In which Yr Hmbl Narrator goes to the craft store

[rolanni]

I’m putting together an author press kit for the Carousel Tides book launch — have I mentioned that here?

Anyhow, yesterday I went to Staples in pursuit of Pretty Ivory Paper and presentation folders.  The PIP was easy to find; the presentation folders remarkably difficult, mostly because the whole store was full of “school supplies” including report covers, which are almost, but not quite, what I wanted.

The thing with a presentation folder is that you want it to be Dignified but Personable, a little quirky, maybe.  It should, above all, not be boring.

For one halcyon moment, I thought I’d found the perfect cover — white coated stock with a single black tree along the right edge.  (It’s OK; trees figure fairly prominently in Carousel Tides, along with, oh, carousels, selkies, Abenaki legend, Subarus. . .it’s a strange book; you’re gonna love it.)

Except — when I yanked this wonderful folder out from its place among its fellows, it was found to also have all kinds of words on it — Think Green!  Go Eco!

Bah.

I finally brought home a pack of Actual business presentation covers, in plain dark blue, but I did not Love them.

Last night, I put together my first kit, which was mailed this morning and will (that is an order) arrive in Saco in time for a Tuesday evening meeting.  It went in the plain blue folder and it was Dignified, I guess, but it was also boring.

Today, I motored out early to post said package, pick up the new eyeglasses and stop at Joanne’s Fabric to get a fabric pen.

I don’t get out much.  I mean, really, I don’t get out much.  I spent more than an hour in Joanne’s, and in the end, I scored a little over two yards of gorgeous sheer swirly green fabric with glitter bits woven through so that the whole thing looks like stars reflected in dark moving water.  A table cover for the launch.  I also got two spools of ribbon, one dark green and one black, for another, related, project, not one but two, fabric pens, and — my piece de resistence — a silver glitter stamp pad and a flourished fall tree stamp.

Came home and stamped me some blue folders.  *happy sigh*  Now, that’s not only Dignified and Personable; it’s Classy.

And now?  To work.

Originally published at Sharon Lee, Writer. You can comment here or there.