Store Policies
Processing Time
As each splint is custom handcrafted to order processing time is largely dependent on order size, metal type, and splint complexity. Most smaller orders are out in a week, while larger and/or more complicated orders can take 2-3 weeks. It is also important to keep in mind that titanium has extended processing time regardless of order size as it requires additional steps in production due to the properties of the metal, and will generally add around 1-2 weeks to the standard processing time. It's a very difficult metal to work with, which is likely why no one else offers it, but I believe we all deserve access to good quality metal splints-including when struggling with MCAS or severe metal allergies.
As an example, most orders for a swan neck or a lateral support or a regular hand/thumb MCP in most metals would only take 1-3 days, but an order for a full set of splints (two IP joint splints per finger, thumb combination splint and swan, and hand MCP hypermobility/buddy splint) with lots of supports in titanium would typically take anywhere from 1-3 months. If you'd like to know more about titanium and it's process check out my Metal Types page.
Orders placed during sale events often have a longer processing time due to the high volume of orders and complexity of the splints (people frequently take advantage of the opportunity to order thumb splints with extra supports added and designer series splints, which are more time consuming), so please keep that in mind when ordering.
There's also been a notice in the description of each style of IP-MCP Combination splint regarding delays/extended processing time since May due to a hand injury that prevented me from being able to make them-particularly in titanium-until September. Thankfully I've been in a pretty good groove with them and am getting through the backorders fairly quickly, but am still going through occasional flares of numbness/pins & needles that makes it difficult to form them. This is just one of many, many issues I'd developed over the last 5 or 6 years due to the thyroid problems-it causes fluid buildup in the joints that presses on the nerves. In addition to the difficulty with the IP/MCP splints it also sometimes throws off my hand coordination and causes blurred vision, making everything a struggle. Titanium is more of challenge for me being such a difficult metal, so they're more likely to be delayed a bit longer than the other metal types when the problems flare up. Autoimmune conditions are tricky to learn to navigate and I'm just starting this journey, so until my medical team figures out the correct treatment options to keep me stabilized I'll probably have to deal with occasional flares. While generally orders are going out without issue, due to this for the time being I'm not able to guarantee processing/shipping times, I just never know if I'll wake up the next day with my hands not listening to me. If a potential delay would be a serious issue for you, please do not order.
I do my best to provide updates on any delays and current processing times on the site when/as they occur.
Shipping
Orders are shipped Monday, Wednesday, and Friday via USPS. Please allow 24-48 hours for tracking to update through USPS.
Domestic shipments: Transit time is generally 3-5 business days for First Class and Priority shipments, and 1-3 business days for Priority Express. All shipments include insurance in case they are lost or damaged in transit. Transit times can also occasionally be affected by inclement weather or other issues, as well as take longer during the holiday season from the increased volume of packages and cards.
*added 3/10/2025-Since the beginning of the holiday season there have been times when USPS recycles tracking numbers early, resulting in orders being delivered to one of the other addresses associated with the tracking number. This isn't supposed to happen for at least 4 months when the current tracking information expires, but I've seen it happening as early as a month and a lot of folks complaining about it happening in just weeks in some of the shipping forums. Contacting your local post office first gives you the best chances of USPS being able to locate and redeliver your package as they have GPS tagging for each delivery and in smaller communities may even remember delivering it. When I file a search request from my end it is routed to the post office who handled the delivery but this often takes 1-2 weeks before I hear back. Contacting them directly cuts out that extra time. If they're unable to locate it just let me know and I'll be able to file on my end to start the claim process. This also on occasion may mean that when you receive your tracking information and first check it, it will show as delivered somewhere else recently. If this happens just give it a little time, it should update to the new shipment information in 24-48 hours of being scanned in.
At the start of the year USPS began a 3 phase process of overhauling operations, which is supposed to streamline everything. Unfortunately so far it's been causing a lot of glitches and issues. While looking at that long string of numbers seems like there would be infinite combinations, only 6 of those numbers are "random", the rest are actually codes denoting things like shipping service and the shippers account number. With over 20 million packages a day being shipped through them, they run out pretty fast.
