Wednesday, August 5, 2015

A Lot of Fuss Over Sugar Skulls

The whole thing started with an innocent photo on Facebook, the one you see below, and it turned into a full-blown feeding frenzy.



Let me explain.

Greyhounds Rock Fredericksburg will have a booth in the vendor market at the 'Greyt Escape Kennels to Kouches' event in Wheeling, West Virginia, this weekend.  For the past few weeks, in preparation for this, I have been sewing collars to beef up our inventory.  I post photos of some of the collars on the GRF Facebook page to publicize the event and build some interest.  I was shocked at the excitement that was sparked when I posted that simple image of a strip of Sugar Skulls on my sewing machine.

My sister shared the photo, and she tagged a friend, who tagged another friend.  Soon, I was fielding questions about custom sizes and different styles.  By the end of the day, 17 collars had been ordered ... all from that one photo on Facebook.  

I posted this photo a little later in the day ...


... and this one, too, of five finished martingale collars.


It took a couple of afternoons for me to make the collars to fill all of the orders.  There were all different sizes of martingale and snap buckle collars, for many different breeds of dogs ... from a miniature Dachshund to a pack of Bull Mastiffs.



I mailed all of the collars to their new homes last Friday, and I began receiving thank you notes from the recipients via email and FB on Monday ... some of which came with photos!

Pink loves her new snap buckle collar ...



... and Jack looks very smart in his martingale collar.



I was thrilled beyond words to get the photo of the five Bull Mastiffs, each of them sporting their fun new collar!



One photo, a single image, shared around one bit of cyberspace, had a huge impact.  The 17 collar orders that came from that photo added over $300 to the GRF treasury, to be donated to support canine cancer research.  I am humbled by the response, and proud to be a part of it.

I have to stop now, because I have more collars to make.  If you need me, I will be in the sewing room.

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If you are interested in ordering a custom collar for your pup, I will be glad to make it for you.  Fabric selections change depending on my mood and what has been donated for me to use.  As of now, I have materials to make collars in one-inch and one-and-a-half-inch widths, either in martingale style or with a snap buckle.  All collars are $20 each, plus postage, payable by PayPal or by check, all of which is donated to Greyhounds Rock Fredericksburg.  Contact me with your choice of collar width and style, and your dog's neck measurement, and I will let you know which fabrics I have available.  If you are with a non-profit organization and would like a collar donation for an upcoming event, I will be happy to see what I can do for you.

12 comments:

  1. How awesome that you've had such a great response! They are pretty incredible looking ! You go girl!! :) Hugs! deb

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  2. Wonderful and amazing the power of social media! for something GOOD this time!

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  3. I love it! And I love the collars.

    In general, I think sugar skulls are gaining more popularity in our culture. But, I also think people appreciate the symbolism behind the skulls. They're a positive response to death but not just a physical death per se. In Mexico it is believed that death is not the final stage in one’s life but rather a step forward into a higher level of conscience. Even the Aztecs' use of skulls were a positive symbol, one of rebirth. So the ideas that theses pups are being adopted and receiving a new life and that the collars go to hell beat canine cancer... That's got sugar skull written all over it.

    You're totally awesome for donating your time, energy, and talent to this :D

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  4. Those are absolutely fantastic! They are great! xo Diana

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  5. The skull collar are totally awesome!!!! They are so unique and bright too. Love 'em!

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  6. Oooooh, you did good! Satisfied customers, spiffy pooches and GRF funds!

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  7. Congratulations Connie ~ The sale of those collars was great and all because of one photo. Way to go girl! You amaze me with all that you do.

    The photos are fantastic.

    FlowerLady

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  8. Wow they are colorful and fun collars. Way to go on the sales.

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  9. Good marketing and adorable customers!

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  10. How cute are they! The power of social media...
    Amalia
    xo

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  11. I'm trying to catch up on my blog reading and WOW!
    I love love LOVE these!
    Especially the sugar skulls.
    I did a painting of a sugar skull cat and it was really popular.
    I'm not surprised that everyone wanted your collars.
    I wish I could order one for each of my dogs...maybe someday!
    They are so cool!

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  12. The Renwick Museum just re-opened after extensive renovation. Its first exhibition "Wonder" includes a room featuring the sugar skull and I thought of you. Check it out: http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/11/the-smithsonian-wonder-exhibition/

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