The Pincushion Boutique - Frequently Asked Questions

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is Sweettreat.com?

Sweettreat.com is the online store for The Pincushion Boutique. We are a quilt shop based out of Davis, CA and have been in business since 1977. We travel all over the country participating in quilt shows. We maintain offices and a warehouse in Davis where we process and ship all of our online as well phone and mail orders.

What is a Sweet Treat™?

We are the exclusive manufacturer of original Sweet Treats™, which are groups of eight color coordinated and named fat-quarters. Each Sweet Treat can be used to make any one of the Pressed For Time Quiltworks© patterns that are also exclusively offered through Pincushion Boutique and sweettreat.com. We produce about 60,000 Sweet Treats™ per year. We keep track of every fabric we use in our Sweet Treats™ and we catalog them by name. This makes easy for you to reorder fabric. Call us with the name of your Sweet Treat™ and the position of the fabric you want more of. Fabric #1 is behind the ribbon. Fabric #8 is around the cardboard. Tell us how much you’d like and you don’t have to send us a swatch!

Do you have a brick and mortar shop I can visit?

We opened our new sales floor on June 10th, 2011. We are located at 1605 2nd St, Davis CA 95616.

Can I pick up my pre-paid order at your office location?

Any order you place online, through the mail, or by phone can be picked up in our office by appointment. Make sure you let us know you’d like to pick up your order and confirm a pick up time. If you place your order online, standard shipping and processing charges will appear on your invoice. You will not be charged postage on any order that you pick up yourself, but you MUST notify us when you place your order that you’d like to pick it up yourself. If you don’t, your order will be automatically processed and shipped.

What can I buy through your website?

You can buy hundreds of Sweet Treats™, Sweet Treat™ Kits, Pressed For Time Quiltworks© patterns, specialty kits like Blissful Binkies, and gifts through sweettreat.com.

What methods can I use to place an order?

There are several ways you can place an order with us. You can order online with a credit card. You can call our toll-free number (800)758-3488 and place your order. You can fax an order to (530)758-1403. You can mail an order to 1605 2nd St., Davis, CA 95616. If you need to pay by check, make sure you call to place your order so we can give you an accurate total that will include shipping, processing, and, if ordered from California, sales tax.

Is it free to join your website?

We do not charge you to join our website, the more the merrier!

How does the website process orders?

When shopping through our website, you will have to perform certain actions to complete the order.

First, you can select items that you would like to purchase from our catalog and place them in your shopping cart. When you are happy with your selections, you can proceed to Checkout.

To check out with your items, the website will ask you to log in to your account or make a new account if you do not already have one. Making an account with our website is free and allows you to sign up for our informative newsletters, sale notifications, as well as complete an online order. You can opt out of receiving the automated emails if you want.

After you log in to your account with your password, the website will ask you about your Shipping information on the Delivery Information page.

Then, on the Payment Information page, the website will ask you to verify your Billing address. Note here on this page that the Payment Method is by credit card processed by Authorize.net®. Please do not add any credit card information to the Comments box.

On the next page, called Order Confirmation, you can review what items you have selected to purchase, your shipping address, your billing address, and our zone based shipping costs.

When you are ready to proceed, you can click Confirm Order. This will send you to our Authorize.net® payment gateway to enter your credit card information and finalize the order.

Does The Pincushion Boutique assess a handling fee on orders?

We do not charge an additional handling fee to complete your order. Whether you order one pattern, or a hundred, our staff will search for and fill your order as fast as we possibly can. We are here to serve you. We charge a $1 bank processing fee on each order placed at www.sweettreat.com, through the mail, or on the phone.

What is Authorize.net®?

The Pincushion utilizes Authorize.net® to process credit card orders over the internet. Whenever you choose to check out of our online store, we will send you to finalize the order on Authorize.net®’s server. This ensures that their network security protects your credit card information.

Authorize.net® provides payment processing and online fraud protection for more than 305,000 merchants, including The Pincushion Boutique.

Does your website save my credit card information?

We do not save your credit card information on our website. We have contracted with Authorize.net® to process your card over the internet. We do not have access to your complete credit information.

In order to protect your identity and credit information we rely on Authorize.net® to supply security outlined by the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard.

This can cause a problem for loyal customers that, for ease of purchasing, wish to place an order (typically by phone) with us and have us look up their billing information on our systems. We cannot do this with any orders placed over the internet.

If you have a special order or circumstance or any questions, please call us at (800) 758-3488 at any time or email us at mary.hubka@sweettreat.com.

What is The Sweet Treat® Program, how much does it cost, and how do I sign up for it?

The Sweet Treat™ Program is a monthly or bi-monthly subscription program. When you sign up you tell us whether you are a contemporary quilter, a traditional quilter, or whether you like to do a mix of both. You choose subcategories like holidays, and batiks, which you would like to receive occasionally. You can also choose not to receive certain styles of fabric, for example country or juvenile.