International Shipments: International orders are transported by USPS to a shipping partner Global Post, who handles the international leg of the journey. USPS delivers shipments to their processing facilities where they're sorted and sent to the appropriate destination countries, and once they clear customs in the destination country are handed off to the local postal service for final delivered. They typically move a little faster than USPS and include $100 insurance with their standard shipping service, which is something you have to upgrade to a Priority option for with USPS. Transit time is generally 1-2 weeks, though some locations and more outlying areas can take up to 6. Generally international orders will have arrived by the 4th week, even to remote locations. USPS Priority has a 6-10 day delivery time and Priority Express has a 3-5 day transit time, however it's important to keep in mind that the transit time is how long it takes to reach the destination country, final delivery may take a longer as the package will have to clear customs before it can be handed off to the local postal service for delivery. Usually customs clears packages quickly, however can occasionally take a couple weeks.
Claims for international shipments missing or damaged in transit must be made after 30 days but before 90 days for standard and Priority shipments, and after one week but before 60 days for Priority Express.
Some countries charge a customs fee/import tax/VAT. This is not a shipping charge, it is an import tax imposed by the government of the destination country. All customs forms are labeled as medical orthotics, which exempts them from this tax in some countries and discounts them in others. As these charges vary for every country and often fluctuate I am not aware of how much they will be, it is the buyers responsibility to be aware of any applicable fees for their individual country.
*Please note that due to a glitch with the web host international tracking doesn't always upload properly and the tracking link goes to USPS instead of GlobalPost, causing it to not track. If this happens please enter your tracking number at the GlobalPost website to follow shipment progress.
Claims: For domestic shipments a claim can be filed starting two weeks after the ship date but not later than 60 days. For standard international shipments a claim can be filed no sooner than 30 days with a cutoff of 90 days, while Priority/Priority Express can be filed after 2 weeks but not later than 60 days. As long as I receive notice prior to the cutoff time so that I'm able to file a claim, a replacement order will be started as soon as I receive confirmation that they are unable yo locate the shipment.
Unfortunately I'm unable to provide refunds as these claims are often rejected, and even when accepted take many weeks to receive. If I'm not notified of an issue with shipment before prior to the 60 or 90 day cut-off times the order will not be eligible for replacement.
In some special circumstances store credit may be issued, however this credit cannot be used during sale events .
Please keep in mind that I can't control what happens once the package is out of my hands and do not provide any guarantee for shipping/transit/delivery times and do not provide refunds of expedited shipping costs for delayed shipments. For instances when USPS delivers a Priority/Priority Express shipment past the scheduled delivery date you can request a refund of the shipping costs directly from your local post office, so long as the delay was not due to inclement weather.
Please ensure your address is correct before placing your order. To protect both buyer and seller and to prevent fraud, addresses cannot be changed after an order is placed. Any shipments returned to me for missing or incomplete address or in the case of international shipments where they were never picked up from customs will not be eligible for a refund, but I will of course be happy to send them back out for the cost of the postage.
Cancellations
I start processing most orders right away and therefore they cannot be changed or canceled, so please double check measurements to ensure accuracy and ask any questions before placing an order. Typically the initial shaping of the splints is done by the end of the same day the order is placed, and while larger orders may take longer to complete and ship small orders for simple splints often go out next day-sometimes even same day if the order is placed early enough-so there is generally not enough time after an order is placed to cancel before work on it has begun. You'll receive an email from Zebra Splints and from Shipstation when the shipping label for your order is created and is preparing for shipment. Please allow 24-48 hours for USPS to update tracking.
Returns/Exchanges/Refunds
As all items are handcrafted there may be slight variations from the splints pictured (no two swirls come out exactly the same, no two roses are exactly alike).
Each splint is custom made to order based on the measurements, sizes, and materials chosen when the order is placed and therefore are not able to be resold, so I'm unable to accept returns or exchanges. All sales are final. Please be sure to ask any questions prior to ordering-if you're unsure of the splint type you need, what metal option would be best for your needs, if there are any concerns with sizing etc.-as I won't be able to make changes to splints after they've been made.
However to ensure everyone has properly fitting splints I also have the most generous resizing policy in the industry to cover instances when the splints received don't fit properly, only charging for the materials in cases where splints need to be remade and direct production/shipping costs, I don't charge for my time doing the work. Most splints are also adjustable within about a half size smaller or larger following these Adjustment Instructions. This allows the splints to be tweaked for a precision fit once received, as well as if needed to accommodate the swelling issues that so many of us have.
