Q. How do I use the shop?

A. We have designed Facepaint UK to be easy to use. As we have so many brands the products are divided into colour categories or other specialist areas. All facepaint products are also in Face Paint, so it's the longest category. All make-up is in Make-up, and other products that you might need including brushes, sponges and books, are in Equipment.
Enter the quantity that you require and "Add to Kit" then you can continue choosing any other products. You can also adjust the quantity in your 'kit' When you have finished your selection go to the checkout where post and packing costs will be applied and make payment. We only accept electronic payment through PayPal. If you have a PayPal account you may use that, otherwise just use your debit or credit card in the usual way - PayPal will facilitate this, select 'pay by card'. We aim to deliver to you within 3 days, if it is going to take longer, or we only have part of you order in stock, we will contact you to ask what you prefer us to do, hold the order until all stock is available, or send two deliveries. This could incur extra delivery costs, but usually not.

If you want your stuff in a tearing hurry (next day delivery) please state this in the comments box. The delivery cost is higher as we will send by Special Delivery (see below) to guarantee this, and you will need to sign for it. Orders need to be made by 3.30pm at the latest for this service, and obviously we need to have the product in stock. Normal Special Delivery is guaranteed by 1pm next day (weekdays only) or there is a service for delivery by 9am at even greater cost. Saturday Special Delivery is also at an extra £3 premium to normal next day service (to arrive before 1pm). Please let us know if you require this. We do not guarantee to send orders out this way unless you've heard from us with confirmation! Please check your emails.

You will need your debit or credit card details, including the billing address as held by the card company, and the delivery address which may be different. Your registration address with Facepaint UK should match the address registered for your card or PayPal account.

If there is a problem with payment we will contact you to resolve the problem and get the order underway as quickly as possible.

Q. How do you work out the post & packing costs?

A. We frequently review our costs to ensure this is reasonable. Each item has been given a code depending on its size and weight. These are added together to work out the cost of posting to you. Generally, items that fit into a small mailer are in the lowest category of £3.50. Larger or heavier items will come to £4, several larger or heavy items may fall into the £5 bracket, the highest set rate is £6. This charge covers more than the postage cost alone. We occasionally issue voluntary refunds via PayPal if the charge has proved excessive after posting.. Royal Mail have increased their prices yet again in April 2013, and it would be unrealistic not to reflect this in our pricing. Parking and transport costs rise too, and it's still cheaper than going to a physical shop!

Rush items by next day Special Delivery have an additional cost depending on weight. If you want Special Delivery, please ask for this in the comments box, and, if it is possible, we will send you an email letting you know how much extra it will cost, and a PayPal money request for payment. Saturday Special Delivery costs £2 more than a weekday delivery. If you haven't had an email requesting this, it means we've not picked up your order in time!

Orders over £100 are sent free of post & packing charge (unless Special Delivery is requested) except for overseas orders. For these we deduct the cost of sending within the UK and ask for the extra cost to be paid. Each order needs to be packed and weighed and costed for worldwide regions individually so we cannot automate a charge for this.

We endeavour to use clean recycled packaging where possible, this may mean a pre-used envelope or outer box. This is a cause for celebration, not complaint.

Q. I've forgotten my password, what can I do?

A. Go to the Members Section where there is a rather indistinct Lost Password link. You will be given a new one which you can change here after you have logged in. Simply enter the new one in the Password box, and confirm.

Q. How do I get a discount?

A. You can register with Facepaint UK by going to Register Now! . This costs £45 per annum and is designed for face painters. You can have a page in our Directory, access to the member section and a 10% discount on all your shopping. The registration may take a day or two. Once you are registered, as soon as you have logged in the prices will all be reduced by 10%. If you log in at the end of your shopping spree the total will be reduced automatically. If you wish to make orders of over £500 or wish to ask about wholesale prices please contact us for individual arrangements.

Q. Do you have a catalogue?
A. No. Having all our products on the site means we stay as up to date as possible with stock, special offers and prices.

Q. Can I contact you by phone?

A. If you have a query, send us an email with your phone number, and if we can't answer by return email we will call you. Our phone number is 020 7735 5719 but we are essentially an online internet service and do not normally process orders by telephone. We cannot take payment over the phone.

Q. Can I get wholesale prices?

A. If you are planning to make regular large orders or an order of over £500 send us an email and we will contact you.

Q. Can I pay by cheque?

A. Yes, you can, but your order will not be dispatched until we have received the cheque and it has cleared. Please contact us on info@facepaint-uk.com with your order to make this arrangement.

