I have read over the instructions for creating the rmskin a few times and googled for others with the same problem, but no luck so far.
My exact methodology so far has been as follows:
1) extract the template
2) add my skin's .ini to the \Template\Skins folder along with a .inc file I use to store some color variables
3) edit the Rainstaller.cfg file by adding the skin name, author name, and version, leaving all other fields blank
4) send the Template folder to a .zip (realizing this created a zip containing the template folder and it's subfolders rather than just the subfolders I tried compressing the subfolders directly. This yielded the same result in the end.)
5) change the file extension with the provided extension changer tool.
6) delete the skin from my install directory, and reload rainmeter
7) run the rmskin
I have used rmskins to install others work before so I know the problem isn't there.
My instincts tell me it's a simple issue that may cause me to facepalm, but It's not jumping out at me so any help would be appreciated
