Judith Ripka

[LuckyPeach]

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@minnietwinnie wrote:

Yes the Facebook group started quite a while before the new Q forums changed so that's not the reason imho.

I think when Xcel Brands acquired the brand a couple of years ago the quality slowly changed and as a result sales haven't been the same because it's not exactly the same jewelry as before.  All the Diamonique doesn't help either, I agree with that.

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Hello Minnietwinnie, thanks for your input.  Yes, while the Facebook group started earlier, the board started declining.  Then the boards were changed and the exodus to Facebook accelerated.  I agree that some of the JRQ jewelry is not the same (Montana ring, tri-color link necklace--both are extremely light in terms of gram weight and attention to quality) while other pieces (Romance bangles, higher-priced enhancers for example) are Ripka old school.  It takes more work today to figure out which pieces are which in the JRQ line.  ITA that there is too much reliance on DMQ in the line.  Take care~Peach

Actual stats:  Chicagoan now in LA; Join Date: May 8, 2008; Post count: 11,623.

[newjerseygirl]

Hi Peach, I am a long time Ripka Forum poster. 

I do not belong to Facebook at all.   It's not something I care to be involved in.

I have many Ripka friends who participate in one or both of the Ripka Facebook groups.

You may remember that years ago there was a group of us from the NYC area who went to NYC and met for lunch and visited the Ripka Stores on Madison Ave.

Many of us have remained friends and some of us occasionally get together.   We still love showing each other our newly acquired Ripka pieces. Over the years, we have become real friends, not just Ripka friends.

Many of these ladies that I still see  are on the Ripka FB groups.

Many times I have been asked to join both the FB groups.   I have no desire to join, though  hear they are fun.   There is a lot of posting of pieces, buying and selling and real time chatting during the Ripka shows.   Just like the good old days here on the Forum.

I know I am missing out on all the fun, but it is my choice not to join.  

I keep in touch with my (Ripka) friends through email and have a wonderful time when I see them in person for lunch.

I still look at this Forum often.  However, my buying has greatly decreased (due to change in quality and rise in prices) so I don't have much to post.

When the boards changed, it was difficult to maneuver at first.   I tried posing often back then just to keep the board going, but I think the FB exodus made this Forum almost irrelevant, unfortunately.

The Ripka Delphi Forum, which was an alternative to this Forum for posting item #'s and items for sale, etc. has also suffered the same fate.

[LuckyPeach]

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@newjerseygirl wrote:

Hi Peach, I am a long time Ripka Forum poster. 

I do not belong to Facebook at all.   It's not something I care to be involved in.

I have many Ripka friends who participate in one or both of the Ripka Facebook groups.

You may remember that years ago there was a group of us from the NYC area who went to NYC and met for lunch and visited the Ripka Stores on Madison Ave.

Many of us have remained friends and some of us occasionally get together.   We still love showing each other our newly acquired Ripka pieces. Over the years, we have become real friends, not just Ripka friends.

Many of these ladies that I still see  are on the Ripka FB groups.

Many times I have been asked to join both the FB groups.   I have no desire to join, though  hear they are fun.   There is a lot of posting of pieces, buying and selling and real time chatting during the Ripka shows.   Just like the good old days here on the Forum.

I know I am missing out on all the fun, but it is my choice not to join.  

I keep in touch with my (Ripka) friends through email and have a wonderful time when I see them in person for lunch.

I still look at this Forum often.  However, my buying has greatly decreased (due to change in quality and rise in prices) so I don't have much to post.

When the boards changed, it was difficult to maneuver at first.   I tried posing often back then just to keep the board going, but I think the FB exodus made this Forum almost irrelevant, unfortunately.

The Ripka Delphi Forum, which was an alternative to this Forum for posting item #'s and items for sale, etc. has also suffered the same fate.

 NewJerseyGirl, yep, we've "known" each other for a long time and I appreciate your weighing in.  As you have read above, it seems that you and I are on the same page about Facebook.  Just not our thing.

I love  that you NYC area Ripkanistas have enjoyed each other, JR and the holiday parties.  I remember vividly all of the photos.  So nice!  I enjoy it vicariously since we have nothing like that in LA.  But if JR ever did something in LA, I'd be in!  I know her Rodeo Drive store closed some time ago. Do you all ever go to the NYC JR boutique?  Is that still viable?

