PTI stands for Papertrey Ink. This is a collective smack blog and Papertrey Ink review page. Papertrey Ink's continuously poor customer service has lead to a page dedicated to discussion of this stamp company and recommendations for alternative stamp companies. Minimal censorship here- I prefer to leave it up to posters' discretion.
The opinions posted on this blog belong to our visitors and we are not paid for our honest reviews ;)
18:00 - that's totally what I think of when I hear adults swearing. That they have the maturity of 7th graders. Doesn't upset me, just a clear sign that I don't want to be around them.
Karma? More like another PTI debacle. If they can't figure out how to let their customers access the enabling machine aka the forum, it's only going to hurt them.
I posted about AveryElle only once today. Sorry to burst your bubble but people do order stamps from places other than PTI, MFT, GinaK, Ellen Hutson, SimonSaysStamp etc. And not. Everyone is oyt to "pull one over" on you. Why don't you ditch that attitude or join Julie at customer service?
Agree with 20:14 Avery Elle's just not in the same class. But I think it's flattering to PTI, almost new stamp companies are trying to sell stamps like them or design stamps like they do so to speak. I am not sure if they were the first clear stamp company? Or were they the ones who help make clear stamps popular? Anyway, PTI stamps were my first clear stamps buy. :)
I would not go so far as to say all the new/newer stamp companies are modeling themselves after PTI. That's completely insulting to their designers. They have their distinct styles but are appealing to the same customers. People love PTI for a bunch of reasons. God knows there are plenty of PTI stamp sets that just plain stink to me.
oops, commented on wrong post, here's where it belongs... Avery Elle reminds me exactly of PTI in it's infancy. They only had a couple of sets that were unimpressive by themselves, but put into the hands of NH and a very talented DT, they were amazing. I don't know who the owner/designer of their stamps is, but I'm almost positive she is/was a huge PTI fan. The designs are not direct rip offs, but the PTI influence is obvious.
I don't mind my clear stamps getting tinged, but when they are moderately to heavily stained, it's difficult to line them up. Kinda defeats the concept of clear stamps if you can't do that.
How long is a standard waiting time for a reply? What is considered a timely manner? Just wondering what other peoples experiences have been. I opened a ticket and got replies right away but now have had anything for 5 days. Is this normal?
Lauren34 said...
I too have an open ticket that got a first response after 3 days. I submitted the requested additional information (photos) and have heard nothing more after 4 more days. I opened my ticket on Aug. 10. I too am wondering if my ticket got lost somewhere along the way.
Rick posted this response this morning:
Sorry for the delay in providing a resolution to your tickets. I have marked them both as urgent and I am sure you will both receive a response this weekend. We try to answer all tickets within 48 hours, with some requiring more research in order to get resolved completely.
Julie has admitted several times to closing tickets that are NOT resolved in order to make her work day feel a little more streamlined. She had ADMITTED it publically.
I have tried to respond to a resolved ticket but it was closed to comments. I ended up having to open a new ticket. That is an odd way of speeding things up indeed.
9:12 - Are you talking about Kelly Purkey? Have you seen the stamps? Vintage handle-type stamps, one liners, for $11 and up. Pretty pricey if you ask me! Guess her name makes it more valuable.
What's up with all the Studio Calico cross-pollination? Dawn and Maile both joined their design team, and now Melissa Phillips is using lots of their papers on her projects lately. I don't even know about the other PTI design team members because I haven't checked them out in a long time but these recent developments are making me wonder if there's something going on behind the scenes between the two companies. How ironic that they also happen to be the two companies MOST complained-about on the smack blogs.
I have long been suspicious that the 2 companies are owned by the same people. I think PTI might be building SC so when PTI goes under after the Oct. release, they move to the other company unsuspected and pull the same scam there for 5 or 6 years until everyone turns on them again for their practices.
Except that people have already been complaining for quite some time now on the other main scrap smack board about how crappy of a job April what's-her-name does running the business end of Studio Calico. So it's not like they would be starting over 'fresh' without an unsullied reputation to run into the ground. I'm not even sure now whether to dismiss or believe the idea that PTI secretly owns Studio Calico. It's far-fetched enough to sound like a ridiculous conspiracy theory, but the mis-management shared by the two is enough to give me doubts. Sheesh.
