Refund policy

Refund Policy

Culture of the Sun — Returns & Refunds

Every piece is cast to order, in your size, by hand. If it's not right, we'll sort it.

Nothing in this policy limits, excludes, or modifies your rights under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).

Your rights under the Australian Consumer Law

Our goods come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. You are entitled to a replacement or refund for a major failure and compensation for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage. You are also entitled to have the goods repaired or replaced if the goods fail to be of acceptable quality and the failure does not amount to a major failure.

The benefits we give you in this policy — the free size exchange and the change-of-mind return — are in addition to those rights, not instead of them. Nothing on this page limits what you're entitled to under the ACL, and ACL claims aren't limited to any time period stated below.

Hand-made variation — read this before you order

Every piece is cast, polished, patinated and finished by hand. Pieces are polished back, but not down to a smooth commercial finish — the cast texture is kept on purpose. Surface, patina depth, marks and weight vary between pieces. The photographs on each product page show a representative example, not the exact piece you will receive. No two come out the same.

Variation within this range is a characteristic of the work, not a defect. It is disclosed here and on every product page before you buy.

If you receive a piece and the variation isn't for you, that's a change-of-mind return under the terms below — email us within 30 days and you're welcome to send it back. You cover the return postage.

If a piece arrives so different from what was described that it isn't reasonably what you ordered, that's a different matter — tell us and we'll treat it under the ACL section below, not as a change of mind.

Structural integrity is absolute. A crack, a broken band, or a piece that isn't what you ordered is a fault, and is covered under the ACL section below.

Free size exchange

If your ring doesn't fit, we'll recast it in your size — free.

One free size exchange per order
Email us within 14 days of receiving your ring to let us know it doesn't fit. We'll reply with the return address, then you've got 14 days from that reply to post it back
Return it unworn, in its original packaging
You cover the return postage. We cover the recast and ship the new one to you free
The returned silver goes back into the melt. Your new ring is cast fresh in your size, so it joins the queue — allow 7–14 business days before it ships
Because no two come out the same, your recast will be its own piece, not a copy of the first
A second exchange on the same order is a flat $60 AUD recast fee

Change of mind returns

Changed your mind? You've got 30 days.

Email us within 30 days of receiving your piece. We'll reply with the return address, then you've got 14 days from that reply to post it back
Return it unworn, in its original packaging
You cover return postage
Once it arrives and we've confirmed it's unworn and in its original packaging, we'll refund the full price of the piece to your original payment method, within 5 business days. See below for what we mean by unworn, and what happens if a piece comes back showing wear
We don't charge for standard shipping, so there's nothing withheld — you get the full price of the piece back
This covers any reason you've changed your mind, including hand-made variation in surface or patina

What "unworn" means

Both the free size exchange and the change-of-mind return need the piece back unworn. Trying it on to check the fit is fine — that's the point. What we mean is a piece that hasn't been lived in.

In practice, we look for:

No scratches, scuffs, dents or bench marks beyond the ones it left here with
The patina intact. The dark finish softens and shifts with wear, so a piece worn for a few days looks different — it's usually the clearest sign
No resizing, engraving or alteration by anyone else
Original packaging returned in reusable condition

If a piece comes back showing wear, we won't just refuse it. We'll email you photographs and give you the choice:

For a change-of-mind return: we post it back to you at our cost, or we refund a reduced amount reflecting the drop in value. You decide.
For a size exchange: we post it back to you at our cost, or we go ahead with the recast and charge the $60 recast fee, since a worn piece is worth less as scrap and the free exchange assumes we get it back sellable. You decide.

Nothing is kept, melted, or charged for without your say.

This doesn't apply to faults. A faulty piece can be worn and still fully covered — see the ACL section below.

Cancelling an order

You can cancel for a full refund within 24 hours of purchase — email us and we'll process it
After 24 hours, casting has usually started and the order can't be cancelled or changed, because each piece is cast to your size
Past 24 hours, the 30-day change-of-mind return above still applies

Faulty, damaged, or incorrect items (ACL guarantees)

Cast texture, patina and variation are the work — intentional, not defects. Pieces are polished by hand, but not down to a smooth commercial finish. Structural integrity is absolute. If a piece arrives with a genuine manufacturing fault or isn't what you ordered, you're entitled to a remedy under the Australian Consumer Law.

Major failure. If the failure is major — a structural crack that makes the piece unwearable, a break, or the wrong item altogether — you choose one of:

A full refund to your original payment method
A replacement cast, made as a priority
Keeping the piece and being paid compensation for the drop in its value

Minor failure. If the problem is minor and can be fixed, we'll repair or replace it free of charge within a reasonable time. If we can't fix it in a reasonable time, you can then choose a refund or a replacement.

Costs. For confirmed faults we reimburse your reasonable return shipping costs. You are also entitled to compensation for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage caused by the fault.

Time. ACL claims are not limited to the return windows above. They apply for as long as is reasonable given the price and nature of the piece — for solid sterling silver, that's a long time.

How to start a return, exchange, or fault claim

Email hello@cultureofthesun.com.au with your order number and what you need — a different size, a return, or to report a fault. Photos help for faults. We'll reply within 2 business days with the return address and next steps.

Please don't post anything back before you've heard from us — we'll confirm the address first. Once we've replied, you've got 14 days to get it in the post.

So the clock works like this:

Size doesn't fit: 14 days to tell us, then 14 days to send it
Changed your mind: 30 days to tell us, then 14 days to send it

Either way, the second 14 days only starts once we've replied — so you're never racing Australia Post.

Getting it back to us safely. For size exchanges and change-of-mind returns, please use a tracked service and keep the receipt — the piece is your responsibility until it reaches us, and we can't refund something that doesn't arrive. For confirmed faults, we cover the return postage and the risk is ours.

How to pack it. Put the piece back in its box, then put that box inside a padded mailer or a small satchel. Don't post the branded box on its own and don't use a plain paper envelope — sorting machines tear them open, and we need the packaging back in reusable condition too.

Who we are

Culture of the Sun ABN 88 513 037 647 Torquay, VIC 3228, Australia hello@cultureofthesun.com.au

All prices are in Australian dollars. We are not registered for GST, so no GST is charged.

If you're not happy with how we've handled it

Email us with your order number and what's happened. We'll reply within 2 business days and work with you to sort it out. Most things get fixed in a couple of emails.

Last updated: 24 July 2026