[MR] Promissories

[Tracie Brown]

>what is the point in contributing a significant amount of painting work &
materials into a promissory?

It looks nice and it's fun!  Sometimes it takes a long, long time* for the
original scroll to be done, and the promissory is what goes on the wall.
Painting a pre-printed/photocopied scroll need not involve a lot of time or
expensive materials to look nice. Good results can be obtained with gouache
or even acrylic paint if the paper is right.  Painting a pre-printed
promissory can be good practice for painting original scrolls.  There is
also a social aspect -- I've spent many a pleasant Friday night at events
painting scrolls, often with folks whom I wouldn't have met otherwise.  Many
middle-schoolers, and some even younger, can do a good job. There is always
a lack of activities for teenagers, and this is one that contibutes to the
Society and isn't a "children's" (aka, little kids') activity.

I've also had a good time painting within the lines on original scrolls
scribed and drawn by someone much better than I at calligraphy and/or
illumination (thank you, Brig!). I don't know exactly how she makes all
those scrolls, but if I had to do it, it would involve standard formats,
mix-and-match artwork and texts, a small light table, and cable tv.
Personally, I prefer originals like these these to printed/copied color-in
scrolls, but I prefer the printed/copied ones to the "promissory" I got for
my Laurel -- a blank piece of Corrasable Bond typing paper tied with a
ribbon.**

    *like *never* for some people, but it's not Atlantia's fault...
   **I'm not kidding when I say I never got a Laurel scroll.  Not only that,
but Duchess Caelynn's Laurel scroll was *two* pieces of Corrasable Bond!!
(Not Atlantia's fault, either.)

-- Signy