Actually I sometimes wonder about a lot of 'incestuous' relationships. PaperCrafts mags are heavy on PTI, Hero Arts, Smooches - other companies make guest appearances, but those are the major ones.
MoxieFab world had ads splattered all over last time I looked - Studio Calico and Paper Smooches.
I think there is a lot of mutual back scratching at the very least.
I have heard that Nichole Heady is part owner of Paper Crafts. Would make sense because she used to be one of their main editors. Guessing she has a huge amount of pull there.
The 'incestuous relationships' drive me nuts too. Seems so unfair that the companies run by the people with previous Papercrafts Mag connections get so much of an exposure bias in their mag. But then I think... PTI's craptastic business management makes up for it. The exposure PTI gets in the magazines, which brings in a constant influx of naive newbies, is probably the only reason PTI is still around. The advantage they get in the media balances out the customer dissatisfaction they breed through their daily operations, and thus they survive... but no longer thrive.
People submit using Papertrey because they don't retire stamps and the designs are great. There are a larger percentage of PTI cards being submitted and that translates to more PTI cards in the magazine. It has nothing to do with any incestuous relationship or pull that Nichole might have.
13:54, you speak with such authority. But if I were submitting to PC mag, I'd feel I had a higher chance of getting pubbed by submitting with PTI than if I used, let's say, Waltzingmouse.
There is a chicken and an egg, which came first, concept involved.
I have noticed the PTI bias since PTI was new. So there is more to it than just "PTI never retires any stamps so there are lots of people submitting PTI projects".
BUT that said, I do admit that if I were trying to get published, the fact that they don't retire stamps would give me more incentive to use PTI in my submissions. I hate that mags only want the newest latest greatest product because 99.99999% of my stash is old. I just don't have the money to keep up with all the new stuff that is constantly coming out ALL. THE. TIME. This is why I don't try to get published.
14:09, I got into the 'get published' mentality for a while and I know exactly what you're saying. You feel like you have to be on top of all the trends, have all the new stuff and be original. Stress!!
You put your time, energy and resources into the machinery over and over again.
You keep buying and keep trying and keep the industry rolling - with your own cash!
And getting published only costs you money and time and sweat and the only one who benefits is the magazine and the resulting sales for the company. I figured that out a long time ago. You won't even get a thank you for boosting their sales. I have been published 5 times in 3 magazines. Not worth the work at all.
It does not makes sense to get published if you live in Canada unless you have a high acceptance rate. The postage costs to mail in your projects are crazy.
The attitude of the editors in the calls reminds me a bit of Ego's comments at the end of the movie Ratatouille. They risk nothing, but have an enormous amount of influence over those that do.
I try to love the hobby for what it is. Not for what someone tells me I'm meant to be!
16:02... I have many stamps that have never seen ink and even if they never do I love them and will keep them until the day I die. If that's weird then count me in. I also have stacks and stacks of patterned paper that have not been cut into that I cannot get rid of either because I love them so. I just have to keep it all, because I still might decide to use it one of these days. Even if it is "old" and "out of style".
That's more of what bugs me about the industry. They want to drive sales and push product so they are always creating an artificial sense of needing to get what's new by focusing on trends and "what's hot and what's not" and stuff like that. The only "expiration date" on papercrafting products is in the minds of us consumers. *head-desk*
So nice to have company :) I guess one should buy what you love and love what you buy. Let the rest take care of itself.
I'm also feeling new product push-ed out. I think getting bombarded with new goodies all the time sucks out my desire to make the most of what I already have. I sometimes wonder, if I didn't go onto the internet and only went into my own stash, what unexplored creative adventures could be lurking there!
LOL, there's an idea for a new challenge site - "Vintage Finds" you can only use product that's more than 6 months old. I mean when it's 6 months old, it's OLD right? :)
Yes. In this industry, anything more than six months old is ancient. LOL
I too would love to see more people challenging themselves to use only older non-current product. Seems like nearly all my favorite bloggers are in it for the money/free product more than for the love of being creative no matter what product you use. It gets to where you start to think that unless your projects use the latest releases, they just aren't as valid for some stupid reason.