When we get your order we’ll enter you into the Program and assign you a certain week of the month. Week 1 charges on the 3rd of every month, Week 2 on the 10th, Week 3 on the 17th, and Week 4 on the 24th. The charges are processed automatically, no matter what day of the week the date lands on. We ship your Sweet Treat™ as soon as we can after the day it was charged, typically the first Friday following the date you were charged.

When you are scheduled to receive a Sweet Treat™, Janet, our Sweet Treat™ Program Supervisor, will personally assign you a beautiful Sweet Treat™ based on your likes and dislikes as well as what she has sent you previously. You can update the preferences on your profile at any time to refine the selection of Sweet Treats™ you receive.

The Sweet Treat™ program is currently $20 per month plus tax (CA residents only), plus postage, currently $3.26 (domestic). Postage to Canada for the Sweet Treat™ Program is currently $4.03. Postage to other international destinations vary by country, but most are $9.04.

The only way to sign up for the program, at this time, is to call our toll-free number (800) 758-3488, fax your application to (530) 758-1403, or mail your application to Pincushion Boutique, 1605 2nd St., Davis, CA 95616. Click here for a printable Sweet Treat™ Subscription Form.

To contact Janet directly with questions regarding the Sweet Treat™ Program, email her at janet@sweettreat.com.

How does The Pincushion Boutique assess shipping charges?

We at The Pincushion work as hard as possible to keep your shipping charges low and competitive. We determine shipping costs by weight and destination. When ordering an item through the website here are some points to keep in mind:

Your order will be authorized for the product amount plus a standard shipping and processing rate. If actual shipping and processing is less than what is quoted on your web receipt at checkout, your order will be charged the actual postage & processing only, before your credit card transaction is finalized with your bank.
Actual postage is determined by weight, not by dollar amount of the order. The computer cannot recognize weights of products on our website, it can only recognize dollar amounts. Therefore, it assigns a standard shipping and processing rate to the dollar amount of your order. We will only charge you for the weight of your shipment, which may be far less than the standard rates assigned by the computer.
For example, if you order a single pattern, the computer will authorize your card for $8.00 (the cost of the pattern), plus tax if applicable, plus $6.95 shipping and processing. The actual postage to mail one pattern domestically is 88¢. The bank processing fee on every transaction is $1. Even though your credit card will be authorized for $6.95 shipping and processing, we will change your shipping and processing charge to only $1.88. The invoice included with your order will reflect the actual charges billed to your credit card.
Your card will never be charged more than the amount quoted on your invoice, but, in many cases, your charge may be less.

What is the Pincushion’s policy on Returns?

Returns are handled on a case by case basis at the discretion of the management. We do not accept returns on fabric. We do not accept returns on any copyrighted materials, such as patterns. If we made a mistake on your order, call us and we’ll arrange to fix it.

Do you guarantee an item will be in stock?

Unfortunately, due to the nature of our business, we do not guarantee an item will be in stock. We create a great many Sweet Treats™, quilt kits, and other wonderful items each month and work to keep all of the fabric new and fresh. This means that our fabric inventory turnover, generally, occurs every few months. If you have a project that you know will take a while to complete, we recommend stocking up on what you will need early. Otherwise, we will work with you to the best of our abilities to find suitable replacements.

How can I contact The Pincushion Boutique if I have any questions?

You can call us at the shop at (800) 758-3488 any time. If no one is available to answer your call, you can leave a voice mail message or call us again later. We also answer questions via email at mary.hubka@sweettreat.com.

I am nervous about using my credit card over the internet, how can I place an order?

We understand all too well how much you value your personal security and endeavor to afford our customers as safe a shopping experience as technology can supply. We will work with you to complete your order in the way that most satisfies you. You can place an order at any time over the telephone by calling us at the Pincushion at (800) 758-3488. Just write down what you would like from our catalog and talk to any staff member at the shop or leave a voice mail message. We will work as fast as possible to get you your order. We can also advise you on alternative items if what you are looking to purchase has sold out.

Does Sweettreat.com have a newsletter and how do I join it?

We do have a newsletter that we process through Constant Contact®. You can sign up for the newsletter at no charge when you join our website, through your account information on our website if you are already a member, or, if a friend forwards you one of our newsletter emails, you can opt to receive future messages from us. You can opt out of future messages at any time through a link in the emails or by emailing us at mary.hubka@sweettreat.com.

What sales tax does your website assess on orders?

If you are placing an order from California, we have to assess an 8.75% sales tax to your order. No locations outside of California pay sales tax.

I have forgotten my username or password, how do I retrieve them?

Our website uses your email address as your username. If you cannot remember which email account you used to join our website you can call us at (800) 758-3488 or email us at mary.hubka@sweettreat.com and we will try to look you up on our system. You are always welcome to create a new account with a new email if you are having trouble getting into your account on the website.

We do not have access to your password. If you cannot remember yours, go to our website and click My Account. Underneath the Recurring Customer section of the page, click on “Password forgotten? Click here” and fill out the form. This will send a randomly generated password to your email account affiliated with our website. You can then use this new password to log online.