A SURPRISE GIFT AND AN UNINTENDED VENTURE

By
Helen M. Davis


The whimsical clip-ons were supposed to be a one-time thing, a gift for the children at Camp Harlow in Eugene who were going to be riding the horses she has provided for young riders to enjoy for the past five years. But the staff liked the creations and asked Valerie Stinson to make more. She was happy to acquiesce and before she knew it, she was operating under the name of Horse-N-Around and making decorations that can be used by either humans or horses and selling them at places such as the Fern Ridge Harvest Festival, Peach Days at Detering Orchards in Harrisburg, the Fern Ridge Christmas Bazaar and on her Facebook page.

After having previously lived in Eugene and having run the Willamette Valley Dog and Cat Motel on Bodenhamer Road, this suits her just fine. The motel was good at first, but the constant red tape combined with the bickering among some of the 15-20 employees had gotten to be too much and after 24 years, Stinson sold the business and moved to a five-acre homestead on Lamb Road in Elmira.

Stinson’s dining room table doubles as a workspace as she makes the clip-ons using feathers from the wild turkeys that mill about her yard, a few pheasant feathers she has also found on her property, as well as feathers from her cockatoo Kiwi and the 75 chickens she recently rehomed. Mainly, however, she uses brightly dyed feathers she orders in bulk from Amazon to construct her creations.

It takes about an hour to make a clip-on and in addition to the feathers, they also are festooned with tiny daises, hearts, dragon flies, and colorful beads that she also orders online. Her best-selling clip-ons are those with a red, white, and blue motif that are popular with people who participate in rodeo and Stinson also makes green and yellow clip-ons for Oregon Duck fans as well as orange and brown for those who prefer the Beavers. One clip-on even features a small compass, a tiny flashlight, and a little whistle that can be used by outdoor enthusiasts as they spend time in nature.

Most recently, she had a booth at the Eugene Pro Rodeo where she found great success. The majority of those who purchased clip-ons from her, however, did so for themselves rather than their equine as they wished to put them in their hair and on their hats.
The clip-ons typically sell for $15, though small ones can sell for $9, and an extra-long clip-on goes for $60. Stinson is just getting started in this unplanned but most enjoyed undertaking and doesn’t really know what to expect, but she finds that making these doodads is a fine outlet for her creativity.

What started out as a way for kids at Camp Harlow to have some fun decorations has now become a purpose and though she did not plan on starting a business after retirement, it’s happened anyway, and it brings her peace and joy as she works at her table stringing the beads and the tiny objects to mesh with the feathers and create tiny works of art that have given her a new purpose. With her two large dogs for company, as well as Kiwi and red bellied Senagal Bert, she is happy and content and if others can benefit from her creativity, then so much the better.

Caption – Valerie Stinson poses at her dining room table that doubles as her workspace.