Maybe this is all just MY twisted perception, though, and I need to shake it off and just enjoy using what I have without worrying that other people will look down upon it for using old product.
I don't know any bloggers who get free stuff. I have blogged for years using many products from many sources and never have been offered free product. Oh, wait, yes, Claire sent me free WMS set because she liked what I had posted. Wish I were on the freebie list!
There's too much out there, but I seem to have this built in mechanism to block it out when it starts getting to me. I go on 'scan mode' until something *really* catches my eye.
I've only been stamping for 3 years but already stuff is getting old with minor variation.
I see very old stamps in lots of magazines - and I don't look at them to find new products either. I look at them for card design ideas and techniques.
Don't buy PC mag anymore - same old stuff every time. A LOT of PTI.. since PTI started, too. And I do see quite a bit of WMS there. But it's a boring magazine to me. I liked it when I started stamping to discover new companies, but it's boring now.
The problem is, when I get into a creative funk, buying something new makes me feel inspired. Sometimes I don't go and create with the new thing, I feel inspired by something old, but it's the buying that makes me feel inspired.
So what does one exchange the shopping for?? Love to find something else that works!
306 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 306 of 306This is just for 18:08.
You're welcome.
Oh, go ahead and do it!
^^^That was for 18:08
18:00 - that's totally what I think of when I hear adults swearing. That they have the maturity of 7th graders. Doesn't upset me, just a clear sign that I don't want to be around them.
I'm having no problems getting onto the forum with google chrome
There's some techie sounding issue that stops people from being able to access the forum. Rick posted about it on zendesk.
I can get in the forum with no trouble too.
fuck fuck fuck. please go away then 18:19
to all you smackers who can't access the forum. it's called karma. hahaha.
hey if you are here posting or reading, you are a smacker too. yup.
anyone want to learn chinese?
Karma? More like another PTI debacle. If they can't figure out how to let their customers access the enabling machine aka the forum, it's only going to hurt them.
The bad inks, the bad impression plates, the horrible and rude customer service. It is all karma,.
Got my Avery Elle order. I predict it will be the new PTI in no time at all.
Anyone know how MFT felt compares to PTI's?
13:29
Those ink pads will stain your stamps horribly. And you will never get it off 'clear' stamps.
Not a fan of Avery Elle stamps. It's not in the same class as PTI design wise.
And it really does seem like its the same one or two people brining up Avery Elle. Shut up already.
PTI sucks too.
fart
just don't get that ink on your hoo-haa.....whooey it stinks!
I don't understand at all why staining bothers people They are meant to stamp, not to be windows to the world.
It is like not wanting to cut a piece of designer paper because then it will be, well, cut. What is the purpose of the paper?
17:40 - LOL! I enjoyed every bit of your post!
Hugs back at you! :)
Im sorry but i think Avery's website is difficult to navigate.
^^^(smothers giggle)um, maybe you're looking for things that aren't there?! :)
(I do like what they're trying to do tho).
MFT felt is amazing!
Oh, 20:14, you caught me! NOT!
I posted about AveryElle only once today. Sorry to burst your bubble but people do order stamps from places other than PTI, MFT, GinaK, Ellen Hutson, SimonSaysStamp etc. And not. Everyone is oyt to "pull one over" on you. Why don't you ditch that attitude or join Julie at customer service?
Plenty of intelligent people swear/curse. And you can be pretty classless without the assistance of the word "fuck."
Agree with 20:14 Avery Elle's just not in the same class. But I think it's flattering to PTI, almost new stamp companies are trying to sell stamps like them or design stamps like they do so to speak. I am not sure if they were the first clear stamp company? Or were they the ones who help make clear stamps popular? Anyway, PTI stamps were my first clear stamps buy. :)
I would not go so far as to say all the new/newer stamp companies are modeling themselves after PTI. That's completely insulting to their designers. They have their distinct styles but are appealing to the same customers. People love PTI for a bunch of reasons. God knows there are plenty of PTI stamp sets that just plain stink to me.
oops, commented on wrong post, here's where it belongs...
