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What do toffee and leashes have in common?

By Gina Spadafori

December 11, 2009

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toffeeGuesses?

I’ll be back after “farm chores” and coffee to offer my answer. Toss in your own, in the meantime.

Toffee, at right. Yummy!

Update: They’re both better when handmade.  But curiously: A good handcrafted leash will last near forever, while good homemade toffee disappears immediately.

So here’s my thing today: The economy sucks. A lot of people are hurting. And that means a a lot of people are struggling to feed their families, and that includes their pets.

But … I’m always astonished at how many people take a bad situation and will not accept it as inevitable or inescapable. They take stock and take action. And I think the rest of us should support them, when we can.

I was thinking about this subject before linking it to toffee, with regards to a woman named Valerie Alfinito, who I’ve known for many years.

Val started out teaching dog-training classes, but she was frustrated because she couldn’t find good leashes to recommend to her students. They were all coming in with cheap, mass-produced leashes that didn’t feel comfortable in  their hands, that cut into their palms and slipped through their fingers. So, she studied leather-craft, and started making her own.

I bump into Val pretty regularly at dog shows, and always stop by her booth to say hello. I kid her that her leashes are too nice, and that I have some that are 15 years old and not only look as good as the day I bought them but feel better in my hands as they’ve aged. Since I leave collars on my dogs when they leave me, the only time I ever buy collars from Val is when I first get a dog, which doesn’t happen that open.

Dr. Becker and I bought a collar and some leashes from Val lately, because of Dr. Oz. During one of Dr. Becker’s early appearances on the show as a core team member, Dr. Oz brought his own dog out on set.

Rosie is a lovely black Labrador, but I noticed Dr. Oz had a crappy chain leash on her. That just couldn’t be, so I suggested to Dr. Becker that we have Val make Rosie a collar and leash, and give them to Dr. Oz as a gift, along with one of Premier’s Easy Walk harnesses, since Dr. Oz had said Rosie was a handful to walk. I called Val, and she immediately started making the set.

They’re gorgeous, and I wish I had a picture of them but they look kind of like these at right.

Dr. Oz loved them, and Rosie now has a beautiful collar, a comfortable leash that will last forever, and a harness to help the family walk her. (By the way, Dr. Becker will be on “The Dr. Oz Show” on Monday, Dec. 14 — more on that later.)

I was thinking about how good it felt to help out a craftsperson who has always worked to support her own family as a single mother, who learned first one skill and then another, and never, ever stops trying.

And that brings me to toffee.

I was coming home from the Day Job yesterday when I noticed light in a previously empty storefront. The light caught my eye because sadly in Sacramento right now a vacant storefront is unremarkable, it’s so common. So I checked it out.

Inside I found a 21-day candy shop, a couple of friends and their families who’d taken some family recipes and some craft show experience and figured, what the heck, it’s the holidays!  The toffee was delicious, so I bought some. OK, the truth: I bought a lot.

A few months ago I asked people to give a shout-out to local, independent and honorable pet-supply  retailers in their area (honorable being:  Not offering retail space to move the “product “of puppy-milling scum). The big box chains full of cheap Chinese-made crap have made it difficult for small retailers — our friends and neighbors — to survive. I asked people to name these local, independent pet retailers, and to support them.

Now, I want to go one step further and give a shout-out to craftspeople who make pet-related equipment, art and gifts. Are you one of them? Do you know any? Have you bought from them,  either through a craftshow or Web site such as Etsy? Let us know! Blow your own horn!

Let’s share the information and support these people. Now more than ever, they can use our help.

(If you’re in Sacramento, the 21-day candy store — which also features homemade cake icing — is in the Lyon Center, Fair Oaks and Munroe, next to Miyagi restaurant.)

Filed under: animals: pets,products — Gina Spadafori @ 7:41 am

39 Comments »

  1. They both cause you to grit your teeth?

    Comment by Nathan Winograd — December 11, 2009 @ 7:44 am

  2. They both keep you from straying very far away?

    Comment by The OTHER Pat — December 11, 2009 @ 8:03 am

  3. Dogs love them? :P

    (What? Indy stole a box of toffee off the coffee table one year- i think it was 2006- when a well-meaning guest had left a wrapped gift without considering that INDY would know it was food even if we didn’t. Stomach of iron, that dog.)

    Comment by Cait — December 11, 2009 @ 8:15 am

  4. Walk your dog - on leash - to the neighborhood candy store for toffee? Hmmm?

    Comment by Liz Palika — December 11, 2009 @ 9:21 am

  5. They were both consumed by Faybee??

    Comment by Jill — December 11, 2009 @ 9:23 am

  6. I am going with Jill’s answer.

    Comment by twitter-ee — December 11, 2009 @ 9:54 am

  7. While, Jill’s answer is technically correct, it’s not in fact what I’m going for.

    I have to run a couple of errands. Will finish when I return. :)

    Comment by Gina Spadafori — December 11, 2009 @ 10:46 am

  8. Said ingestion resulted in a frantic trip to the vet?

    Comment by The OTHER Pat — December 11, 2009 @ 11:01 am

  9. Leash the dog near the toffee or he’ll eat it.

    Comment by Georg — December 11, 2009 @ 11:02 am

  10. How about, they were both surgically removed from your pup?

    Comment by Nancy Freedman-Smith — December 11, 2009 @ 12:06 pm

  11. or…they both tood a trip down the colan canal?