Q. What payment card can I use?

A. All our payments go through PayPal which accepts all major forms of card payment at no cost to you. You can use a credit or debit or credit card, you don't need a PayPal account of your own.

Q. Is it safe to shop online?

A. Our secure server software encrypts all your personal information. This process converts the characters into code that are securely transmitted over the internet. PayPal is recognised as having industry-leading fraud protection systems in place and we felt was the most secure internet payment system available so that you can shop with confidence. However, most banks and credit card companies limit your liability to £50, but may cover all charges incurred by fraudulent use.

Q. When will I be charged?

A. After you submit your order you will be redirected to the PayPal website for payment and the payment process takes place. You do not need a PayPal account to use PayPal. Once authorised, the payment is taken from your account. If you have a PayPal account it will come from there, if you pay by card it will be taken via PayPal from that account. If payment is authorised but we need to contact you to effect your order, we will send you an email. If, for some reason, we cannot send your order a full refund will be made to your account via PayPal. PayPal also operate an e-cheque system, these can take 10 days to clear and we are advised not to despatch goods until the clearance is notified. We will advise you of this if we have received an e-cheque payment.

Q. What if my payment doesn't go through?

A. If the PayPal process is not completed, we can still see your order and will advise you that payment has not been received. We can send you a PayPal payment request which sometimes works better! Alternatively you can pay by cheque to: Facepaint UK, 188 Brixton Road, London SW9 6AR or bank transfer (please ask for account details). We cannot despatch orders that have not been paid for.

Q. Can I add to or change my order?

A. This depends on the status of your order. If it has already been processed, you will need to make another order. If not, we will try to intervene and make the change you require.

Q. What currency do you accept?

A. PayPal accepts all major currencies.

Q. Can I order from outside the UK?

A. We normally deliver to the UK,  and the online shop is set up for UK orders, however if you require overseas delivery we can organise it. 
We will establish what  the postage and packing costs are, with options if available, and issue a PayPal payment request.  The amount will be automatically converted to your local currency. Once payment has been received, the order will be sent by your chosen delivery method.
If you wish to claim back VAT (our local tax) our VAT number can be found on the order form. Unfortunately we cannot deduct VAT for you, the extra office work involved for the limited number of orders involved is too expensive to be practical. Your Purchase Order coupled with you PayPal receipt will facilitate this.
International members will receive their 10% discount on their purchases, but  not on the P&P costs, which we charge at cost.

Q. I want to know more about a product than I found on the site.

A. Send us an email to info@facepaint-uk.com detailing the product you are interested in and what you want to know. We can advise on ingredients, application and more!

Q. How long will it take for my order to arrive?

A. We aim to send most orders received before 3.30pm the same day by first class post, so if you order in the morning, there's a good chance it will arrive the next day! However, we advise 2-3 days in general, if we know it will take longer than this because we are waiting for part of your order, we will try to let you know by phone or email. If you absolutely must have your delivery by a certain date, do let us know in the comments box. This may incur an extra charge for Special Delivery as detailed above (see post and packing query). Special Deliveries will need a signature, so make sure someone is in to do this if time is crucial.

Large packages may be sent by Parcel Force which can take up to 3 days as they don't collect from the Post Office at a regular time each day, and sometimes not at all! Unbelievable but true. We have complained - they didn't reply.

Q. What if I don't know that anyone will be in when delivery is made?

A. The carrier will leave a card giving you options for obtaining your delivery by making arrangements for a day that suits you, or collection from their depot. Each carrier has different arrangements.

Q. Can you leave the delivery in a hiding place?

A. No carrier would guarantee this, and we may require a signature to verify that the goods were delivered. However, we do add notes to addresses when requested, and they often comply. Do check your email as you may have been advised that an item is out of stock. Junk mail sometime likes to hold our mail, so do check that as well.

Q. What do you do if part of my order is unavailable?

A. We will advise you by email and ask you if you want us to hold your order. If not, we will refund the difference to your PayPal account, and advise you when the item is in stock. We have had a very difficult time with Mehron and Graftobian products due to the takeover of their UK distributor by a company that lives on a different planet. We thank all of our customers affected by this for their patience.

Q. My delivery has something missing or broken!

A. Please contact us straight away and we will do our best to sort it out. We pack everything carefully, and double check contents to avoid this happening.