Avery Elle reminds me exactly of PTI in it's infancy. They only had a couple of sets that were unimpressive by themselves, but put into the hands of NH and a very talented DT, they were amazing. I don't know who the owner/designer of their stamps is, but I'm almost positive she is/was a huge PTI fan. The designs are not direct rip offs, but the PTI influence is obvious.
From Avery Elle's website.
"Avery Elle is not responsible for the package once it has been shipped."
Can you imagine placing an order for $200 worth of supplies, and when it never shows up they tell you that? That will go over well I am sure.
"I don't know who the owner/designer of their stamps is"
Jamie Gracz in San Diego, CA
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jamie-gracz/8/6a0/984
19:08 many of the smackers swear they don't order so they don't need to access the "enabling machine.
I don't mind my clear stamps getting tinged, but when they are moderately to heavily stained, it's difficult to line them up. Kinda defeats the concept of clear stamps if you can't do that.
04:58 - true, but how many regular customers just can't access the forum one day and don't know why?
0448. Interesting point. Maybe business has not been as dramatically hit as believed on this board with the "secret" ordering.
I believe that some of us have stuck to our guns. But alot if people saw something they like and since this is a hobby just gave in
03:31. Your quote is misleading. It says that for first class international mail only since there is no tracking available.
Lather, Rinse, Repeat...
NuttyLou said...
How long is a standard waiting time for a reply? What is considered a timely manner?
Just wondering what other peoples experiences have been.
I opened a ticket and got replies right away but now have had anything for 5 days. Is this normal?
Lauren34 said...
I too have an open ticket that got a first response after 3 days. I submitted the requested additional information (photos) and have heard nothing more after 4 more days. I opened my ticket on Aug. 10. I too am wondering if my ticket got lost somewhere along the way.
Rick posted this response this morning:
Sorry for the delay in providing a resolution to your tickets. I have marked them both as urgent and I am sure you will both receive a response this weekend. We try to answer all tickets within 48 hours, with some requiring more research in order to get resolved completely.
Then Elmo98ca said...
Please add me to the list as well. Thank you.
==============
Ahhhh, customer service at it's finest!
^^^No, Julie closed the tickets as resolved and now has no visibility to what's pending!
^^^ Lie
10% off your online Impress order with code "hot summer"
Julie has admitted several times to closing tickets that are NOT resolved in order to make her work day feel a little more streamlined. She had ADMITTED it publically.
THANK YOU!!! 29 for that. I am off to buy another 10 pads and reinkers to match!! I love those things.
Thanks 8:29. Off to place a little order to tide me over until the next 25% off sale.
I'm so excited, I was asked to be a guest designer for a new company coming soon! Their stamps are gonna knock your socks off!
09:08, that wouldn't have anything to do with Stephanie's new line, would it? It seems a few hints have been dropped here lately.
I'll be interested to see what she brings to the craft world tho'!
I have tried to respond to a resolved ticket but it was closed to comments. I ended up having to open a new ticket. That is an odd way of speeding things up indeed.
09:13, I believe the real reason they invented Zendesk was to alienate people who need help from one another! So not surprised.
Thanks for posting the impress code. Hmmmm, what to buy?
9:12, I don't know who Stephanie is. But this new company is started by an established designer in the industry. I'm a big fan of her work!
Well, I'm interested in what anyone brings to the table. If they do something I love, I'll be there.
Give us a link to Stephanie's work, please.
Stephanie's blog is
www.stampingsharing.blogspot.com
she has a clean and structured style.
Thanks. Her blog is lovely and I love the clean look and the use of white.
Yes, and she uses almost exclusively PTI stamps. Looks like she'll be selling them on ebay pretty soon.
She already started selling them on eBay
And there is a 'clearly besotted' stamps blinkie on the right of her blog but it doesn't go anywhere
Ummm, and she's in the UK. Great for you all over there. Not so much for us over here :(
Why not??? Claire is in the UK and has very reasonable shipping
OK, then. We'll have to see. I haven't bought from WM, so I don't know from experience.
