General Stuff
Who are you?
We are mostly, Lidunn, Koshin, and 1 employee. The three of us run the business, sew stuff, answer customers’ questions, and check every product that goes out. But WE are other people too — Vu who sews a lot of our cushions, Mike who crafts our benches, Eva who helps out, Terri who sells us cotton, Nancy at our fabric place, and many others, all of whom contribute to the well-being of our company.
Do you give discounts for bulk orders?
Yes, please email us for a quote.
Do you have a storefront in Seattle or Tacoma?
No we don’t, but if you’d like, you may schedule a visit to our Vashon Island workshop during the week. Email us at office@stillsitting.com or Give us a call at 1-800-433-0977.
Where are your robes and cushions made?
Right here in the U S of A. Robes are made in our Vashon Island workshop. Cushions are made in Seattle under our supervision and stuffed and finished on Vashon Island.
Can I send a Still Sitting item as a gift?
Yes. As you checkout you’ll be asked if this order is a gift, and you’ll have the chance to add a gift message with your order.
Do you have an environmental policy?
Yes. We do the best we can. We wrap our cushions in paper, not plastic – unbleached paper that is 100% recycled paper, 40% post consumer. Packing peanuts are 100% biodegradable cornstarch peanuts (or occasionally re-used from someone who sent us Styrofoam ones). We source stuff as close as we can to our home in the Pacific Northwest. For instance, our robes and cushions are all manufactured within a few miles of our studio. Our benches are made right on our home island, Vashon Island.
We live by the “use everything” maxim when possible. Odds and ends of cotton batting we give away on Vashon Free Cycle. The scraps of fabric go to the elementary school. The plastic bags that various things come in we use for garbage bags. We reuse our twist ties.
What’s your return policy?
You may return most items you purchase from Still Sitting within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. If the return is a result of our error, we will refund your return shipping cost. If there is no error on our part, you pay the return shipping. The only items you may NOT return freely are those that are made to order – any robes that we require measurements for, and custom-made cushions.Please send your return to:
Still Sitting
9130 SW Cemetery Road
Vashon, WA 98070
How’d you get your name?
In case you hadn’t noticed, Still Sitting is a double entendre. We are in the business of helping people sit still. And we want them to be still sitting still after many years. We founded the company soon after moving away from Mt. Baldy Zen Center, where we’d lived and practiced for many years. Among other things, the name was a wink to our monastic friends – we’re out in the world now, but we really are still sitting. Honest.
Is your checkout secure?
Absolutely. We have a 256bit Secure Socket Layer (SSL) data protection (the highest allowed by current web browsers).
Do you offer gift certificates?
Yes. Check it out here (Gift Certificates) or contact us at office@stillsitting.com or 1-800-433-0977.
What’s your privacy policy?
We will never give any information we collect from you to anyone.
Shipping
Do I get a tracking number?
Yes you do, for all domestic and most Canadian shipments. Overseas shipments are mostly shipped USPS First Class Mail or USPS Priority Mail. There is tracking on those services, but it is not very specific.
Do you ship anything abroad?
Yes indeed. We ship all over the world, and we will ship anything we sell. We’ve outfitted zendos in Latvia, shipped cushions to Saudi Arabia, and sent Buddhist robes to Japan.
Where do you ship from?
Vashon Island, Washington.
I need my order quickly. Can you help?
Yes, most of the time. We charge 30% extra for rush orders on custom fitted items. For all other items we can expedite for no charge beyond the extra shipping. Email us at office@stillsitting.com or give us a call at 1-800-433-0977.
What shipping methods are available?
We ship most items in the Continental US via UPS Ground. Some smaller items like incense or inkin bells we ship via US Mail. International orders always ship US Mail.
Sitting On – Cushions and Benches
What are your cushions made of?
All our Standard Cushions have a 100% cotton shell unless otherwise indicated. Our Deluxe Cushions have a zippered, removable, machine-washable cover and an inner lining made of 100% cotton muslin. We stuff with either cotton batting, buckwheat hulls, or kapok fiber.
Do your cushions have removable covers?
Yes – or if you prefer – no. For most of our cushions we offer Standard and Deluxe options. Standard cushions are more economical and do not have a removable cover. They can be spot washed, and are made from our regular tough yet soft 100% cotton fabric. Our Deluxe cushions cost a little more and sport zippered removable covers. They are best machine-washed cold and hung to dry. They have an inner lining that is made from 100% cotton muslin, and a shell that is 100% cotton.
Which kind of zabuton should I buy?
Regular or Thick?
Factors that would make us think about choosing a Regular Zabuton
- Carpeted Floor
- Planning to haul it around
Factors that would lean us toward a Thick Zabuton
- Hard floor
- Knee problems
- Sitting mostly as kneeling (seiza)
Small, Medium, or Large?
Small
You are less than 5’6”
Your space is limited
Your sitting is mostly kneeling
Medium
Sit mostly cross-legged and are between 5’ 6” and 6’ 2”
Large
Sit mostly cross-legged and are 6’ 2” or taller
Buying it for your St. Bernard
Which kind of zafu should I buy?
Round or Crescent?
If you’re just starting out we suggest round. Round is the classic shape for a zafu, and one that works nicely for just about anyone. We sell 3 rounds to every crescent. That said, there are folks who swear by our crescent zafu, which supports your legs down to the floor. We know people who feel their crescent is an undiscovered secret. Our crescent was designed to be filled with buckwheat hulls, but the kapok fill will work too – we sell about the same amount of both.
Buckwheat or Kapok?
Our zafus are most commonly stuffed with kapok, a light-weight fiber collected from the Kapok tree. Kapok is a soft material, not unlike cotton, but springier than cotton. An increasing number of our zafus however are stuffed with buckwheat hulls. Buckwheat gives you a firmer base of support, and is like sitting on a beanbag. Buckwheat hulls are a little firmer than kapok, but soft enough to be plenty comfortable.
If you are new to meditation and you don’t know what to choose, and you forced us to choose one or the other we’d probably steer you toward kapok.
When would I want a Tibetan Seat?
Roughly speaking, you’d want the Tibetan Seat for more informal sitting. The strength of the Tibetan Seat is that it lifts you up plenty high, it’s particularly comfy, and it’s nice and wide. It allows you to hold a relaxed posture, with your legs stretched out, or loosely crossed in front of you. For more formal meditation sitting the Tibetan Seat has the drawback of not encouraging your pelvis to lean forward.
Sitting In – Clothing and Malas
Are your Samue washable?
Yes. The cotton we use is pre-shrunk – you may wash and tumble dry our samue.
Are your malas strung together with elastic or string?
Wrist malas are strung with elastic or stretchy braided string, all others with non stretch string.
I’m not an ordained Buddhist. Can anyone buy your robes?
Anyone can buy our samue or lay robes. Our Buddhist robes are specifically for people who have had jukai or ordination.
Do I have to bust out the tape measure to get waist-ankle measurement, or can I use what it says on my trousers?
Go find your tape measure. The measurement on your trouser is the inseam measurement, which is different.
Is there an easy way to measure my arm?
Yes. Go to your closet and find a dress shirt. Let us know the arm measurement there – that’s what we want.
Sitting Around and Incense – Auxiliary Meditation Supplies
Can I hear your bells & drums?
Yep, you’ll find audio on all of our bell and drum pages. Look for the “Listen” tag.