FAQ

Personalized Map Details

1. May I customize the text on my arrow? Yes! “I am here” or “I was here” are the defaults. Some examples of customized arrows include: “We lived here”, “Grant’s House”, “We got married here” or “Nana’s House”. It’s really up to you, so have fun! 
2. May I add more than one location?  Yes. Up to three is free. If you want to add more than three, I charge a design fee of $10. If you want more than 10 locations, the design fee is $25.
3. May I add a few more icons to my map? If there are any missing elements to your map, I will happily add them. For instance, if the school your child goes to or your favorite bar is missing I’ll add those for free.
   
4. I would like to see more of the surrounding area. Can you zoom out? Yes! There are a few zoom levels we’ll play around with in the pre-approval stage. 
5. What if my location is boring and in the middle of no where? We can work together to add some of your personal information like your favorite book store or place to eat or the hospital where you were born, etc. Also remember, you are not obligated to buy the textile. If we can’t make the location work, we can always wait until you move to a more interesting place.
6. May I submit my own map design? Whoa! If you are a talented designer who knows how to work with OpenStreetMap and Mapnik, then let’s talk! Send me an email.

Orders and Shipping

1. Where do I order? Click the “Order” page in the menu and fill out the online form.
2. I don’t see a credit card form. How do I pay for my order? After you fill out the order form, I will do a pre-screen of the map to make sure you want to move forward. Once your map has been pre-approved a PayPal invoice will be emailed to you directly.
3. When will I receive my order? The pre-approval stage takes a few days depending on how customized your order is. Once approved by you, our printer takes about 7 days to print and sew your textile. Shipping can take anywhere from 2-5 days depending on how far away you are from San Francisco. Overall from ordering online to the mailbox is about 12 days.
4. Who is your shipper? To save you money, we use the US Postal Service, 2-5 Day delivery. Shipping costs include insurance and tracking. Again, depending on where you live those costs can range from $10 – $20. Each PayPal invoice includes your detailed shipping cost.
5. Do you take International orders? Yes! Paypal accepts most currencies.
6. Do you ship Internationally? Yes! We use USPS Express Mail 2-5 Day delivery. In some countries you will have to pay an additional VAT (value added tax) fee. Unfortunately I can’t estimate that cost from my side. International shipping has been in the $27 – $45 range depending on where you are in the world.
7. May I expedite my order? Do you mean cut in line? No, sorry. But, if you’d rather pay for overnight shipping, I will happily provide you a quote. 
8. What is your Return Policy? Because the custom maps have been pre-approved a return based on the content of the map is highly irregular and not usually approved. If however there is an issue with the construction (poor sewing, misaligned edges, etc) we will happily make you a new one. Please email me immediately at softcities.nikki@gmail.com if this is the case. 

Making the Textiles

1. How are the blankets and napkins made?  We use a local San Francisco digital printer. They are fabulous! The map files are printed out on a what looks like a large transfer machine. Then they go through a heat machine that bakes the ink into the fabric. The inks are toxin free. The napkins are made by rolling the fabric through essentially a large ink-jet printer. The dyes used for this process are also toxin-free. Both products are then sewn in the same facility by a group of really nice ladies who love working on our maps. Sweat-shop free!
2. Are the blankets safe for children? Absolutely! The dyes are toxin-free and permanent, so don’t worry if the blanket is also used as a pacifier. I will say however, that like all fleece, our blankets are flammable. Please don’t keep the blanket in their crib or near a flame. Like NEVER!
3. What’s up with the napkins? Why aren’t they ready? I’m not happy with fabric we’ve sourced for the napkins. Currently, the cotton twill comes out a little too thick and doesn’t hold its color very well.  Luckily with the blankets the fleece soaks up the color and it stays put. But with cotton, the color fades after one wash. The Midnight Commander maps suddenly look like denim instead of the deep blue as was intended. (Although I realize denim napkins are pretty cool too!)  We will very soon have a better fabric and the moment the napkins are ready you will know.

Please email Nikki at softcities.nikki@gmail.com if the answer to your question cannot be found here.