FAQ

General Questions

1. Do I fill out the personalization first or purchase first?

   It works best if you fill out the personalization form for the item you wish to purchase first. When you click submit, it will automatically send a copy to your email. Then you may add the item to your bag and check out. However, if you’ve paid first, it’s perfectly fine to submit the personalization form afterwards. We will send you an email if we have any questions.

2. How will my item arrive?

   Most of our items are shipped in bubble or photo mailers with US Post first class mail, which is why we can offer such low cost shipping. When we print your shipping label, you should receive an email from stamps.com with your tracking number.

   Note that we can not be held responsible for loss or damage during shipping. If you would like to add insurance, please do so. Unfortunately, delivery people often mistreat mail and we have no control of that. If you opt to not purchase insurance, we will replace lost or damaged items at a discounted rate of 50% off the original price + shipping/tax.

3. When will the items arrive?

   Please check the posted Estimated Time of Arrival times on the Shipping page and at Check Out.

4. How much is shipping?

   We ship USPS first class mail for the lowest rates possible. The shopping cart will calculate shipping in the checkout process before payment is made. You may also add Priority or Express mail at check out.

5. Can I have the item mailed directly to the gift recipient?

   Of course! We are required to ship to the Shipping Address specified on your order, but you may change this to anything you like. Before submitting payment, there will be a link under the address that says “Change shipping address”. Click that and enter the recipient’s information instead of your own. We know that most of our items are ordered as gifts so we do not include any invoices or packing slips unless required for international shipments/customs.

6. Are you open 365 days a year?

   Almost! We do take a vacation once in awhile and when we do we’ll post it in the sidebar on the right side of every page of our site. The most notable time that we are closed is during the holidays. Since Elf Stacy must travel to the North Pole to help out Santa Claus, we only accept orders up until December 3rd each year. (We may close earlier if we reach the maximum number of orders we can physically process during the holidays). Please place your holiday orders as soon as possible (October and early November are the best times to do so).

   *Our turnaround time during the holidays is usually 2 weeks and then we allow 1 week for delivery within the USA. An order placed on December 3rd then should arrive on December 24th.

7. I don’t live in the United States, do you ship internationally?

   We are located in the United States. In addition to shipping to the USA and all its territories, we also ship to Canada and Mexico through this site. We also still ship everywhere through our Etsy shop. However, please note that international orders will go through your country’s customs office, and most likely you will be charged an additional fee for importing. We have no control over how much customs officials charge and it is different for every item in every country. We just want you to be aware of the extra costs involved.

8. I don’t use PayPal, can I send in payment?

   We accept credit cards and PayPal. It is an incredibly easy and safe way to pay online, and you may pay with a credit card without even opening a PayPal account. However, you may send in a check, money order, or cash if you like. Just remember that checks can take up to 10 days to clear, and orders are not processed until payment is received.

9. What do I do if there is an error?

   In the very rare case that there is a typo on the item, we can reprint another one that you can exchange for the misprinted one. You can say that the mistake was magically fixed. If the error was on the order, payment, submitted form, or any communications,  there will be a reprint charge of 50% off the original price + shipping/tax if applicable. If the error was on our part, the reprint is free. Please note that due to the personalized nature of the product, no refunds will be issued. Please double check your personalization before submitting. Legendary Letters is not responsible for any errors or omissions on forms, payments, or communications submitted by the buyer. Please understand that all of us here flunked Divination and we can not know that you meant something other than what you gave us.

10. What are your Terms of Service?

    By ordering from our site, you agree to our Terms of Service. Here are the important points that you are agreeing to summarized:

    1. Due to the personalized nature of our products, no returns are accepted and no refunds issued. You understand that once we receive and fulfill an order, our resources are consumed and can not be used again.

    2. We are not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged mail. You may purchase insurance for a small fee by adding it before check out. Items may be considered lost in the mail if they do not arrive at their destinations 2 weeks after mailing date (or 6 weeks for international orders). If you opt not to purchase insurance, we will replace your lost or damaged items at a discounted rate of 50% off the original price + shipping/tax. If you do purchase insurance, we will file a claim and then replace at no charge once it is approved.

