“They warp”: Hannah Neeleman responds to backlash over the $260 Ballerina Farm scalloped cutting board

Homemaking social media brand Ballerina Farm released a maple scalloped cutting board for $260, and TikTok is balking at the price. The controversy caught the attention of brand owner Hannah Neeleman, who logged in to Instagram to defend the cost of the item in the face of critics and complaints.

To each their own, but Walmart has something similar for a fraction of the price.

Is the Ballerina Farm label worth an extra $200?

Ballerina Farm recently added a cutting board with scalloped edges to the home goods section of her online shop. The item description promises "solid maple" and "quality that lasts for years to come," but some TikTok reviewers have their doubts.

One TikToker, @rustichippies, works in construction and therefore knows a thing or two about wood. The thing about maple, according to this woman, is that the center of its largest surface area is its weakest point. She's therefore not buying the line that this item will last for years.

@rustichippies I’m sorry I’m not trying to hurt someone’s commission, but I do believe lying to people about this product only makes you look bad. It’s $260. That’s not cheap but it’s a cheap product. #sales #commission #honesty #choppingboard #charcuterie ♬ original sound - Rustic Hippies

"You know why people don't run their two-by-fours this way in a wall?" she asked, holding up a maple board lengthwise. "Because they bow. They warp and bow. And that is exactly what I've seen on my feed."

The whole point of Ballerina Farm is supposed to be the depiction of a slowed-down, chilled-out farm lifestyle—some call it "trad." It's supposedly about making quality products by hand, like back in the days when TikTok was merely a scarlet fever dream.

Whether or not that depiction has any resemblance to the average farmer's experience has been the subject of some controversy over the years. With the release of this pricey piece of wood, critics are finding fertile new ground to accuse Neeleman of dishonesty.

@marriedtoalunatic ✨Moms Everywhere are Calling BS✨ #ballerinafarm #overpriced #cuttingboard #momsbelike @Rustic Hippies ♬ original sound - Bo Grant

Some TikTokers have already found cutting boards in similar styles at T.J. Maxx and Walmart. The latter has one with a handle for just $14, according to @lupita__ol.

@lupita__ol Idk who’s buying the @Ballerina Farm Store $259 cutting board but it’s not me. I’m going with my @Walmart $14 look a like ???? #ballerinafarm #cuttingboard #walmart #walmartfinds #fyp ♬ Camp Geiger Waiting Blues - Casey Ryan Summers

Hannah Neeleman responds to the cutting board controversy

On Thursday, Neeleman addressed the anger over the price and alleged warping issues with the $260 cutting board in a long Instagram video. Her reasoning behind that price point involves claims about a local family she says makes them by hand.

"I actually got this board a few years ago," she said. "I think it was three years ago. A local mom dropped it off, and she was like, ‘My husband and I make these. We handmake them, and I wanted you to have it.’"

“She was honestly one of the most genuine people I had ever met, and she’s actually a good friend of mine now, but she came up to me this summer with tears in her eyes and was like, ‘I cannot believe that you’re selling these cutting boards at the rate that you are because it’s really changed the dynamic of our family and our family business.’"

Neeleman also pointed to the price of shipping the heavy items, apparently admitting that the "free shipping" on items over $125 on her site isn't really free.

Whether this will be enough to quell the TikTok outrage remains to be seen.

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