Shop policies

How we sell, ship and look after your details

Last updated 24 September 2026

Aratama Jade is run by Aratama Concepts LLC, 123 Main Street, Wilmington, DE 19801, USA ("we", "us"). Each piece is cut by hand in Guatemala from a single stone and is one of a kind. These policies apply to everything bought or commissioned at aratamajade.com.

Returns and refunds

If a piece is not right for you, you may return it within 14 days of delivery for a full refund of the price and of the standard shipping you paid. You do not need to give a reason.

How to return a piece

• Write to studio@aratamajade.com within 14 days of delivery with your order reference. We reply with the return address.
• Send the piece back within 14 days of writing to us, unworn and in the condition you received it, with its packaging and any certificate.
• Ship it insured, with tracking. Return shipping is paid by you, unless the piece arrived damaged or was not as described.

Your refund

• We refund to the original payment method within 14 days of receiving the piece back.
• Import duty and taxes charged by your country's customs are not collected by us, so we cannot refund them. Many customs offices refund them on a returned item; your courier can tell you how.
• If a piece comes back worn, altered or damaged, we may reduce the refund by the cost of restoring it, and we will tell you before doing so.

Not returnable

• Commissioned pieces made to your design or specification, once the stone has been cut (see Commissions).
• Pieces resized or engraved at your request.

If something is wrong

If a piece arrives damaged or is not as described, tell us within 48 hours of delivery, with photographs of the piece and the packaging. We will arrange its return at our cost and refund you in full, or repair or replace it if you prefer and it can be done. This does not limit any rights you have under the law of your country.

A piece sold at the same moment

Pieces are also shown in our display case in Guatemala. In the rare case that a piece is sold in the shop at the same moment you pay for it online, we refund your payment in full straight away and tell you.

Shipping and duties

• From Guatemala. Finished pieces ship from Guatemala City.
• When. Within 3–5 business days of payment, by insured express courier with tracking and signature on delivery. We email the tracking number.
• Where. To the countries offered at checkout. If yours is not listed, write to us.
• Cost. Insured express shipping is included in the price.

Import duty and taxes

Prices do not include import duty, VAT, GST or customs fees in your country. They are charged by your country's customs, usually collected by the courier on delivery, and paid by you. We declare the full value of every shipment; we cannot mark a sale as a gift or declare a lower value.

If you refuse a delivery or do not pay the charges, the courier returns the piece to us. We then refund the price, less the shipping and any return charges the courier bills us.

Loss and damage in transit

Every shipment is insured for its full value until it is delivered. If a parcel is lost, we refund you in full or, if you prefer and it is possible, offer a comparable piece.

The stone

• Jade from the Motagua Valley. Every piece is jadeite jade or omphacite jade, the two kinds of jade Guatemala produces, and the listing names which, as a laboratory would. We never sell nephrite, glass or any other stone as jade.
• Treatment stated on every listing. "Untreated (Type A)" means no bleaching, polymer or dye. A light surface wax, where used, is stated. Until a piece has been tested by a laboratory, the stone and treatment on its listing are our own assessment, and the listing says "Not yet tested by a lab".
• Contemporary work. Every piece is cut and carved by hand in Guatemala today. Designs inspired by Maya or Olmec art are new carvings, not antiquities.
• Colour rating. The 1 to 5 colour rating on each listing is our own guide, not a laboratory grade.
• Certificates. Pieces priced above US$1,000 come with a report from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), and the laboratory and report number are on the listing. Where the report states Guatemalan origin, the listing says so. You may have any piece tested independently; if a laboratory finds that it is not as we described it, we refund you in full, including the testing fee.
• Photographs. Listings show the actual piece. Natural stone varies, and colour can look slightly different from one screen to another. Listings marked Sample use concept images and are not for sale.

Commissions

1. You send references and your requirements. The sketch and quote are free and commit you to nothing.
2. If you accept the quote, you pay a deposit of 50% by the invoice we send. We then choose the stone and begin.
3. We send photographs as the piece takes shape. Changes to the agreed design after cutting has begun may change the price.
4. When the piece is finished, we send photographs and an invoice for the balance. It ships once the balance is paid.