If there is too much of a size difference for minor adjustments to correct, or if it's a type of splint that can't be adjusted (mainly hand and thumb MCP splints) they may be sent back for low cost resizing within 30 days. Buyer must contact for approval prior to shipping a splint back for resizing. While I don't charge for the work within the first 30 days, if the splint(s) need to be remade entirely (this typically only applies when splints need to be sized larger and for hand or thumb MCP splints) fees for resizing will vary depending on the splint type and metal type to cover the cost of materials, and shipping costs to send the splint(s) back to you. An invoice will be sent via email for the shipping cost and materials cost (if applicable) when the resize is completed and ready to ship. Pease keep in mind that since I sell my splints at cost to keep them affordable the bulk of the price is the cost of materials, so while it's fairly inexpensive for stainless steel and titanium, splints made from sterling silver and gold filled options can add up quick when multiple/large splints need to be remade. When invoicing for the total cost of materials with sterling silver or gold filled I calculate by the actual cost of the materials used minus a scrap credit for the returned splints, which is calculated by weight using the online calculator tool provided by my silver/gold vendor.
Additional supports cannot be added after a splint is created. If you find that you need additional supports after receiving your splint a new splint with the supports will need to me ordered.
An Important Note on Sizing
Different splint companies use different sizing methods and in some cases even have their own proprietary sizing, so please use the tools and instructions available on my sizing page to ensure accuracy and prevent the need for resizing. Orders placed using sizing for another company will not be eligible for the free/low cost resizing policy due to the increased likelihood of inaccurate sizing. Historically most of the resizes on large orders have been the result of a therapist measuring incorrectly because they are following instructions they learned for a different company rather than the instructions on my site, which are designed for clarity and ease of use for people who are measuring and ordering for themselves. Over the last 10 years it's been fairly uncommon for customers who self measure to need resizing.
If you're using sizing provided by a therapist it's always recommended to double check the sizing before placing an order, and always check to make whether or not sizing information for a different company was used and put a note in the order letting me know if it was. If an order is placed using sizing for a different company and there's no note stating such I won't know to convert the sizing and the splints you receive will not fit.
The company therapists most frequently measure for is The Silver Ring Splint Company, which uses a proprietary sizing system that does not work with any other splint company. Due to how their splints are made they fit much differently and require two sizes-one for the top ring and one for the bottom ring. This does not translate well to other splint types and frequently causes issues with fit. Unless there is a very strong taper to the fingers as shown in the pictures on the sizing page, two sizes should not be used for my splints-they should be measured directly around the joint. or may come. Never measure around the phalanx, the splint will not fit over the joint if you do.
And Lastly, a Note About Processing Times...
Please keep in mind that while I make every effort to get orders out as quickly as possible I'm just one person, and there's only so many hours in the day. EDS is a difficult and unpredictable condition to live with, and there is always the potential for an injury or severe flare that prevents me from being able to work efficiently (or sometimes at all), especially with the new Hashimoto's diagnosis. Sometimes I'm fine, other times not so much. I'm still learning my triggers for and how to manage flares, and we're still working on finding the right medication as it seems my body just will *not* convert T4 at all, so even the natural desiccated thyroid ended up making me worse. I've just started Cytomel (T3 monotherapy) and have high hopes for it, because I felt fantastic on the desiccated meds right up until the T4 caught up with me. For the time being I'm working solo due to my inability to keep consistent hours, so it's just me handling every aspect of the business. I'm doing my best and giving it everything I have, but over the next few months as I work towards getting my health stabilized it's likely that there will be occasional delays and struggles keeping up on messaging (especially with the glitches the web host has failed to resolve since they first started over a year ago), as well as occasional delays getting orders dropped off at the post office. I'm too rural for mail service, so orders have to be dropped off at the post office, and sometimes leaving the house just isn't possible for me. Once things are settled again I'll be able to hire help and have plans ready to move the site to a platform that will better suit my needs. And actually function like it should...
I run this as a not-for-profit business-the money made from splint sales goes right back into the business, allowing me to make large bulk material purchases to get the big discounts I pass on to you, so I can continue to offer beautiful and durable splints that will last a lifetime at affordable prices. I donate a lot of my time to keep everything running, only paying myself enough to cover basic living expenses. I've never been one to dream of extravagance, all I ever wanted is a quiet peaceful life where I don't have to worry about how I'm going to pay bills or bring a calculator with me when I go grocery shopping. It'll always be more important to me to be able to put some good into the world with this little life I have than to live it up with expensive dinners and fancy cars. I live in a modest rental and drive a used car, I don't wear designer clothes or fancy jewelry (unless I made it myself). I get far more satisfaction out of life being able to help others like me continue to pursue their dreams and careers so they feel fulfilled too. This condition robs us of so much, and supporting each other is how we make it through ❤