I order from UK all the time and pay the same shipping I do when I order from most US companies. It is only PTI that won't reciprocate.
who has a good alternative to PTI's felt?
MFT's felt and Ellen Hutson's felt are both very nice.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheFeltPod
9:12 - Are you talking about Kelly Purkey? Have you seen the stamps? Vintage handle-type stamps, one liners, for $11 and up. Pretty pricey if you ask me! Guess her name makes it more valuable.
fuck, a second page, so much work to scroll
You naughty girl, Donna, I saw what you wrote!
What's up with all the Studio Calico cross-pollination? Dawn and Maile both joined their design team, and now Melissa Phillips is using lots of their papers on her projects lately. I don't even know about the other PTI design team members because I haven't checked them out in a long time but these recent developments are making me wonder if there's something going on behind the scenes between the two companies. How ironic that they also happen to be the two companies MOST complained-about on the smack blogs.
I have long been suspicious that the 2 companies are owned by the same people. I think PTI might be building SC so when PTI goes under after the Oct. release, they move to the other company unsuspected and pull the same scam there for 5 or 6 years until everyone turns on them again for their practices.
12:01, quit being a baby and go eat some cheetos.
Nope, Not Kelly Purkey! And I agree, KP stamps are way over-priced. You have to be pretty damn stupid to buy her stamps.
Except that people have already been complaining for quite some time now on the other main scrap smack board about how crappy of a job April what's-her-name does running the business end of Studio Calico. So it's not like they would be starting over 'fresh' without an unsullied reputation to run into the ground. I'm not even sure now whether to dismiss or believe the idea that PTI secretly owns Studio Calico. It's far-fetched enough to sound like a ridiculous conspiracy theory, but the mis-management shared by the two is enough to give me doubts. Sheesh.
Actually I sometimes wonder about a lot of 'incestuous' relationships. PaperCrafts mags are heavy on PTI, Hero Arts, Smooches - other companies make guest appearances, but those are the major ones.
MoxieFab world had ads splattered all over last time I looked - Studio Calico and Paper Smooches.
I think there is a lot of mutual back scratching at the very least.
I have heard that Nichole Heady is part owner of Paper Crafts. Would make sense because she used to be one of their main editors. Guessing she has a huge amount of pull there.
^^yup, I don't know how much swing she still has, but she was pretty involved.
The 'incestuous relationships' drive me nuts too. Seems so unfair that the companies run by the people with previous Papercrafts Mag connections get so much of an exposure bias in their mag. But then I think... PTI's craptastic business management makes up for it. The exposure PTI gets in the magazines, which brings in a constant influx of naive newbies, is probably the only reason PTI is still around. The advantage they get in the media balances out the customer dissatisfaction they breed through their daily operations, and thus they survive... but no longer thrive.
People submit using Papertrey because they don't retire stamps and the designs are great. There are a larger percentage of PTI cards being submitted and that translates to more PTI cards in the magazine. It has nothing to do with any incestuous relationship or pull that Nichole might have.
13:54, you speak with such authority. But if I were submitting to PC mag, I'd feel I had a higher chance of getting pubbed by submitting with PTI than if I used, let's say, Waltzingmouse.
There is a chicken and an egg, which came first, concept involved.
I have noticed the PTI bias since PTI was new. So there is more to it than just "PTI never retires any stamps so there are lots of people submitting PTI projects".
13:58, you hit that nail on the head.
BUT that said, I do admit that if I were trying to get published, the fact that they don't retire stamps would give me more incentive to use PTI in my submissions. I hate that mags only want the newest latest greatest product because 99.99999% of my stash is old. I just don't have the money to keep up with all the new stuff that is constantly coming out ALL. THE. TIME. This is why I don't try to get published.
14:09, I got into the 'get published' mentality for a while and I know exactly what you're saying. You feel like you have to be on top of all the trends, have all the new stuff and be original. Stress!!
You put your time, energy and resources into the machinery over and over again.
You keep buying and keep trying and keep the industry rolling - with your own cash!
