HoofPrints Newsletter
April 27, 2011 Mother's Day Gift Ideas Issue
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MOTHER'S DAY IS MAY 8th - there's still time to get the perfect gift!
| Here are some GIFT IDEAS for the Horse Loving Mom
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Tired Old Ass Packs Horseshoe Travel Purse Leather Candle CDs Quiet Strength Plaque
Shown above left is our Horses Leave HoofPrints on Your Heart... Hoodie. A lot of folks are not too impressed with this gold color initially, but it's one of those things that kind of grows on you. It's a nice, soft maize-y color - NOT the "highway" gold that I think some imagine it to be. And the logo is intricately embroidered, a detailed "real-thing" hoofprint that we painstakingly developed to look just like the real thing. There's a wispy pink heart in the background, tying the whole idea together, without looking too childish. We've also got the same logo embroidered on a lovely sky blue hoodie. Click here to see our complete garment selection.
Shown on the right is the cute little silver pony rider has been inspiration for all sorts of products here at HoofPrints. The appropriateness of her nudity (or not) was discussed at length on our Facebook page here.
A painting by Edward Robert Hughes serves as inspiration here
She's the logo on the Horsewoman Balm here (LOTS of Mother's Day gift ideas on this page)
She's embroidered on a Thermal Lined Sweatshirt here
We sold a tiny version for a couple years on a silver ball chain. Now we've found a matching large version (should we call her "horsey mama?") and paired her with some colorful, exotic gemstones for an exciting, new effect. These are made right here in Alexandria, Indiana, USA (by me) using stones from all over the world. The pendants are made in USA. To see all the Pony Girl stuff click here. There's still time to order, but not much... shop today! |
More gift ideas for Mom
| Behind every great horse is a woman... cleaning up.
|  We've got a great selection of gift ideas for everybody's mom. Shown here is our little tote: "Behind every great horse is a woman...cleaning up." This cute little number is just the right size to double as a purse. Wouldn't the folks at the office be impressed by that - the little horse graphic has three neatly spaced turds - that, of course, will need to be cleaned up. The beauty of the tote (shown at left) is that it can be used to "wrap" other gift items. Just tie a piece of hay bale string in a bow on the handles and you're done! Click here for the tote and other horse manure items.
Fitting perfectly into the bag is our horsey candle set here
or a Things Not To Say to a Horse Owner mug set here
or a LOT of jewelry from here
Mom's not horsey? The Bold Faith Cross necklace here is a great choice! |
Help us with the Christmas Cards!
| It's not even summer yet and we are thinking about Christmas cards
|  Many times this ends up being a last minute project - coming up with great images and wording for the holiday cards. It's stressful and I am always left wondering if what we're putting out is really the best we can do as it's done in such a rush.
This time, however, is different. Quite a while ago I spied a single photo of a horseshoe gate on a stock photo website. For those who don't know about stock photo sites, they are companies that compile vast (I mean VAST) amounts of professional photographs on a searchable website. They are available for download and use for royalty fees. They are not the work of one photographer, but a compilation of many from all over the world. A smorgasbord of images that is truly overwhelming.
Anyway, back to the gate. I saw a single image of this gate on a stock photo website. It was cropped really tightly (no scenery around it) and the grass was mostly brown. Not very Christmas-y. I contacted the photographer directly to see if he had any other versions. He did not. He remarked that the one shot was taken on a whim, en route to another destination. He told me that he'd keep me in mind and try to get some more pictures with snow in them. TWO YEARS LATER, he calls and says the conditions were finally right and he has some pictures for me to look at. Montana photographer Allen Russell did a wonderful job capturing this lovely scene. You can see larger pictures and learn more about it on our facebook page here. We are also asking for ideas for wording to go with this wonderful picture. You can post suggestions on facebook, or email me directly gina@hoofprints.com
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Horse Tales from Heaven - Reflections Along the Trail with God
| Author Rebecca Ondov has led an interesting life.
|  For 15 years she rode her horse through the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex of Montana. She led groups of people on horseback, packing their gear on mules, through miles of rugged winding trails. She rode for the U.S. Forest Service as the Wilderness Ranger. If you ever wanted to live an outdoor life vicariously... you could do so in the pages of this book. She describes the beauty and ruggedness of the terrain, along with the joy she experiences seeing it from the back of a horse, right alongside the expected challenges and trials that she encountered, most times all alone.