Q. My delivery is not as I expected!

A. We have put as much information on the site as possible so that you order the items you want. Please contact us within 7 days if you have any issues and we hope we can sort it out. If there has been an error at our end, we will arrange another order and dispatch the correct goods. On receipt of returned incorrect or faulty goods we will give a full refund including your return delivery costs (you may need to provide a receipt for this) via PayPal. Please note that any returned items, for whatever reason, are your responsibility until we receive them, so we advise that you use a service that insures you for loss or damage for the value of the goods if they are over £46 value, and ask for Proof of Posting in any case.

Q. I'm still not happy with my delivery!

A. We hope that we can sort this out and keep you happy. If we agree to the return of an order that was sent as described and is not faulty we may charge a 10% administration fee and our carriage costs, return carriage (insured if necessary) is at your expense.  If you need to, return the goods in their original condition within 14 days and we will give you a full refund. See 'How do I make a return?' below. The item is your responsibility until we receive it, so we advise that you use a service that insures you for loss or damage.

Q. Can I exchange an item?

A. If you are not happy with your goods, contact us to tell us why, return them to us in their original condition and we will either exchange for a similar item (brand, size etc) or give you a full refund excluding postage costs. It will be quicker for you to make another order (including payment) and await the refund for the returned goods. Some items are non-returnable for hygiene reasons. We cannot refund or exchange any product that has been used unless it is faulty.

Q. The colour I got isn't like the colour on the website!

A. We do our best to represent our products, and have gone further than most to do this. However, colour matching is a problem, especially with products like glitter which do not photograph well. All images have to be converted electronically, and your screen will not show the same colours as someone else's! If colour matching is crucial, we suggest that you contact us at info@facepaint-uk.com with a scan of your match requirement and we will do our best to help. If you are re-ordering a product that you have had before, try to find a manufacturer's reference on the packaging.

Q. Do I have to pay for return delivery?

A. This depends why you are returning it. If the goods are faulty or not what you ordered, please contact us first at info@facepaint-uk.com to let us know, and we will advise you how to proceed. If you have ordered the wrong thing, or changed your mind, the return postage costs are your responsibility, and we will deduct ours from a refund, and possibly an administration fee. Please note that any returned items, for whatever reason, are your responsibility until we receive them, so we advise that you use a service that insures you for loss or damage.

Q. How do I make a return?

A. Returns will not be accepted without a FPUK Return code which we will give you when you contact us and we have agreed to the return. We will also advise you of the return address which may not be the London address, depending on the goods or problem involved. The goods must be packed carefully so that we receive them in the same condition that you did. Please note that any returned items, for whatever reason, are your responsibility until we receive them, so we advise that you use a service that insures you for loss or damage.

Q. Can my order be delivered to a different address?

A. Yes, fill in the alternative address delivery details in the ordering process.

Q. Do you have a privacy policy?

A. We do not share any information with anyone not connected with your order. 'Cookies' are used to keep track of the contents of your shopping basket once you have selected an item, and your details so do need to be enabled. We never send spam or promotional emails.

Q I'm having technical problems using your site!

A. Please let us know by sending an email telling us what's wrong to info@facepaint-uk.com and we will fix it as soon as we can, or give you advice if needed.

Q. Do you have a 'real' shop?

A. We have a limited range of Grimas and Kryolan products available at Raoul, 34 Craven Road London W2, near Paddington rail and underground stations. The shop is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. Contact us if you want to know if the products you want are currently available.

Q. Do you have Vegan face paints?

A. Mehron have stated that Paradise paint is Vegan. It hasn't been formally approved as such by the Vegan Society.

Q. Are any of your products Hypo-allergenic?

A: All the brands on this site are professional products made to strict cosmetic standards, and adverse reactions are rare. As with all cosmetic products, some people are sensitive to some ingredients. There are no standards for the term "hypo allergenic", it is simply an unsubstantiated marketing tool used by the retail cosmetics industry. However, Grimas has made available a product called 'Pure' which has no anti-bactericides, and provides an alternative for those sensitive to parabens and chemical preservatives (chlorine, bromine etc.) and perfumes. Also, the colours used are from the strictest category - EEC/76/768.

Distance Selling Regulations
Under the UK's Distance selling regulations you have the right to cancel your order for any item and get a full refund for the goods (minus any carriage costs). Cancellations must be made within 7 days in writing quoting your order number by email to info@facepaint-uk.com or by post to 188 Brixton Road, London SW9 6AR. If your order has been dispatched you must return the goods to this address in their original condition (the condition they were packed in) within 14 days of receipt. The items are your responsibility until we receive them, so we advise that you pack them carefully and use a service that insures you for loss or damage.