    3. Errors on an item will be replaced with a corrected version. Typos/errors that are on the order, payment, forms, or messages will be charged a 50% reprint fee. Please proofread your answers before submitting. For most items we MUST use the official order form that was submitted. If you need to make corrections, you should immediately email us and we can edit the form for you if it hasn’t already gone to print. Please do not submit more than 1 form per recipient per item. Duplicate forms are very confusing and we can not be held responsible if the one we choose isn’t the one you wanted. Please be very careful when filling out the forms and recheck your answers before submitting. If we have already printed, you will be charged a reprint fee of 50%.

    4. We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any, or no, reason whatsoever. We have a zero tolerance policy for incivility. We will cease all interaction with anyone using harassing, threatening, bullying, belittling, or profane language.

    5. Each item is custom made and may vary slightly from images posted on the site. We may need to take creative license with the positioning of personalized text and other attributes of our items so that they look their best. We will also decide how to capitalize and punctuate information. We correct spelling mistakes if we catch them. If you purposely want something misspelled as an inside joke, please contact us to let us know you’d like it just the way you entered it. Note that any foul or hurtful language will be edited out as all our items must be PG rated. This rule is due to the fact that we don’t know for sure the age of the recipient. We must treat all as if they were for young children.

11. Do items with wax seals go through the mail OK?

    We place our items with wax seals inside a padded outer envelope or photo mailer so that they will not be damaged in postal equipment. We also use faux wax which is sturdier than real wax and will not crumble apart. However, please note in instances of extreme heat, they may re-melt in transit. If this happens and your item arrives stuck to the bubble mailer, the best thing to do is gently rip the mailer down the back where it isn’t stuck to release the contents and then very carefully peel the wax seal away. If you are able to postpone your order until cooler weather that works too.

    If you plan to use our wax seals to mail your own letters, we recommend also placing them inside an outer envelope when mailing. Write non-machinable on the outer envelope and be sure to affix extra postage for hand canceling.

12. Are you able to use non-English special characters with your fonts?

    Unfortunately, most of the fonts we use for our items do not have the special characters used in many languages such as accent marks, tildes, cedillas, etc. We apologize for the inconvenience and promise to use them whenever possible, but we may need to use a different font than the ones shown in our photos. If you absolutely want the fonts shown, please leave off the special characters when filling out the form. The recipient can always add them in by hand later with a pen the same color as the ink.

13. What if I need to change some information?

    For most items we MUST use the official order form that was submitted. If you need to make corrections, you should immediately email us so that we can edit the form for you before it goes to print. Please do not submit more than 1 form per recipient as we can not be held responsible if the one we choose isn’t the one you wanted. Please be very careful when filling out the forms and recheck your answers before submitting. If we have already printed, you will be charged a reprint fee of 50%. Please be sure that you get an email back from us saying that we made the change(s).

14. What is your turnaround time?

    Since all of our items are made to order and many are personalized, it takes a little time to give each order the care and attention it deserves. Please check the current processing and shipping times posted on the Shipping page. Add them both together and you will be able to calculate the ETA for your area.

15. Can you mark international orders as “gift”?

    The only time we can mark an item as a gift is if the recipient won the item in one of our Facebook giveaways. We also must put the actual item prices on the customs form.

16. PayPal says my shipping address is unconfirmed?

    If the PayPal email says the shipping address was unconfirmed, don’t worry. All that means is that the address didn’t match the credit card you used. We know many of our customers send our items as gifts so that’s perfectly fine. As long as the person receives daily mail at the address it shouldn’t be a problem.

17. How do I know which version of an item to order?

    A few of our items have several options and versions. Please check out the photos in each listing which explain the differences. Also, be sure to read all instructions on the personalization forms which will explain when and how to select the correct options and version for your recipient. Our Facebook page also has a lot more photos than the listings so you may want to view those as well.

