Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?

I went toy-hunting the other day.

Now, when you live in a small town live myself, there are a strikingly small amount of places one can go for sex toy needs. The best place to go is the Lions Den in Milton, WV, but they're really more of a "dildos and dvds" type of place. I need a more disciplinarian-minded class of toy. We had a very good, bondage-geared shop just 30 minutes away, but they ( surprise! ) shut down due to lack of business. It's the south, it's the Appalachians, it is what it is.

So I went to the shop in my town, known as Naughty but Nice. Really more of a lingerie and lube type of joint, but they're local, and I was willing to sack variety for the convenience of not having to drive an hour and a half.

Their paddles were so weak feeling! Thin, with narrow handles--more like props than anything else. But I did pick up a leather flogger ( deer leather, handcrafted ) and a tube of ID Velvet, which at 30 bucks I didnt think would be worth it until I tried it. Jesus god, it's the absolute smoothest lube around. I still prefer Boy Butter for anal sex, but Velvet should be the new go-to lubricant for nearly everything.

But, I still didnt have a paddle. Lady loves floggers, but beyond that and the hand we've never really tried anything else. I tried to convince her that a riding crop would be a good idea at the flea market, but she didnt seem too keen on the idea. Though we are definetly in a D/s relationship, I have to respect her wishes on that. But we've recently been getting into rough pussy play ( spanking, tugging, pulling her newly grown-pubic hair ), so we might have to revisit the control the crop allows.

But Paddles? Paddles intrigue her. She likes big, broad stroke spanking--the kind that leaves her ass red after the span of maybe 5 minutes of vigorous swings. She wants a paddle--I want to ise one on her.

At the end of the day, I went to Lowes Hardware. After some searching, I found my perfect candidate--a 2 foot long plank of dark poplar with a thickness of about an inch. I'll soon be turning it into the best paddle I can. But I'm wodering: Should I cover one side in leather? I've this beautiful sheet of blood-red rawhide that I think would look amazing, but I'm not so sure on the practicality of such a thing. Your Thoughts?