Through the years she developed a unique outlook on life. "Believe me," says Rebecca, "I developed tons of character as I encountered everything from grizzly bears to injured horses! All I had to fix the situation were my wits and God - God always turned out to be my best bet."
Gina's note: This book is divided into 54 chapters, each a short (adventure) story with a Biblical lesson tied in. Some are humorous, others serious; you can pick this up and start reading from anywhere, and enjoy what you read. The chapter "Frozen Long Johns" in which her long johns were quite literally, frozen stiff, is worth the whole price of the book! You can read an excerpt of that chapter below. To order, click here. |
Recap - From the last newsletter...
| Here's what we talked about last time:
|  Select Farrier Prints HALF PRICE here
Woman is proud to train horse to eat carrots - her story here
Passion for Horses True stories of lives lived loving horses here
Remembering Zack here
San Francisco in 1906 - old movie with horses here
Ladies Caps for hair control here
Naked Liberty horse training book by Carolyn Resnick here
GOOD STUFF: Help your dog live longer - Gina's rant about fat dogs here
New FREE magnet 4th in the series. Details here
100 Years from now Fathers Day gift idea ON SALE here
Women Riders Who Could, and Did here
Excerpt on preserving memories from Beautiful Jim Key here
Horsey Scrapbook kits (for preserving memories) here
PAST NEWSLETTERS - See what you missed! Click HERE to catch up on the news.
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| More about HoofPrints | | Be sure to check out the "GOOD STUFF" links at the bottom of this section |  ABOUT THE COMPANY
Farriers Greeting Cards was started by Gina Keesling in 1986 (in a very small way) to provide helpful promotional materials for her farrier husband Rob.
ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
It's written by Gina Keesling, and emailed to subscribers a few times a month, depending on how often I have something to share. Watch for special sales, interesting stories, uplifting quotes and maybe some personal stuff. Let me know if you like it, and if you don't. We aim to please.
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Excerpt from Chapter 28 "Frozen Long Johns" -from Horse Tales from Heaven
"Snow squeaked with each footstep. From the way it sounded, the temperature had dropped below zero already. Untying my tent door flap, I remembered my long johns. I walked behind the tent. The glow of the lantern illuminated a sheet of ice on the clothesline. My jaw dropped. They were frozen - spread eagle. I tried pinching the clothespins open, bu they were frozen solid. If I had a decent tent I would be out here freezing, trying to get this off that line, I murmured. I tried using both hands to pinch the clothespins open, but it was like they were super-glued. Setting the lantern in the snow, I grabbed the long johns by the ankles and jerked. Whop! They came loose from the clothesline and fell like a chunk of lead into the snow. Steam rose from my breath as I picked up the lantern with my left hand. Reaching down with my right, I picked up the board-like long johns. Carrying them by the top, I walked to the tent and pushed that itty-bitty tent flap open a crack. Waves of heat rolled off the lantern. Holding it so that it wouldn't burn a hole in the tent, I held the long johns in my right hand and tried to manipulate them through the door... but the outstretched legs were wider than the tent flap. I tried using my knee to poke the legs through that small hole. I got one leg in. The other leg caught on the tent frame. This is ridiculous! I backed out of the tent and turned the long johns sideways, carrying them like a suitcase. This time one leg hung up on my duffel bag and I tripped. I hope nobody's watching me dance with frozen underwear! Suddenly I broke out laughing. I'm dancing with long johns because they are stiff. They're not flexible at all. Not flexible... Something reverberated in my mind. Hmmm... the long johns were exactly like my frozen attitude about this tent. My attitude was making my life miserable, not Jack for choosing this tent."