    Comment by Nancy Freedman-Smith — December 11, 2009 @ 12:07 pm

  12. I am with you on this Gina and was just writing a blog about buying local artist’s work as gifts. http://www.mainelylabs.com/ will be featured along with other local artists for portraits.

    Comment by Nancy Freedman-Smith — December 11, 2009 @ 12:21 pm

  13. Updated!

    Now, toss in your favorite maker of pet-related equipment, crafts, art or gifts.

    Comment by Gina Spadafori — December 11, 2009 @ 12:29 pm

  14. Jen - aka Sew Crazy Dog Lady - makes fabulous collars and leads also, and her specialty is making collars for the biggest of the big guys.

    http://www.sewcrazydoglady.com/

    I’d like to give a shout out to the company I work for, Pets4Life. We’re a tiny little raw pet food company, in Ontario, and we make everything in small batches, all from whole food ingredients (with as many as possibly locally bought and organic). 4 days out of 5 at least one of my dogs is there, walking around, sampling whatever is being made. We can’t compete with the big guys when it comes to volume, but they can’t compete with *us* for quality.

    Pets 4 Life

    If that’s too much like shameless self promotion, go ahead and edit it :)

    Comment by FrogDogz — December 11, 2009 @ 12:38 pm

  15. Homemade Candy oh yummy - maybe I’ll cruise by this weekend while out and about!

    Comment by Snoopys Friend — December 11, 2009 @ 12:41 pm

  16. Mmm, Miyagi Restaurant…I recommend it.
    I’d like to give a shout out to a wonderful shop - not here in MA, but near Sarasota, FL. It’s called Wet Noses. Even the name is great! This shop is in a tourist center, but it’s got wonderful people, organic products (including a bakery in back), fun, and some crafty-ish pet products to boot. 472 John Ringling Blvd, St. Armand’s Circle, FL. Just over the big new bridge from downtown Sarasota.

    Comment by David S. Greene — December 11, 2009 @ 12:44 pm

  17. FrogDogz, no pitch too shameless as long as we’re talking about people who make their own — and are trying to make it on their own!

    More! More! Let’s here about ‘em!

    Comment by Gina Spadafori — December 11, 2009 @ 12:45 pm

  18. Etsy is great! Just the other day I was telling a co-worker/new puppy owner about belly bands, and was about to direct her to one of the big online retailers when all of a sudden I thought “What about Etsy?”.

    And sure enough, I quickly found her about a dozen different sellers to look at to see if she could find something that would work for her.

    Comment by The OTHER Pat — December 11, 2009 @ 12:56 pm

  19. Huh, looks like I seriously screwed up that link. It should be -

    http://www.pets4life.com

    Comment by FrogDogz — December 11, 2009 @ 1:10 pm

  20. I love Lisa Ruiz, owner of Collarmania in S.F. She specializes in custom collars for bullies, but I get them for both my dogs…she is awesome to work with.

    http://www.collarmania.com

    Comment by Becky C. — December 11, 2009 @ 1:33 pm

  21. I don’t want to leave out my leash maker, Rebecca from Ella’s Leads in midwest somewhere.

    http://www.ellaslead.com

    - just about any type of leash setup you could want, specializing in “backup” systems for those of us who never want an off-leash incident.

    Comment by Becky C. — December 11, 2009 @ 1:36 pm

  22. Props to dog face, a portrait business that started on Facebook:

    http://www.facebook.com/#/page.....511?ref=ts

    The artist is a long time friend of mine, very talented - works with metal, paint, and music. The dog portraits started as a hobby.

    Comment by Barbara Saunders — December 11, 2009 @ 1:38 pm

  23. My comment seems to have disappeared, so I’ll try again:

    dog face, based on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/#/page.....511?ref=ts

    The artist is a long time friend of mine, very talented in multiple media and really captures the spirit of the dog in these portraits.

    Comment by Barbara Saunders — December 11, 2009 @ 1:41 pm

  24. It’s encouraging to see other enterpreneurs plugging along! I too remain hopeful in the light of despair. I recently have reinvented my business as an artist and things are going well. My dog art giclee prints are once again selling and I think it’s a matter of not giving up, continually improving one’s web presence, and just rising to the challenge of a poor economy. Pretty much - when they say you can’t, I saw “Oh, yeah, watch me!” :)

    Comment by Kimberly Helgeson Sams — December 11, 2009 @ 1:44 pm

  25. er..say..ROFL!

