PRIVACY POLICY

How we use and protect your data (our Privacy Policy)

This website and any associated marketing is owned and managed by my self as thedriftweedartist.com. Web Hosting and other features are provided by Wix.com who are compliant with GDPR. I am committed to protecting and preserving the privacy of visitors when visiting this site or communicating electronically with me.

This Policy explains when and why I collect personal information about people who visit the website, how this information is used, the conditions under which I may disclose it to others and how I keep it secure. Whilst I will keep all of your personal information confidential, I reserve the right to disclose this information in the circumstances as set out within this policy. I confirm that I will keep the information on a secure server and that I will comply fully with all applicable UK Data Protection legislation and regulations in force.

I may change this Policy from time to time so please check this page occasionally to ensure that you’re happy with any changes. By using this website, you are agreeing to be bound by this Policy.

Any questions regarding this Policy and my privacy practices should be sent by email to driftweedartist@gmail.com or by writing to The Driftweed Artist, 104 Bradstow Way, Broadstairs, CT10 1AP.

Who am I?

I am The Driftweed Artist. An artist residing in Broadstairs who specialises in producing sustainable pressed seaweed art, seaweed cyanotype and curated shell collage.

How do I collect information from you?

I obtain information about you when you use this website, for example, when you contact me about services, if you directly give me any information via forms, if you make a booking or a purchase or if you sign up to receive email newsletters.

What type of information is collected from you?

In running and operating the business, I may collect and process certain data and information relating to you and your use of this site. Your privacy is of the utmost importance and I confirm that I will never release your personal details to any third party for their mailing or marketing purposes. The data that I collect is detailed below:

Information you provide in order to enter a competition or promotion via the site, complete a survey, or if you report a problem with the site.
Details of visits to my website and the pages and resources that are accessed, including but not limited to, traffic data, location data and other communication data that may assist me in understanding how visitors use the website. This may also include the resources that you access, and information about where you are on the internet including the domain type, IP address and URL that you came from. This information is collected and used for internal research purposes and to improve our customer service.
The personal information I collect might include your name, address, email address, IP address, and information regarding what pages are accessed and when. This information is recorded and sent to third-party processors via wix.com for the purposes of data analysis, to improve our marketing efforts and for targeting specific services and products.
Information you provide to by sending me a message through this website and information you provide when you communicate with me electronically for any reason. If you contact me, I may keep a record of your email and other correspondence.
Information that you provide as a result of filling in forms on this website, such as registering for information or making a purchase.

If you make a purchase from me, your card information is not held by me, it is collected by my third-party payment processors, who specialise in the secure online capture and processing of credit/debit card transactions, as explained below.

IP Addresses

I may collect information about your computer, including but not limited to (where available), your IP address, operating system and browser type for administration purposes and to produce internal reports. This is statistical data relating to a web user’s browsing actions and patterns and does not specifically identify you as an individual.

How is your information used?

to ensure that the content on the site is presented in the most efficient way for you and the computer that you are using;
to enable you to participate in interactive features of the site;
to provide you with information relating to my website, product or any services that you request from me;
to provide you with information on other products that I feel may be of interest to you in line with those you have previously expressed an interest in via our website;
to process a booking you have made;
to meet my obligations arising from any contracts entered into by you and me as The Driftweed Artist;
for dealing with entries into a competition;
to seek your views or comments on the services I provide;
to notify you about any changes to the website, including improvements, and service or product changes;
to send you communications which you have requested and that may be of interest to you. These may include information about events, workshops, new products, promotional offers or commission requests and updates for example.
for internal purposes including statistical or survey purposes, quality control, site performance and evaluation in order to improve the website;
to administer this website; and
if you consent, to notify you of products or special offers that may be of interest to you.

I review the retention periods for personal information on a regular basis. I will hold your personal information on my systems for as long as is necessary for the relevant activity, or as long as is set out in any relevant contract you hold with me.

Who has access to your information?

I will not sell or rent your information to third parties. I will not share your information with third parties for marketing purposes.