18. Why do you ask for my phone number at check out?

    For international orders, the phone number you enter will be automatically included with your address on the shipping/customs label. It’s really important that you include it because that is how many foreign countries contact you if there are any problems in transit or customs. Some countries don’t offer daily delivery of mail and will need it to notify you that you have a package waiting. If you don’t include the phone number, there is a risk that your item(s) will be returned to us. Not only will it take a very long time to get back to you, you will be charged shipping again to have it resent. Please include your phone number if at all possible. (It’s not necessary to enter a phone number if you are located in the United States).

19. Should I order the magical version of the acceptance letter?

    The magical version means that the writing of the acceptance letter and 2nd sheet of books and equipment will be green foiled rather than done in green ink. It gives it a magical appearance because when the light hits it at a certain angle it is shiny and reflective. However, please note that the foiling process isn’t perfect. Differences in the foil, paper, temperature, and humidity will affect it so that there may be tiny areas throughout where the foil doesn’t adhere. It’s a matter of personal preference if you choose green foil or green ink. The foil gives a special touch that younger recipients may really like. The green ink is probably better if you plan to frame the letter since the foil may not show well under glass. It’s really up to you which you choose.

20. Can I pay extra for my order to be put at the head of the line?

    No, unfortunately, our current processing time as shown at the bottom of every page on the site is firm. We do not believe it is fair to our customers to accept payment to put an order through to the front of the line (and if everyone paid a special fee for rush processing, then the processing time would stay the same as it already is).

21. I didn’t add the processing & shipping times together correctly & really need to purchase rush shipping. Can I do that after I’ve placed an order?

    Sure! Contact us and we can send you an invoice for the rush shipping as long as your order hasn’t already shipped.

22.  I’m shipping outside the USA and wondered what the difference is between the International Package and International Envelope rates?

    The envelope rate is for flat paper 2 dimensional items that can safely ship in an envelope. Letters with wax seals are OK. However, USPS rules say items in an envelope must be flexible, all the same width, and have no lumps or solid (non-flexible) items. The package rate means items will ship in a box and can include anything we offer in the shop. Most listings will say if the item can not ship for the envelope rate.

23. Are there other locations for Legendary Letters / Are you a franchise?

    We only have the one location in Fairfield, California, USA but we can ship anywhere in the world. We own 3 domains: legendaryletters.com, hogwartsletters.com, and hogwartsletter.com. We also have an Etsy shop. (There are a few businesses that pop up pretending they are affiliated with us, so please be sure to only purchase from the sites just listed. We are not affiliated with anyone else.) We do not have any plans to expand right now, but who knows what the future might bring? 🙂

24. Is English the only language your letters are available in?

    No, if you would like a letter is a different language, you may email us after ordering to request that. Then what we will do is use Google translate to put it into the language you want, and we will email that text to you for you to approve or make changes. Once you approve it, we will print on our stationery. We do have the wizarding acceptance letters already translated into French and Spanish, but we would still email you the final text before printing to make sure it is just the way you’d like it.

25. I live close by. Can I come into your shop to order a personalized item and fill out the form there?

    Our personalization forms can be a bit lengthy so we recommend doing it from the comfort of your own home so you can take your time. We also offer pdf versions by request if that is easier than doing the ones embedded in our listing descriptions. However, if you would like to fill out the form and place your order in our shop we are happy to help you do that. We have a tablet on the counter and will pull up the form(s) you need onto it for you. Note though that we no longer accept handwritten forms as it’s sometimes difficult to distinguish certain letters and we don’t want to misspell anything when we enter them into the online forms.

26. Can I return an item for a refund?

    We have a no returns and no refunds policy. This sounds scarier than it actually is. Almost all of our items are custom and handmade just for you. Many are personalized and protected by our Privacy Policy. If you view the returns policy of almost any store, it will say that returns are not accepted for custom, personalized, perishable, downloadable, or on sale items. Since that is all we have in our shop, we believe it is more honest to state no returns than to state that we have a returns policy, but then tell you later that your item doesn’t qualify. Be assured we want 100% happy customers and we will work with you to the best of our ability if anything out of the ordinary arises with your order. Since 1996 less than 1% of all orders go awry and when they do it is mainly an issue with the 3rd party delivery carrier, USPS. There are a few things you can do to help make sure that your order won’t be in that 1%. See our Return Policy.