    Comment by Kimberly Helgeson Sams — December 11, 2009 @ 1:45 pm

  26. http://www.etsy.com/shop/bowWOWware and on the web:
    http://www.bowwowware.com/page6.html

    http://www.situpnbeg.com/ Exquisite doeskin leashes and collars.

    Comment by Anne T — December 11, 2009 @ 1:50 pm

  27. I’m going to take a little nap (1 p.m. ET) so if you’ve never posted before or post multiple links, be patient: I’ll liberate all comments when I wake up. (Or Christie will, if she gets to them sooner — but I suspect after her travel ordeal (she finally got to SF late last night) she may be catching up on the ZZzzzzzs, too!)

    Comment by Gina Spadafori — December 11, 2009 @ 1:55 pm

  28. I make dog and cat treat bags that I sell at craft sales every Christmas. My husband makes leather leashes and leather tabs for dogs. They are a flat leash, but instead of rivets at the ends, they are braided. He also makes braided leashes. I use one in the obedience ring on my Flat-coat, Navarre. Of course, no website as of yet. :-( Revenue pays for my addiction to dog shows and agility trials.

    Comment by Jill — December 11, 2009 @ 1:57 pm

  29. Well, Gina, My answer to your questions is…my dog Barkley had eaten them..yup..while on steroids for hot spots…leash, halter, toffee, kleenex box…all while on the taper…many years ago ….but still recall the horror! …lol

    Comment by Carol V — December 11, 2009 @ 2:56 pm

  30. http://www.ibdoggone.com/

    Lee machine embroiders terriers (especially scotties) on just about anything. She also has two books out starring her Scottie, Frosty, who visits the local nursing home.

    Comment by cheryl — December 11, 2009 @ 3:25 pm

  31. Jamie Perry’s humorous and whimsical drawings of cats continue to be a favorite of mine: http://www.jsperry.com.

    Comment by Sharon Melnyk — December 11, 2009 @ 3:49 pm

  32. My own stuff is on Artfire here - http://www.artfire.com/users/gypsyarts

    I do needlefelted animal sculpture, and hand-painted glass collage pendants. :)

    I’d also like to give a shout-out to my friend Emily Godlevsky, in Oregon, of Dreameyce Studio - her website is http://www.dreameyce.com - who makes GORGEOUS dog, cat, and rat pins.

    Comment by Cait — December 11, 2009 @ 4:03 pm

  33. A shameless plug for my sister’s etsy shop. Annie Fitt is a printmaker and painter who also does exquisite custom portraits. She features not only dogs (& some unusual breeds) but horses, sheep, cats & fish.

    http://www.etsy.com/shop/anniefitt

    Comment by Cate — December 11, 2009 @ 4:30 pm

  34. I recommend John the Leash Man, http://www.jtlm.com/index.html. I know him through Akitas, and I’ve had his wonderfully soft, strong, and thin buffalo leads for my Akitas for many years.

    Comment by Linda Wroth — December 11, 2009 @ 4:50 pm

  35. Well, she stubbornly refuses to put up a web site or raise her prices, but I can recommend Leslie Pirnie for basic fabric collars — flat, martingale, slip, snap-around slip — and leashes and long lines.

    She will do custom work. I just ask her for sizes, buckle types, widths, etc. and she sends it with a bill.

    She provided the nylon martingale collars with metal buckles for our Montana rescue dogs this year — and she did it inexpensively and FAST when wires got crossed and the second order of collars was never sent in to her when it should have been.

    She also does the most cunning modification to commercial prong collars, making them easy to get on and off and more secure than they are off-the-rack.

    Leslie primarily does business with trainers and other bulk buyers, which may be why she doesn’t bother with a website.

    Contact: hypnodog@comcast.net

    Comment by H. Houlahan — December 11, 2009 @ 8:07 pm

  36. I tried the toffee yesterday on the way home - Yummy simple doesn’t describe how wonderful it is. Nonny does a great job!

    Comment by Snoopys Friend — December 12, 2009 @ 11:42 am

  37. I highly recommend Lucky Fiona on etsy. Shannon makes beautiful custom dog and cat collars and leashes, and rescues English Setters too!
    http://www.etsy.com/shop/luckyfiona

    Comment by Ann — December 13, 2009 @ 10:13 am

  38. Our Jr. Handler Mei is making dog tuggies to earn money to go to the agility nationals. Gina suggested we post here. We have pictures on my personal facebook page http://www.facebook.com/album......038;ref=mf and I will go post them on our team webpage http://www.pm2dogagility.com

    Mei is 13 years old and really enjoys running dogs in dog agility. She’s an awesome kid.

    Comment by Deborah Davidson Harpur — December 21, 2009 @ 6:01 pm

  39. Good on her! I think I might buy a couple myself.

    Comment by Gina Spadafori — December 21, 2009 @ 6:50 pm

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