I am surprised that Kap isn't posting here a little bit.  I worry that some are not OK (Pepper, Judeye).  I see that some are not posting product reviews.  I'd like to know if all are OK.  I do know about Indy.  I'm still a serious collector between here and Over There (major auction site), although I am even more careful due to varied levels of quality and runaway price inflation (so annoying)..

Like you, I am still trying to do a little bit here, but recently lost two threads due to the Q Big Brother.  I worked hard on those threads and am not happy about this.  One cannot speak in a vacuum and ignore what is going on in the world. I'm pretty mild as a poster, so this is shocking to see censorship.  I think it is counter to the Q's success as a business model, which is due to heavy customer communication and participation.

I do agree that Facebook has almost made this board irrelevant.  The question is: is the Q supporting being irrelevant or going to make things more open and fun here?  I think the Q needs to re-evaluate why their losses in traffic and sales are occurring. It was Alvin Toffler who said that the more you go high tech, the more you need to go high touch.

How are you doing?  Is the winter dragging on?  Here in SoCal, we are expecting a baby storm tonight.  Can I ask one more question?  I find mistakes I made after I post.  How do I edit a posted comment?  Thanks.  Take care~Peach

Actual stats:  Chicagoan now in LA; Join Date: May 8, 2008; Post Count: 11,625.

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[sunshine45]

@LuckyPeach

i dont think that it is going to change here. they made the rules and are now enforcing them. i didnt see your posts to see what was deemed controversial in them. it is happening all over the forums, not just here on the ripka forum.

i know that social media/facebook isnt for everyone, but on the qvc ripkanistas we have a really nice group that can chat, share, and give opinions without fearing that an entire thread or discussion is going to be removed. if you decide that you would like to join, the group would love to have you. it really is a nice way to connect with people and the admins are quite good at keeping out women who create drama or are not so honest.

[newjerseygirl]

@LuckyPeach

To edit a post you must be signed in.  There should be 3 dots at the top right of the post.

If you click on the 3 dots you should get a drop down wth an edit option.

Click the edit option and your post will show up again and you can edit it.

I am in touch with many of the old Forum posters:

I am trying to remember their Forum names:  Kaplan, Suzytoo, Jerseyborn, NicksMom   and a few others,  (I don't even remember their Forum names), we get together every 4 or 5 weeks for lunch on a Sunday afternoon from April through early December.   We have a great time.

We don't meet during the winter because the weather is too unpredictable.

I also am in touch through email with a few others, Cancelot, Anniemich, and Judeye.

I have seen them a few times in person also. 

I also email Judyakm from time to time.   She lives in Northern California and we have never met in person.  We even spoke on the phone once.   She is a doll.

I think practically all of them are on one or both of the FB groups.

They can't understand why I am not on FB.   They all say that I can join just to read what is going on and I don't have to post.  I just can't do it.     I am not comfortable with it.

Both of the Ripka stores on Madison Ave in NYC are closed.  The Flagship was the big one where we used to go after the luncheon.  That's where Kaplan took all the pictures. Those were the good old days.

[LuckyPeach]

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@sunshine45 wrote:

@LuckyPeach

i dont think that it is going to change here. they made the rules and are now enforcing them. i didnt see your posts to see what was deemed controversial in them. it is happening all over the forums, not just here on the ripka forum.

i know that social media/facebook isnt for everyone, but on the qvc ripkanistas we have a really nice group that can chat, share, and give opinions without fearing that an entire thread or discussion is going to be removed. if you decide that you would like to join, the group would love to have you. it really is a nice way to connect with people and the admins are quite good at keeping out women who create drama or are not so honest.

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Sunshine, thanks for the explanations.  It helps me to understand what is going on and I much appreciate your taking the time.  If you look at the loss of thread #2, it says something like "...subtle political references."  Oy.   Am I even allowed to comment on that?  I will say that I believe it is negative for Q business to chase spending customers away from the site (especially those in the top 5-10%).  We used to discuss everything here which I believe was a boon for traffic and business.  It was very freeing.  Most posters were respectful.

Thanks very, very, very much for your most kind invitation and I'm positive it is a welcoming and informative atmosphere.  Also nice to hear they keep out the bullies--so important!  I'm going to continue to try here but am extremely disappointed in the thought police.  I may call the Q President's Office next week. You've been super nice, thanks again.  ~Peach

Actual stats:  Chicagoan now in LA; Join Date: May 8, 2008; Post Count: 11,626.

