That is going to be great! You picked very well and you won't be disappointed in your choices! Sorry I can't be at the meet & greet, but I'll get the whole weekend with you at the retreat-woo-hoo! :-)

I still wish you'd sell some of your forrest finds on Stampeaz!! Good luck and have fun!

Inspired by Team Awsome Pants' nice finishing, I recently got one of those punches to make rounded corners on my cards. That one seems like it'll be pretty useful, to get a softer, more rounded appearance. At a going-out-of-business-sale, I got a couple of Fiskar's punches that cut the corners in a decorative way and emboss a pattern in the card. I haven't tried them outside of testing them yet. They seem a bit fiddly, but could be interesting, if I can find a card to use them on.

Thank you all- it is all spoken for!

Dern!

I agree. I love recieved someone ELSE's card when I was brand brand brand new. It was a gift. The reply I got was a :-( .
I never understood what that meant. And then later I realize that the person had not been too happy that I got their card. It just made me sad. They are trading cards. Or maybe that's just the name that Ryan came up with. Or someone else. I don't know. I say "trade away!" :-)
I make my cards for the therapeutic dose of the art :-) getting to trade with others is just a really nice bonus :-)

Do you have a preferred time or day of the week?

I have mountains of beading stuff that I do not want and would be apt to selling as well. If you're interested, PM me and I'll send out an email or message with everything I have and whatever you want.

Yeah... being sad when someone gets your card and says something nice about it makes no sense to me at all. OK, someone traded it. BUT! Someone liked it! And the person who sent it thought it was good enough to send to a newbie, to welcome them to the hobby and give them ideas. If you want to encourage someone to get into LTCs, are you going to send crap cards to them? No! You're going to send them something good. When I first started and had no idea what to do, a few people here were kind enough to send me an assortment of cards, some of their own and some by other people. THAT was a welcome. A frownie face doesn't welcome anybody.

As for the name, they're a variant on Artist Trading Cards. I have no idea about the etiquette of trading ATCs, but if the people who conceived of this hobby didn't intend people to trade them, they should have given the cards a different name so I'm guessing re-trades are OK in that community too.

You are ridiculously kind, my good woman :) I do admit to loving the corner chompers and the Tim Holtz Tonic paper distresser thingie ... and now I have a Speedball press too that is right up there with my floor lamp magnifier light .... which are both right underneath the wonderful Staedtler (yes, I spell it differently every time, lost the original packaging, what am I to do) carving tools. Which I have instructed my children to sell to the highest bidder when the time comes so they can pay off their mortgages ...

You look pretty darn good for your age.

Thanks, I try to take care of myself.

Shiloh

I believe the LTC's are all spoken for. Thank you all so much!

Pretty much all the stamps are spoke for. I do have a lovely New Mexico Stamp stamp, a couple of Colonial Williamsburg stamps and a carve of a local historic church near me. AQ mail me if any of those sound good.

Hi all,

With the Great Lakes Gathering coming quickly (4 weeks, I believe!), I'm wondering about gatherings of the past. I know that every event is wonderful, but are there any that stand out or are memorable for one reason or another?

My most memorable gathering was in October of 2010, the MI Fall Gathering - Viva Grand Haven! It was the first gathering I had ever attended and I was OVERWHELMED. But I was with some of my favorite people: Stargirl and her husband, as well as my husband. The event included some of my favorite things: a photo safari, solving clever and interesting clues/puzzles, and a great theme along with great letterboxes. I loved that we got to visit several places in Grand Haven.

Okay. Anyone else want to share?

I'm really not ridiculously kind. I'm a mean, old grump.

Is the paper distresser what you used on the edges of "The Serpent Beguiled"? Because that card looks great, including the edge finishing, and I've bee puzzling over it ever since I got it.

Let me get this straight... You're giving away a big collection of LTCs and... you're thanking US?

Yes. Yes I am. ;-)

Unless I'm dead, I really, really don't want people taking it upon themselves to replace the stamp in my boxes; it's just impertinent, like rearranging my cupboards or something. Just tell me and I'll replace or retire it. In the case of inactive boxers, why not adopt or toss the box, as all bets are off in that case. I think there needs to be some responsibility on the planter for maintenance, yet some "helping" seems a bit much. The idea that just any old stamp will do, for example, isn't the way most people plant. On the other hand, if I'm in my own box, well, pillage away.

This seems to be coming up more and more. Why not a swapping and selling and fundraising board? That way those of us who don't want to fund the latest whatever don't have to see it, but those of us who want your crafty tools can take them off your hands.

I did warn you. It is krappy.

Punch a hole in a cover sheet and some paper cut to size, then use an aluminum binding post to secure. They don't rust.

WooHOOO! Texas? Where? (Wait. You would rather mail them than plant them once you are here? Ahem. Well. Ok.) When will you be here? In time for an event in October? I just hate it when life interferes with letterboxing.

So there was this letterbox with puzzle clues.
I figured out the puzzle a while ago, but had never gotten around to making the find.
Neither had anyone else.

