Since Newark doesn’t seem to be that exciting, would you guys be interested in having a meet up in Princeton? We can buy postcards at Labyrinth Books (local artists, university related, famous people, etc.) and The Princeton University Store. They are right next to each other. There are a lot of ice-cream and coffee shops in the area, and we can take a self-guided tour as well.
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@paperglo Yeah, I don’t know anywhere that’s convenient in the Poughkeepsie area to buy postcards AND has a nice place to meet AND is near a train station. The Arlington business area near Vassar college would be near a couple of postcard spots and would have a place we could sit if we planned it out, I think. There might be a bus from the train station. Or people could uber. I could definitely do a little walk down around the train station area and look for cafes but I doubt we’ll find postcards there.
I’ve heard that Hudson has an area with lots of antique stores and perhaps some cafes & gift shops near the Amtrak station. I’ll try to make a field trip up there sometime but I don’t know if I’ll fit it in before I leave on vacation for 3 weeks. Similarly, I could do a scouting trip to Beacon sometime and see if I find anything. I haven’t been to either one in 15 years or so.
@LisaAquarius I’m not against Newark but if there’s no good meeting spot there, Princeton sounds pretty nice.
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Princeton is a good spot! There is a parking garage there and meter street parking.
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1 Oct is a good date. It is a big festival weekend here in Bordentown.
My suggestion is to reserve a room at any place that will not charge you.
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I could train up to NYC; however, I do have a work commitment on that day.
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It is possible to reserve a small study room (up to 6 people) at Princeton Public Library. If we want to meet in Princeton as a small group, it could be a good option. For a bigger group, we’ll have to find a different location.
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There’s a cute café in Livingston, NJ called the Twisted Tulip that’s great for meetups - they have a big open space in the back and ample outdoor space in front and around the property. Great drinks, great baristas and it’s owned by a NJ family so it’s a great local spot. They love hosting small events like this and we wouldn’t have to make reservations either!
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To be honest, I think Poughkeepsie might be just a bit too far for city folks to take transit out to, so anywhere with ample parking should be fine. I was just down in Beacon last year, but with things changing so much these days, I’ll have to go back down there and check out what it looks like now.
For the World Postcard Day meetup, I’m not too worried about postcard shopping - it would be nice, but I don’t expect there to be a lot of options unless we’re near a museum/historical site/etc. I’m happy to meet people, swap bottom-of-the-drawer cards, maybe get some event cards printed, and maybe do a little show and tell - bring some of our favorite cards to show.
With the weather getting nicer, I’ll start looking for more local shops and interesting locations to plan meetups at.
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Poughkeepsie update - I stopped by the Arlington area near Vassar college today. Postcards are available at 3 spots, all in walking distance of each other (Loeb Gallery, 3 Arts Bookstore, Vassar Bookstore). It’s not near train or bus stations but has lots of parking - on street & side streets, small lot behind post office, by old library, etc. as long as we avoid festivals & special events.
There are lots of cute & ethnic restaurants and cafes. Most are too small or busy for us to plan on meeting at them, I think. Maybe during summer or school breaks would be possible. But they’re great resources for people who want refreshments before or after.
I’m also seeing good suggestions for Princeton, Livingston, NYC, etc. and would be happy with those. I especially love the idea of a June / Pride meetup in NYC - great suggestion, @anon61339945 and I’d definitely attend!
We could definitely have a room at my church with a long table & chairs, and some couch seating. It could accommodate maybe up to 15 people and I could get a 2nd or bigger room (not free) if responses indicate more space is needed. (If there are that many people, maybe we could each chip in a bit?) We could go together or separately to Arlington for postcards / refreshments afterwards if desired. It’s a couple miles so it’s a car trip. I could give names / addresses for finding shops.
I’m happy to work on Pok for Oct 1 or for August or whenever. Also happy to have anyone else work with me on it. I’m of little use with graphics, sadly, so would need someone else to organize cards or step me through it. It’ll be a bit longer before I have time to investigate anywhere further away, but that’s also possible.
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Saturday June 4 - Boston Meetup
[EDIT: date moved from 11th to 4th]
A bit farther out than the Tri-State area, but @askask11 and I will be hosting a meetup in Boston, likely in the downtown area, on Saturday, June 11. We’re hashing out the details, and will post a new event soon in the USA Meetup forums.