[LuckyPeach]

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@newjerseygirl wrote:

@LuckyPeach

To edit a post you must be signed in.  There should be 3 dots at the top right of the post.

If you click on the 3 dots you should get a drop down wth an edit option.

Click the edit option and your post will show up again and you can edit it.

I am in touch with many of the old Forum posters:

I am trying to remember their Forum names:  Kaplan, Suzytoo, Jerseyborn, NicksMom   and a few others,  (I don't even remember their Forum names), we get together every 4 or 5 weeks for lunch on a Sunday afternoon from April through early December.   We have a great time.

We don't meet during the winter because the weather is too unpredictable.

I also am in touch through email with a few others, Cancelot, Anniemich, and Judeye.

I have seen them a few times in person also. 

I also email Judyakm from time to time.   She lives in Northern California and we have never met in person.  We even spoke on the phone once.   She is a doll.

I think practically all of them are on one or both of the FB groups.

They can't understand why I am not on FB.   They all say that I can join just to read what is going on and I don't have to post.  I just can't do it.     I am not comfortable with it.

Both of the Ripka stores on Madison Ave in NYC are closed.  The Flagship was the big one where we used to go after the luncheon.  That's where Kaplan took all the pictures. Those were the good old days.

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NewJerseyGirl, wow, thanks for all of the updates.  First, I will say that I totally understand why you are not on Facebook.  I cannot bring myself to sign up, either, just to read.  Well, I do know all of those nics and especially like Sir Cancelot's nic--very inventive.  Please send my regards.  I'm glad they are OK.  I was worried, for example, because Judeye, who was a faithful product page reviewer stopped over a year ago.  I am still concerned about Pepper22, who is in Ohio because she is ill with an autoimmune challenge.  I pray she is alright.  JudyAKM is nice, too.

Your luncheons sound so fun.  Do you always go to the same place or do you switch it up?  That is smart, avoiding wintertime.   I do not have this in LA but in Chicago had an Art Institute of Chicago group that did art lectures (I was an Art History minor) and lunches all over downtown, which was a blast. They would negotiate prices, so we got to sample some swanky restaurants.  I know the Atlanta Ripkanistas also used to meet, but I don't know if they still do.

Such a shame to hear that both JR stores closed.  I hope Beth is OK, too.  She hasn't been on. I suppose it was expensive to keep the stores.  Is there just mail order for HE?  What about the elite chains and independent boutiques?  I have several solid pieces, which I also collect, vintage, of course.

I loved Kap's photos of the holiday bashes.  You have really updated me and thanks for the edit function explanation, NewJerseyGirl, thanks.  I feel a bit more calm after losing those two threads.  Take care~Peach

[moto]

I think we are seeing a natural progression of what community means. At first, the Q forums filled a need of connecting to others who shared an interest in the line, That was successful in bringing many together who had both good and bad opinions. 

As more online friendships were made, folks were comfortable in moving to the next stage - from the anonymity of this kind of public forum where nicknames are used, to the FaceBook social media forum where you expose your whole real-world online self. 

Change is hard, but it happens. It's ok to say you miss the way it used to be.

[MickD]

@LuckyPeach I think the mass exodus was due to trolls who disrupted the conversations especially when JR was on air.  I joined facebook solely to connect with the ripkanistas ...then after BB lovers.  I don't use facebook for anything else.  

[LuckyPeach]

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@MickD wrote:

@LuckyPeach I think the mass exodus was due to trolls who disrupted the conversations especially when JR was on air.  I joined facebook solely to connect with the ripkanistas ...then after BB lovers.  I don't use facebook for anything else.  

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MickD, did you see all of the info I shared with you (re: eye stuff, Chicago)?  I hope you got to read it before the thought police came around.  With my background (and I would think that *most* would feel this way), given the core values we go by, I should think being censored is a negative.  Please let me know. Hope you are OK.

As for the trolls, they never bothered me much.  I don't have a problem with anyone who doesn't like JR and believe it is OK for them to say so.  Freedom of speech and all of that. Now the bullies are a different topic...am not a fan of cruelty and manipulation, especially behind the scenes. 

I see that we have another rain storm coming Sunday night, ugh.  Did you get your leak fixed?  A couple of our neighbors have the blue tarps on their roofs.  Take care~Peach

Actual stats:  Chicagoan now in LA; Join Date: May 8, 2008; Post count: 11,631.