Website: https://thetendermess.com
Contact Email: contact@thetendermess.com

At The Tender Mess, your privacy matters deeply. This Privacy Policy outlines what personal information is collected from you, how it’s used, and what your rights are regarding that information.

By using this website, you agree to the terms outlined below.

📌 1. What Information We Collect

a) Voluntarily Provided Data

You may provide personal information when you:

  • Subscribe to the newsletter
  • Leave a comment on a blog post
  • Fill out the contact form
  • Participate in a giveaway or promotion

This can include:

  • Your name
  • Your email address
  • Website URL (optional)
  • Any message or content you choose to share

b) Automatically Collected Data

When you visit the website, certain information may be collected automatically through cookies and tracking tools. This includes:

  • IP address
  • Device type and browser
  • Referring page and pages visited
  • Time spent on the site
  • Language preference

This data is anonymized and used for analytics purposes only.

🍪 2. Use of Cookies

Cookies are small text files that store user information to enhance your browsing experience. This site uses cookies to:

  • Understand user preferences and site behaviour
  • Monitor analytics and improve performance
  • Track affiliate link clicks
  • Personalize content where applicable

You can choose to disable cookies in your browser settings. Doing so may affect your experience with certain features of the site.

🧾 3. How We Use Your Information

The information collected from you may be used to:

  • Respond to your questions or comments
  • Send periodic emails or newsletters (if opted in)
  • Improve website content and functionality
  • Monitor site analytics and user trends
  • Run giveaways or reader surveys
  • Deliver affiliate or sponsored content

Your information will never be sold, traded, or shared for advertising purposes unrelated to this blog.

📧 4. Email Communication and Newsletters

If you sign up for the The Tender Mess newsletter, you may receive occasional emails containing:

  • New recipes
  • Seasonal cooking tips
  • Personal updates or behind-the-scenes content
  • Affiliate or promotional offers (clearly marked)

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link provided in each email. Your information will then be removed from the email list unless legally required to retain it.

🔐 5. Third-Party Services

This site may use the following trusted third-party tools:

  • Google Analytics (to monitor traffic and behaviour patterns)
  • Mailchimp or similar (for email marketing)
  • Amazon Associates / affiliate platforms (to track purchases from links)
  • Embedded social content (e.g., Pinterest boards or Instagram feeds)

These tools may use cookies or track anonymized data. The Tender Mess does not control or access your data on those platforms.

You are encouraged to review the privacy policies of any third-party services linked from this site.

🌐 6. Embedded Content & External Links

Blog posts may include embedded content (like videos, images, recipe cards, or social media posts) from other websites.

This embedded content behaves the same as if you visited that external website directly, and those websites may collect data or use cookies independently of this site.

Additionally, external links may direct you to third-party sites. We are not responsible for their content, privacy practices, or policies.

🛍 7. Affiliate Disclosure and Tracking

The Tender Mess participates in affiliate marketing programs, which means:

  • When you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission
  • These links are always disclosed in the post or marked with an asterisk (*)
  • Affiliate tracking uses cookies to ensure proper referral attribution

Affiliate links help fund recipe testing and content creation while keeping the blog free to access.

🇪🇺 8. GDPR Compliance (European Visitors)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), you have the right to:

  • Request access to your data
  • Request that your data be corrected or deleted
  • Object to the processing of your data
  • Withdraw consent at any time

To exercise any of these rights, email:
contact@thetendermess.com

🇺🇸 9. CCPA Compliance (California Visitors)

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), you have the right to:

  • Know what personal data is being collected
  • Request that your data not be sold (we don’t sell data)
  • Request that your data be deleted
  • Receive equal service and pricing even if you exercise your privacy rights

To make a CCPA-related request, contact:
contact@thetendermess.com

🗃 10. Data Retention

We retain user data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this policy, unless a longer retention period is required by law.

  • Comments may remain on the site indefinitely
  • Newsletter data is retained until you unsubscribe
  • Analytics data may be stored in aggregate form

🧒 11. Children’s Privacy

This website is not intended for use by children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If you believe a child has provided personal information, please contact us to have it deleted immediately.

🛠 12. Data Security

I use reasonable security measures to protect your data, including SSL encryption and secure platforms. However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure.

You use this site at your own risk and agree not to hold The Tender Mess liable for any unauthorized access.

✏️ 13. Changes to This Policy

This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in law, third-party tools, or site practices. The latest version will always be available on this page with an updated effective date.

Your continued use of the site constitutes acceptance of any changes.

📬 14. Contact

For any questions, data access requests, or privacy concerns, contact:

Ruby Thorn
📧 contact@thetendermess.com
📍 United States