Aug/Oct 1 (World Postcard Day) - Mid Hudson Valley Meetup
@Hobbittsy I’m happy to help plan anything for the MHV area. I can handle the cards as I’ve done quite a few of those already, especially since I expect there to be a new World Postcard Day design for the Oct 1 event.
TBA - Custom Signature Stamp Making Workshop/Meetup
I own a stamp making machine and I’d love to help other local users make their own custom signature stamps, at cost. I get asked about my stamps at every meetup, so I thought, why not host a workshop? I’m still looking for a location where I can be allowed to plug in my laptop and my handy little stamp making machine.
Stamp info:
I can list the sizes and prices if there’s interest in this meetup. Depending on the size and shape, the stamp material runs about $10-20. Ink ranges from $3-9 depending on where you get it.
The official rating for these stamps is 50 stampings before having to re-ink - however just last weekend I stamped a little over 250 cards and I still had ink left. It isn’t as vibrant as a fresh re-ink, but the colors are still very solid and legible.
What you need:
- A digital file(PSD, PNG, JPG, BMP, GIF, or TIFF)
If you want to draw a stamp design, you can scan it into a computer (I can do this for you if you want to mail the art ahead of time). Often times, I’ll pay for an online stock image to use in my ‘designs’.
Before the meetup:
- Send me a sample of the art you will be using and I will review and let you know if it’ll cut into a good stamp
- Ask me any questions you have
- Tell me what size/shape stamp you want - I will buy the parts and you can reimburse me at cost
- OR, I can give you the information for you to purchase the stamps directly before the meetup
- Same for ink color(s)
At the meetup:
- I will help you clean up your digital file
- I will cut and assemble the stamp for you
- I will show you how to ink the stamp, and blend colors if you’d like
- I might design and print meetup postcards, and we can sign them with your newly minted stamps!
Stamp examples:
These are ones I use regularly, to give you and idea of how text and images look like, as well as how multiple colors can be used/blended.
15x30cm:
30x30cm:
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Wow, I love the idea of a stamping workshop meetup!
I’m still on vacation overseas. I will be back next week but beginning a new part-time job on Monday. I will hopefully find some time by mid week to think about this and return to meetup planning.
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happy to help out with the planning of the boston meet-up, if needed (logistics, meetup card designing/printing, etc) 
maybe if the weather is nice we can do something outside! either way, count me in!
although i am boston-based i love the idea of a stamp workshop and happy to travel if the timing/location works out.
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Wow!
I’m just jumping in here now, and there’s a lot to catch up on! You guys are awesome! Stamp workshop sounds great! PRIDE meetup sounds FABULOUS! (I’ll already be gone for the summer but would love to buy some of the cards!) I’m on Facebook and in the forum.
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@anon61339945
I took with photo a few years ago at PRIDE. You are more than welcome to use it for your card if you like. I have turned this photo into postcards, stickers, Addesa labels, stationery! I just love it!
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updating this thread, just in case folks were interested in making a quick trip to boston in early june or want to swap meetup cards:
thanks @paperglo for spearheading this! 
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Keep us posted regarding the stamp workshop.
Thanks
Barb
Just a little update, I tore my labrum in my left shoulder (I’m a lefty) so it’s been kind of rough for me to do basic things and I’m still waiting on more scanning and tests to see how we’re going to treat it (aka if I need surgery 
).
I haven’t really had a chance to even think about it, but I really do want to host this workshop. I’ll probably have to cap the attendance because I want to make sure I have time to work with everyone.
The biggest hurdle would probably be location. I’ll have to find a place where I can plug my laptop in for 3-4 hours and they won’t complain or kick me out 
I’ll keep you posted, but I’m aiming to do the workshop in July, and I’ll likely make and print cards for the event so we can make use of those new stamps 
The Philadelphia MeetUp cards you made were absolutely gorgeous!
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Hi all! Sorry for my lack of updates recently, recovery has been tougher than I expected
I’m finally ready to dive back into postcards - first up is World Postcard & International Coffee Day!
I’ve created a meetup for Beacon on Saturday October 1 and I hope some of you who have been waiting for meetups can make it!
There will be two cards for this meetup - I’ll be doing groups buys for the winning design for WPD as well as a Beacon Meetup card.
I’m working on this stamp idea - I think we might have a location but I’m hashing out the details and will update soon.
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How do I join this group? I live in Virginia, but I am in the NJ-NY-PA area frequently. I will attend Meet-Ups when I can.
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