• Cancelling. You may cancel for a full refund of the deposit until the stone has been cut. After that, the deposit is kept to cover the stone and work, because a piece made to your design cannot be resold as it was intended.
• Times. The time we give is an honest estimate; hand carving can take longer. If we expect to be more than 2 weeks late, you may cancel for a full refund of the deposit.
• The stone decides. Natural jade can reveal a flaw during cutting. If it does, we tell you and offer another stone or a full refund of the deposit.

Terms of sale

• Seller. Aratama Concepts LLC, 123 Main Street, Wilmington, DE 19801, USA, studio@aratamajade.com.
• Prices. In US dollars, and final at checkout. Your bank may convert to your currency and charge its own fee. Shipping is added at checkout; import charges are not included (see Shipping and duties).
• Payment. Taken by Stripe on its secure checkout page. Card details go to Stripe; we never see or store them.
• When the sale is made. A sale is complete when payment is confirmed. Each piece is one of a kind: while you are on the checkout page it is held for you for 30 minutes, and if payment is not completed it is offered to others again.
• Mistakes. If a listing shows a clearly wrong price or description, we may cancel the order and refund you in full before the piece ships.
• Ownership and risk. The piece becomes yours when it is delivered.
• Liability. Nothing in these terms limits a right you have as a consumer under the law of your country. Otherwise, our liability for a purchase is limited to the price you paid for it.
• Law. These terms are governed by the law of the State of Delaware, USA. If you are a consumer, you also keep the protection of the law of the country where you live.

Privacy

Aratama Concepts LLC is responsible for the personal information collected through aratamajade.com. We collect only what we need to sell, ship and make pieces for you.

What we collect and why

We do not use advertising or tracking cookies, and we do not sell or rent your information.

Who else handles it

• Cloudflare hosts the site, stores its data and photographs, and runs the spam check.
• Stripe processes payments under its own privacy policy.
• The courier receives your name, address and phone number to deliver your piece.
• Email: Resend sends order and request emails.

Where it is kept

Our service providers store and process data in the United States and in other countries where they operate. When information leaves your country, we rely on the safeguards that apply to that transfer, such as the providers' standard contractual clauses.

How long we keep it

• Orders: for 7 years, for tax and accounting.
• Commission requests and the reference images sent with them: deleted automatically 2 years after they arrive, unless the request is still open.

Your rights

You may ask to see, correct or delete your information, to receive a copy, or to withdraw a consent you gave. Write to studio@aratamajade.com; we reply within 30 days. You may also complain to the data protection authority where you live.

For buyers in the European Union and the United Kingdom

We use your information to perform our contract with you (orders and commissions), to meet legal obligations (tax records), and on the basis of our legitimate interest in keeping the site secure (the spam check).

For buyers in mainland China (PIPL)

By sending a request or placing an order, you give separate consent to your personal information being transferred outside China to Aratama Concepts LLC in the United States and to the service providers listed above, for the purposes described here. Reference images you send may show faces; please send them only with the permission of the people shown. You may withdraw consent or exercise your rights by writing to studio@aratamajade.com.

For buyers in Japan (APPI)

Your information is provided to recipients in the United States. Information on the US system for the protection of personal information is published by Japan's Personal Information Protection Commission. Our providers take measures equivalent to those required under Japanese law. You may ask us for further details at studio@aratamajade.com.

For buyers in Korea (PIPA)

• Items transferred abroad: the information listed in the table above.
• Recipients and country: Aratama Concepts LLC, Cloudflare, Stripe and the courier, in the United States and where they operate.
• Timing and method: when you submit a form or order, over an encrypted connection.
• Purpose and retention: as described above.
• You may refuse the transfer, but we then cannot complete the order or request.

Contact

Aratama Concepts LLC
123 Main Street, Wilmington, DE 19801, USA
Email: studio@aratamajade.com
WhatsApp: +502 5555 0100

We answer in English and Spanish, and in the other languages of the shop with the help of translation.