And getting published only costs you money and time and sweat and the only one who benefits is the magazine and the resulting sales for the company. I figured that out a long time ago. You won't even get a thank you for boosting their sales.
I have been published 5 times in 3 magazines. Not worth the work at all.
I miss the for sale board since I can't get onto the forum.
It does not makes sense to get published if you live in Canada unless you have a high acceptance rate. The postage costs to mail in your projects are crazy.
The attitude of the editors in the calls reminds me a bit of Ego's comments at the end of the movie Ratatouille. They risk nothing, but have an enormous amount of influence over those that do.
I try to love the hobby for what it is. Not for what someone tells me I'm meant to be!
No forum for me yet. It is about a 30 minute fix to get a site unblacklisted. Me thinks they don't want some of us there at all.
15:05, it's PTI - WHO KNOWS what the real story is??
I was looking at some stamps earlier and I have sets that will probably never (or almost never) get used, but I can't imagine parting with them.
Anyone else this weird?
So, new dt member for new unnamed company, can you tell us when the big reveal is?
16:02... I have many stamps that have never seen ink and even if they never do I love them and will keep them until the day I die. If that's weird then count me in. I also have stacks and stacks of patterned paper that have not been cut into that I cannot get rid of either because I love them so. I just have to keep it all, because I still might decide to use it one of these days. Even if it is "old" and "out of style".
That's more of what bugs me about the industry. They want to drive sales and push product so they are always creating an artificial sense of needing to get what's new by focusing on trends and "what's hot and what's not" and stuff like that. The only "expiration date" on papercrafting products is in the minds of us consumers. *head-desk*
I have stamps I don't use more than once every few years, but I love knowing they are there when I do want to use them.
So nice to have company :) I guess one should buy what you love and love what you buy. Let the rest take care of itself.
I'm also feeling new product push-ed out. I think getting bombarded with new goodies all the time sucks out my desire to make the most of what I already have. I sometimes wonder, if I didn't go onto the internet and only went into my own stash, what unexplored creative adventures could be lurking there!
I am down to my very last Cheetoh.
LOL, there's an idea for a new challenge site - "Vintage Finds" you can only use product that's more than 6 months old. I mean when it's 6 months old, it's OLD right? :)
Actually, 18:20 I would like to see more of things along that line.
18:20 .. POP, here you go I opened a new bag... :)
18:21 - anyone can start a new challenge site! :)
Yes. In this industry, anything more than six months old is ancient. LOL
I too would love to see more people challenging themselves to use only older non-current product. Seems like nearly all my favorite bloggers are in it for the money/free product more than for the love of being creative no matter what product you use. It gets to where you start to think that unless your projects use the latest releases, they just aren't as valid for some stupid reason.
Maybe this is all just MY twisted perception, though, and I need to shake it off and just enjoy using what I have without worrying that other people will look down upon it for using old product.
How 'bout only being able to use product that's more that 6 YEARS old? O_o Who's with me?!
18:35 - I would have a COUPLE of things - 4 years would be better for me!
18:38 - now you're just doing it to be contrary. Whatever.
I don't know any bloggers who get free stuff. I have blogged for years using many products from many sources and never have been offered free product. Oh, wait, yes, Claire sent me free WMS set because she liked what I had posted. Wish I were on the freebie list!
There's too much out there, but I seem to have this built in mechanism to block it out when it starts getting to me. I go on 'scan mode' until something *really* catches my eye.
I've only been stamping for 3 years but already stuff is getting old with minor variation.
I see very old stamps in lots of magazines - and I don't look at them to find new products either. I look at them for card design ideas and techniques.
Don't buy PC mag anymore - same old stuff every time. A LOT of PTI.. since PTI started, too. And I do see quite a bit of WMS there. But it's a boring magazine to me. I liked it when I started stamping to discover new companies, but it's boring now.
The problem is, when I get into a creative funk, buying something new makes me feel inspired. Sometimes I don't go and create with the new thing, I feel inspired by something old, but it's the buying that makes me feel inspired.
So what does one exchange the shopping for?? Love to find something else that works!
what are some of your fresh ink favorite colors for ink?
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