing fee. After that, our adventure has officially begun and we can no longer offer refunds.
Can I share my membership with someone else?
Nope. Each member is granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license for that person to read, download, enjoy, and fully participate in the discussion online. The Great White Bale content may not be shared, copied, transmitted, or otherwise distributed. If we discover that you are sharing passwords or content beyond the Great White Bale environment, we reserve the right to cancel your membership immediately without a refund. You can certainly discuss bale matters in other public forums such as Facebook, Twitter, Knitter’s Review Forums, or Ravelry—by all means, please do. We just ask that you not lift and share content from this Web site. It’s neither fair nor respectful to other members to take advantage of the license you’ve purchased.
Bottom line: It’s not ok to buy one membership and share the content with several other friends, no matter how lovely they are. Besides violating your license terms, it’s also not fair or respectful to others or to the spirit of the Bale. Please don’t put us in the awkward position of having to shut you out and cancel your membership.
I’m a planner. The great unknown is not my thing. Can you give me more detail about how many twists per inch each yarn will have, what the skein will look like, and which font you’ll be using on the mailing label?
Nope. I know surrender can be hard, but I’m asking you to trust me on this. If you look back in history, many of the greatest adventures of all time had an element of the unknown. They usually begin with a plan, but they also allow room for change as they go along. Look at Christopher Columbus. Or Lewis and Clark. Or John Mercer, who discovered the process of “mercerizing” cotton quite by accident. But I can promise that by June 30th you will receive a minimum of four shipments of spun yarn totaling at least 800 grams. That’s 1.7 pounds of glorious, truly artisanal, one-of-a-kind yarn made just for us. To put this in perspective, your average skein of sock yarn is 100 grams.
Help! I’m a member but the system won’t recognize my username and password.
Contact Jane and she’ll get you squared away.
How do you ship packages?
Domestic packages are shipped from Biddeford, Maine, via USPS First Class mail or Priority Mail depending on their weight. International packages are shipped via USPS First Class Mail International Parcel.
How do I change my address?
Please notify us of any address changes as soon as possible. Contact Jane with your full name and current mailing address, so she can find you easily. If you don’t notify us of your change of address, we are unable to reship a new package to you because the yarns we create are in very limited supply. Please keep us posted on your whereabouts.
I think my neighbor’s dog ate my package. What do I do now?
In general, shipments can take two full weeks to reach you—but the USPS has been known to take even longer. If two weeks have passed since your package was shipped, and it’s still MIA, please contact Jane for help.
How often do you plan on updating the Website?
I plan to update the site every two weeks, possibly more frequently depending on where the adventure takes me. Beneath each update is a threaded Comments section that I urge you to use as a gathering place to discuss whatever you’d like. Consider it my living room – I’ve left the lights on and the door open, so come in and make yourself comfortable.
What is Clara Yarn?
Ah, you noticed! We’ll have some exciting news about that in August. Until then, sit back, relax, and enjoy your bale.
Who is Clara?
Good question. I often wonder this myself. I am the founder of Knitter’s Review and the author of The Knitter’s Book of Yarn, The Knitter’s Book of Wool, and The Knitter’s Book of Socks. I also write the Swatch It! column for Twist Collective and get to talk about yarn to PBS audiences everywhere on Knitting Daily TV.
I love yarn. I am passionate about twist and ply, about how fibers behave on the needles, in our hands, and ultimately on our bodies. But I am equally passionate about the back story. Where these fibers come from, and whose effort, time, and skill contributed to their becoming the yarn you hold in your hands.
The Great White Bale is the culmination of 12 years of swatching, testing, researching, studying, teaching, sharing, and most important, dreaming. I hope you enjoy it.