Today, a "new" letterbox was listed.
Same carver. Same location. Same Planter. Clues are easier.

What's the deal, Frenchie?
Is this part of the dumbing-down of America?

I know there is a flea market board, and I did consider placing my post there... but I saw that there was not a lot of recent posts. I do agree that a non LB swap shop could be helpful, I would have felt better about posting there. Sorry for clogging up the board.

Do you have a preferred time or day of the week?

In general weekends work best but really, with all of a couple people up here, we probably have more flexibility to do something more meet and greet-ish. So while weekends are still probably preferred just in case there are other folks who might want to stop in, for me not Wednesdays (softball) is best for the next few months. I also have visitors June 8-14 so that is out.

Well.... we picked up a lot near Waco. And I have a builder- just need to sell here in NC to get moo-ving. So I don't have a date... yet!

Sorry this is late and long; I had to come back to it at a later point because of a final due. The rest of the week included some unwinding, spending hours on a carve, and going to my friend's - her youngest had his birthday party today.

At the very end, there is a request for stamps for a friend’s event in August.

Michigan:
Tyrone Sunken Gardens. See other post.
Midnight Fey's Challenge in the Mancelona area (mentioned not long ago). It will always come to mind on unique plants/places.
Ezmerelda placed one at a site for decommissioned Nuclear Power Plant.
Poof has one in a comic book store. That is the type of store I would wander into if I wasn't letterboxing. To date, I think it is still the only comic book store where I've found a letterbox, so right now it is rather unique for me.
Angel Winks and Teach JR's boxes planted at an outdoor art walk in Elk Rapids. Love the giant sand pail while staring at the bay.
Any place where you walk over to an island - Alpena, Macomb.
Probably missing something on this list.

Pennsylvania:
There is or was a box in Philly for Betsy Ross. The spot was in a rather unique alley with some quaint homes.

Georgia:
Tom and I stopped at this pet store to find a box, but we got to pet some friendly cats and picked up catnip. Bonus for Tom: it was near a CSX rail line. Thanks, karmakat.

North Carolina:
In Durham, there is a box called H20. Airstream Dreams recommended it to me when I visited the area in May 2012. She told me that she got the idea from a geocache, but this was unique to me. I'd love to do the same here in Michigan if I could find the perfect spot. Not only was the container unique, the area had ruins of an old mill.
In Asheville, Helen's Bridge by Dixie. Gorgeous stone bridge high up overhead. I didn't have time to cross it as it was dusk. It was up on some mountain or hill in Asheville.
In Raleigh, Backyard Art by noydb. Why is this one unique from the other outdoor art walks? You are able to look at one of the exhibits from Google Maps Satellite view.
In Charlotte, there is one in the Charlotte Observer building. It was even more fun with the company I had finding that one.
Also, thae box found in the Charlotte sewer at night. It is more like a large drain, but still.

Conspirators Gather is located on both a historic site and a recent (four years recent) film site. It is a fantastic collaboration between Mama Wolf of the Wolf Family and FORAYCH (the carver of Ezmerelda's Nuclear Power Plant box).

Mystery box: the 2nd of the Five Orders. The time put into that one…. Wow. Outstanding.

Finally, The Lorax series by Pugs and Bee in Durant Nature Center in Raleigh, NC. I saved this place for last and series for last to explain. There are other series that they have in this place. BBstacker also has a fun box here. The series is beautiful. The trail is rather interesting. You walk by this nice creek with stone formations. The stamp carves look like they stepped out of the pages of Dr. Seuss.
It was while walking on that trail, my thoughts returned to the name of the place - Durant Nature Preserve. Is this somehow connected to Billy Durant, the Flint, Michigan entrepreneur and GM co-founder? That sent me off to research. It really took me quite a while to feel that I truly confirmed it. The man who donated the land to the old Boy Scout camp that is now Durant Nature Preserve is William Durant Campbell. He was also a business man and scout enthusiast. He was born here in Flint. He is the son of Margery Durant, making his grandfather Billy Durant. So, to me, it was comforting to find a little connection to Flint in Raleigh, North Carolina. So, when it was time to find my 2,000 letterbox, I chose to find a box of Pugs and Bee's other series Animals of Durant out at the same place.

On that note, Bee is also one of the kindest people in this hobby. She is having a Harry Potter event in August. She is looking for certain Harry Potter themed stamps that she could use for this event, and possibly again if she hosts the same event in Arizona. So, if anyone reading has the time and inclination, the requested list can be found here:
http://www.atlasquest.com/toolbox/stampexchange/details.html?exchangeId=1027

I make them. I don't know what cheap means, but they're archival quality/acid free paper that doesn't stain or run. I haven't listed them anywhere yet, finally got my craft room up to snuff and can work on them again. :)

Perfect! I can't get together that week because of two birthdays that week! :) Also, I am the same with weekends, but weekdays are also not a problem. I'll see what everyone else says.

Neither does an old shoestring, and I have those on hand.