Christmas’ wrap artists
Published 10:10 pm Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Susan Pouncey puts the finishing touches on a Christmas gift at Carter Drug Store in Selma. Pouncey, along with others at the downtown story, handle more than 75 gifts each day during the busy shopping season. -- Tim Reeves photo
You couldn’t be too upset with Ann Kinman if business was slightly slower at Carter Drug Store these days. For the past few weeks she, and the others who wrap items at the downtown business, have wrapped a mountain of gifts and “ribboned” a few miles of ribbon.
“I hardly do any of my family’s wrapping,” Kinman, a 23-year veteran of Carter’s, said. “I’ve been able to teach my 17-year-old son how to wrap gifts and he does most of ours.”
Tuesday was just your average day for Kinman, Susan Pouncey and others who wrap throughout the day. By mid-afternoon they were approaching 75 to 100 wrappings with a good portion of the day ahead of them.
“Today has been a really busy day, but we’ve been able to keep up with the gift wrapping,” Kinman said. “Everyone does a real good job with the gifts.”
But for Kinman, the wrapping paper was never an issue, rather it was the bows she had to master.
“When I first started making bows they were horrible,” Kinman said. “I mean they weren’t bad, they just weren’t really good.
“So, I went to someone to ask for help and she told me ‘you can’t make an ugly bow,” she said. “So once I started doing that, my bows just worked their way out.”
In addition to her son, Kinman has helped teach others at Carter’s how to wrap and chip in during the busy season.
“All of them over here can gift wrap just as good,” Kinman said. “They are doing really great.”
Those customers who purchase items at Carter’s get free gift wrapping, while the service does come with a slight fee if you bring in items from other stores.
As for advice from Kinman — who added she was self-taught on wrapping — measuring the amount of paper is key.
“You want to make sure the paper is tight and that you flatten down your ends,” Kinman said, using her hands to describe just how to properly position the gift and flatten the edges. “At this point, I have found myself wrapping gifts in my sleep.”
And how would she judge the wrappings her son does?
“He’s getting pretty good at it,” Kinman said. “His bows still need a lot of work. But, I’m working on it.”
