We ship handcrafted wooden tools from our workshop in Kostopil, Ukraine, to customers in over forty countries. Most orders arrive without anyone noticing the journey. A few raise questions before, during, or after transit. This guide answers the questions we get asked most often, so you know what to expect when you order from a small workshop on the other side of the world.
How long it takes
The clock starts when the board leaves our workshop, not when you place the order. Build time on a standard board is usually around two weeks. Custom engraving or made-to-order sizes add a week or two. Once your board ships, here is what to expect:
- European Union: 7 to 14 calendar days, occasionally faster.
- United Kingdom: 7 to 14 days, plus a day or two for customs.
- United States and Canada: 10 to 20 days. Border control occasionally inspects wooden goods.
- Australia and New Zealand: 14 to 25 days. Strict biosecurity inspection on arrival.
- Rest of world: variable. We give you a realistic estimate before you order.
These windows are typical, not guaranteed. Postal services worldwide have become less predictable since 2020. We track every parcel and intervene if it stalls.
How we pack
Wood is heavy, dense, and surprisingly fragile to corner impacts. Our standard packaging is a custom-cut corrugated cardboard sleeve around the board, with foam corner protectors at each end, then a second outer box with two centimetres of padding on every side. The double-box method survives normal courier handling.
The brass nails are the most vulnerable feature. We orient the board with the nails facing inward against the foam, never against the outer box wall. In ten years and thousands of shipments, fewer than ten boards have arrived with bent nails. Each one we replaced.
Customs and import duties
This is the part international buyers worry about most, so let us be direct.
For EU customers, your country charges VAT on import. We use the IOSS scheme where available, which means VAT is collected at checkout and the parcel passes through customs without delay. You will not pay anything extra on arrival.
For UK customers under the de minimis threshold, the same applies through the equivalent UK scheme. Above the threshold, your courier may collect VAT and a small handling fee on delivery.
For US customers, the threshold is high enough that most orders arrive duty-free. Larger orders may attract import duty paid to the courier.
For Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and others, rules vary. We disclose what we know but cannot guarantee duty-free entry. If you are worried, look up your country's threshold for personal imports of wooden goods before ordering.
Biosecurity and wood declarations
Several countries — Australia, New Zealand, and a few others — inspect imported wooden goods at the border to prevent introduction of pests and pathogens. Our boards are kiln-dried hardwood from European stock, fully finished and oiled, which puts them in the lowest-risk category. We include the necessary declarations and treatment certificates on the customs paperwork.
Inspection adds a few days. It does not usually trigger any cost to you.
Tracking
Every shipment has a tracking number that updates from dispatch in Ukraine, through transit (usually via Poland or Germany), to delivery in your country. We share the tracking number by email the same day we hand the parcel to the courier.
For some destinations, tracking goes quiet for a few days when the parcel transitions between postal systems. This is normal. It is not lost. We get worried when tracking goes quiet for more than ten days, and at that point we escalate with the courier.
If it arrives damaged
Photograph the outer box, the inner packaging, and the board before you do anything else. Email us within seven days with the photos and the order number. We will either ship a replacement, send replacement parts (a bent nail, a chipped corner block), or refund. We have never refused a legitimate damage claim.
If the courier asks you to sign for damaged goods, write "damage on arrival" on the slip before signing. This protects everyone if the insurance claim is needed.
If it does not arrive
Postal parcels do occasionally disappear. If tracking has gone silent for more than three weeks, message us. We open a search with the courier, which usually finds the parcel within ten days. If the search confirms loss, we ship a replacement at our cost. Once or twice a year we have to do this.
Address details that matter
Apartment numbers. Postal codes in the format your country uses. A phone number — couriers in many countries call before delivery. If your address is unusual (no street number, rural location, gated community), include a delivery note at checkout.
The honest summary
We are a small Ukrainian workshop shipping wooden objects worldwide during interesting times. We pack carefully, we track every parcel, we answer email quickly, and we stand behind our work. Visit our about page to learn more about how we operate, or browse the balance board collection and the wider range of tools. If you have a specific destination concern before ordering, ask us. We will answer honestly.
About the author. This piece was written by Eugene Oliynyk, founder of METADESK, together with the workshop team in Kostopil, Ukraine. Eugene has practiced daily on sadhu boards since 2018, including the most advanced 20Â mm nail-spacing boards. METADESK has been handcrafting wooden wellness tools since 2016. Reach the team at metadeskukraine@gmail.com.