Third Party Service Providers working on my behalf: I may pass your information to my third-party service providers, agents subcontractors and other associated organisations for the purposes of completing tasks and providing services to you on my behalf (for example to process payments and send you email). However, when I use third party service providers, I disclose only the personal information that is necessary to deliver the service and I have a contract in place that requires them to keep your information secure and not to use it for their own direct marketing purposes. Please be reassured that I will not release your information to third parties for them to use for their own direct marketing purposes, unless I am required to do so by law, for example, by a court order or for the purposes of prevention of fraud or other crime.

I currently work with Wix.com who act as a Data Processor as the hosts of this website. They sometimes outsource to other countries to support them in this data processing role but the countries to which they outsource are approved by the European Commission.

My website is hosted on the Wix.com platform. Wix.com provides me with the online platform that allows me to sell my products and services to you. Your data may be stored through Wix.com’s data storage, databases and the general Wix.com applications. They store your data on secure servers behind a firewall.

All direct payment gateways offered by Wix.com and used by me adhere to the standards set by PCI-DSS as managed by the PCI Security Standards Council, which is a joint effort of brands like Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. PCI-DSS requirements help ensure the secure handling of credit card information by my store and its service providers.

How Do I opt out?

You have a choice about whether or not you wish to receive information from me. I will not make contact with you unless you have opted in. If then, you no longer want to receive direct marketing communications from me then you can change your preferences or completely unsubscribe in one of two ways:

Click the ‘unsubscribe’ or ‘change preferences’ link at the bottom of any marketing emails sent to you
Email driftweedartist@gmail.com and I will process your request within 7 days

I will not contact you for marketing purposes by email, phone or text message unless you have given your prior consent. I will not contact you for marketing purposes by post if you have indicated that you do not wish to be contacted

You have the right to ask for a copy of any information The Driftweed Artist holds about you.

Use of ‘cookies’

Like many other websites, The Driftweed Artist website uses cookies. ‘Cookies’ are small pieces of information sent by an organisation to your computer and stored on your hard drive to allow that website to recognise you when you visit. Cookies are sometimes used to improve the website experience of a visitor to a website. They collect statistical data about your browsing actions and patterns and do not identify you as an individual. .

For example, cookies may be used to pre-fill some information on forms and to enable me to see what people view on the website and for how long. The use of cookies enables me to improve the website, deliver effective marketing and offer a more personalised service.

I may also use the cookies to gather information about your general internet use to further assist is in developing my website. Where used, these cookies are downloaded to your computer automatically. This cookie file is stored on the hard drive of your computer. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive and then stored there and transferred to us where appropriate to help me to improve the website and the service that I provide to you.

It is possible to switch off cookies by adjusting your browser preferences or using a dedicated browser extension. You can also decline all non-essential cookies via the bar that appears on opening the website.
You can learn more about cookies here.

Links to other websites

This website may contain links to other websites run by other organisations. This privacy policy applies only to my website‚ so I would encourage you to read the privacy statements on the other websites you visit. I cannot be held responsible for the privacy policies and practices of other sites even if you access them using links from my website.

In addition, if you were referred to my website from a third-party site, I cannot be held responsible for the privacy policies and practices of the owners and operators of that third-party site and recommend that you check the policy of that third party site.

Those aged 16 or Under

We are concerned to protect the privacy of children aged 16 or under. If you are aged 16 or under‚ please get your parent/guardian’s permission beforehand whenever you provide personal information online.

Transferring your information outside of Europe

As part of the services offered to you through this website and provided buy wix.com the information which you provide to us may be transferred and handled by countries outside the European Union (“EU”). Wix.com utilises robust security checking and ensures that the other countries they use are approved by the European Commission.

Wix.com provides me with the online platform that allows me to sell my products and services to you. Your data may be stored through Wix.com’s data storage, databases and the general Wix.com applications. They store your data on secure servers behind a firewall compliant with GDPR.

Review of this Policy

I keep this Policy under regular review. This Privacy Policy was last updated in January 2025.