How can we help?
Real humans read every message — often the same ones who wrapped your order — and reply within a day. Usually faster, unless it's snowing sideways and we're all shoveling out Damen Avenue.
Boxes that hustle
Every order is wrapped by hand in Bucktown, then handed to a carrier the same or next business day. We ship anywhere in the US — from Ravenswood to wherever your people wandered off to.
Orders over $75 ship free with Standard. Timing starts when the box leaves us, not when you click — though we're quick about that part too.
US addresses only for now. International friends — we're working on it.
| Method | Timing | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 3–6 business days | $6.95 · free over $75 |
| Expedited | 2 business days | $14.95 |
| Chicago pickup | Ready in ~2 hours | Free |
Changed your mind? Happens.
You've got 30 days from delivery. Keep it unused with the tags on, and we'll take it back with zero interrogation.
Email us first
Send your order number to shop@fernwoodgeneralstore.com. A human replies within a day with a prepaid label or a heads-up to just swing by either store.
Pack it up
Unused, tags on, original box if you've still got it. The wrapping paper's fate is between you and your recycling bin.
Money comes back
Refunds land on your original payment within 5–7 business days of the return reaching us. Or take store credit and start plotting the next gift.
Got it as a gift? Gift returns become store credit for you, the recipient — quietly, with no email to the giver. They keep the credit for good taste, you get something you'll actually use. Everybody wins, nobody knows.
Your gift, ready today
Order online, pick either store at checkout, and we'll have it wrapped and waiting in about two hours. We'll email you the moment it's ready — no hovering by the door required.
- Bring your order number — it's in the confirmation email
- Bring your face — that's genuinely the whole list
Wrapped like we mean it
Every order gets the full treatment, free, no checkbox hunting. A gift in a plastic mailer is just cargo — we don't do cargo.
- Kraft paper wrap, folded by an actual person
- Real ribbon — the kind worth saving in a drawer
- A handwritten-style gift note with your words
- Price slips removed — the number stays our secret
Questions we hear daily
Asked at the counter, over email, and once memorably through the front window. Answered here for good.
Yep — Standard shipping rides with USPS, so PO boxes are no problem. Expedited needs a street address, since those boxes travel by courier and couriers can't fit in a PO box.
If we haven't wrapped it yet, absolutely. Email shop@fernwoodgeneralstore.com with your order number and the note — the wrap table checks the inbox before anything gets taped shut.
Ugh — sorry. Email us a photo of the damage within 7 days and we'll ship a replacement or refund you, your pick. No need to mail back the shards; give them a dignified goodbye.
Sure — just email us their name ahead of time, and have them bring the order number. Handy when the gift is for the person doing your errands. We won't spoil it.
We do, and we're much better at it than a fruit basket. Email us your headcount, budget, and deadline — we'll wrap the lot and write every note by hand-ish. Chicago offices can even do bulk pickup.
Digital ones land by email within minutes; physical ones are genuinely charming and come wrapped. Both work online and at either store, and neither ever expires. Pair one with the Gift Finder and you've basically outsourced the whole job.
That's our favorite trick. Enter their address at checkout, add your gift note, and we handle the rest — wrapped, price slips removed, zero evidence of procrastination.
The Lake Effect Candle No. 5, by a landslide — with the "Lake Michigan, Unsalted" socks in hot pursuit. Between them they've covered half the housewarmings on the North Side.
Talk to an actual human
No chatbots, no ticket numbers with nine digits. Just the people behind the counter.
Email us
shop@fernwoodgeneralstore.comThe fastest lane for orders, returns, gift notes, and "help, I panicked" situations. Answered within a day, by a person.
Write to usWrite to usCall or text
773-555-0148Customer service only — it rings at the counter, so be kind if we're mid-ribbon. Texts welcome; we type between wraps.
Visit us
Bucktown — 2415 N. Damen Avenue, Chicago, IL 60647
Wicker Park — 1836 W. Division Street, Chicago, IL 60622
Policies shown on this page are illustrative placeholders pending client approval.