You can order the book and read the rest of this story, along with 53 others, here.
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Thanks everyone, for reading!
Gina Keesling, owner
Contact Information
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GOOD STUFF: Puppy Cam is mega cute plus...
| It shares some very, very good information
|  When my assistant Candy came to work and asked me if I'd heard about the "Puppy Cam" that was getting all the attention online - garnering a bazillion viewers and making the news, I was a bit of a skeptic. She mentioned that the puppies were the (expensive) rare breed Shiba Inu, and I thought to myself; "Well, here we go, now there'll be a mad rush for everyone to fork over big bucks to buy one of these cute pups, while unwanted dogs languish in shelters." (It was Monday morning and obviously, my attitude was not very good.) Well, there's nothing like looking at puppies to soften up a grouch. And these guys did a pretty good job. Of course, the marketing part of me gasped in awe as I saw that they'd had over 27 MILLION hits. And I was thrilled to see what they put out there for those 27 million viewers to read:
"We recommend that you do NOT get your puppies from a pet store (puppy mill). Generally their main focus is on the bottom dollar (money) and do not properly test the parents of the pups for potential genetic defects. Do your research to locate reputable breeders in your area!
Likewise, do NOT buy puppies solely over the internet! You should be able to visit the breeder to view the conditions of the pups/dogs in their care. Visiting the breeder will also allow you a chance to bond with the pups before you decide whether or not they are a right fit for you. If the breeder doesn't allow you to visit then beware... it's likely a puppy mill.
Do note that most reputable breeders have a waiting list prior to a litter being born. Once you have located a breeder you like you should ask to be put onto their waiting list.
Another option if looking for a pup/dog would be to consider fostering or adopting a rescue Shiba. Go to this link to view Shiba Rescue organizations throughout the country (or to make a donation)"
They also list lots of links where you can learn about the Shiba Inu breed, where it becomes quickly apparent that they are NOT for everyone. In fact they have a lot of characteristics that would make them a challenge for most people. Kudos to the breeders for not candy coating the facts, and for not using their 27 million+ hits to market a whole bunch of puppies to folks who won't take the time to research the breed. There is a reason these dogs are rare, and it would seem that they should stay in the homes of capable owners/breeders.
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Share our emails
| Viral marketing... it sounds bad, doesn't it?
| You can ask my husband - a frequent topic around here is that of forwarded emails - and the psychology behind them - just WHAT prompts people to decide; "I am going to send this to everyone I know!".
We receive a lot of them. Some are pretty good, and others are dumb. Dumb in a myriad of ways... Alarmist email rumors that have been around forever - that folks keep sending "just in case it's true" Pictures of someone's butt (or worse) - don't even get me started about the firecracker butt - but at least that one was timely when it showed up around July 4. Christian messages that are uplifting - until you get to the end and you're threatened "if you're not ashamed that you love Jesus, forward this - if you are, then delete." Pictures of cute puppies and kittens (awww)
I enjoy writing these newsletters - and sharing all this stuff with you all. But the fact is, it's also a way to help us stay connected with customers and sell products during the time between catalog mailings (which is only once a year) So I really, really like it when someone new stumbles upon the newsletter and is excited to "discover" our company and the products we offer.
In all my efforts to make the newsletter interesting and forward-worthy - it never occurred to me to JUST ASK you all to send it! Duh. Sometimes the obvious is elusive, I guess. So here goes - my request to ask you to forward our email newsletter to your horsey friends. All we ask is that you please be judicious and only send to folks who might be interested. Otherwise we are no better than the "firecracker butt". Click the Forward email link below to get started. (please note - using this form does NOT subscribe anyone to our list - it is a one-time only forward) |
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