Product Care & Policies

Q. What does "Erda" mean?
A. Erda in ancient times was a goddess of seasons and productivity, a Teutonic version of Mother Ceres. She appears in the Wagnerian operas (the Ring cycle). When I started Erda in 1971, we were living in New York and we were going to the Met to see the opera. When a friend suggested my business neededed a name and that a short one that begins and ends in a vowel is most memorable, Erda was a natural!

Erda today is a place where people work together with their hands, their hearts and their minds.

Q. How do I take care of deerskin?
A. Deerskin doesn't want or need much care. Please don't put any leather "treatment" on your Erda bag! Deerskin is so porous, it soaks up that stuff and will feel like an oily rag! After a year or two, if your bag does get dry, plain ol' handcream (Jergens lotion, for example) is best. It will darken the leather temporarily, but in a day or two it will spread into the whole bag evenly and the color should return to normal.

Q. How do I care for my fabric bag?
A. We have many different fibers in our handbags and suggest that they be dry cleaned.

Q. Will rain or water spot deerskin?
A. Yes, sometimes. But all you have to do to fix it is stretch the leather where the spots are and they'll disappear!

Q. I've melted some Junior Mints inside my bag. Help!
A. NOW you've done it! It's bath time. This is radical, but usually works: Wash the bag as you would a white t-shirt. Fill the sink with warm water and mild soap. Put some of the soap right on the stains. Scrub if you must. When it's all clean, hang to dry. It'll take a couple days. Then it'll be all stiff and you'll hate me... Get out the hand cream (see above) and rub it all over (the bag, silly, not you!) then stretch and pull the leather to soften it back up. You can skip chewing on it, though.

Q. A pen leaked inside my bag, and now there's an ugly spot. Any hope?
A. Indelible ink is, unfortunately, indelible. Maybe you're lucky, and yours will be washable (see bath time, above). I am guessing against it, though. How much do you love this bag? If the spot is too ugly to live wilh, send the bag to us and maybe we can patch it somehow. This will add character! We do charge for this enhancement, though.

Q. My Erda bag needs a repair. Will this cost a fortune?
A. Depends what's wrong. Our bags are not supposed to break, even if you fill them with lead and swing them over your head! So if it's something structural, that's our responsibility and we fix it, free. If, on the other hand, you've closed it in the car door and dragged it for 50 miles (you laugh, but we had one of those!) then we do our best to help you out for as little cost as we can. If it looks very grave, we estimate it up front so you can decide. Unlike the vet, there's no charge for cremation. And sometimes we even give you a sympathy discount on a replacement!

Q. What is your return policy?
A. We want our customers to be happy! So if you have purchased something that is not working for you, we want to adjust the situation if at all possible. Please contact us. No festering!!

• You may return anything you purchase, (in new condition, of course!) within one year, and exchange for something of value equal to what you paid.
• Between one and two years, you may return your purchases (in new condition) for exchange, less a 20% restocking fee
• After two years, there's a 50% restocking fee. (no, there's not more value for an antique!)

For items that are not in new condition, we'll have to study the item and make an individual determination. If the item has misbehaved (broken or faded, for example) we may replace it or repair it at our cost. If you got ink or lipstick on it, we might just cover that up with fringe for you. If you broke your rock or beads, we can probably replace those. In those cases, we charge you what it costs us to fix it. Just send us your tired or broken and a note saying what your dream is (a fix, exchange, or miracle) and we'll do our best!

Q. What will you do with my email address, address, phone number or other contact information?
A. We will certainly contact you in regards to your order when necessary. We know how anoying it is to get junk snail mail and email so we certainly will NOT be selling or passing on any of your information to any other persons or companies whatsoever.