Interview with Pinky's Pet Gear

Tweet Meet Sunde of Pinky's Pet Gear!

Who are you?
My name is Sunde Farquhar and I have a shop on Etsy called Pinky’s Pet Gear. I live in Safety Harbor with my husband, our dog, Daisy (self-appointed ruler of our household and the nicest Chow Chow in all of Florida) and a motley trio of cats. We are proud to have adopted all of our pets from animal shelters in the various states where we’ve lived.

What do you create?
I make collars for dogs and cats, leashes, pet toys and sometimes pet clothing, too. What makes my products unique is the colors I use. They are always fun and bright colors that remind me of living in Florida.

How did you come about your store name?
There is actually a cute story behind my store name. My husband and I are both journalists, and one day he came home and said he interviewed a red-headed woman named Pinky. My husband thought the name sounded cool and he started to call me Pinky. (I also happen to have red hair!) When I decided to start selling my dog and cat collars, I wanted to incorporate my nickname into the business’ name and that’s when I created, “Pinky’s Pet Gear“.

What is your favorite crafting utensil you cannot live without?
My brain!

What is your favorite material?
I love fabric. There are so many types, in so many patterns and colors. Fabric is a feast for the eyes! I love buying vintage fabric, too. I always wonder what the story is behind vintage fabric, where it was made, what was going on in the world when it was made, who bought it before me, what that person planned on making with it, and why they never got around to making anything with it!

What is your favorite feature on Etsy?
I LOVE the “Recently Listed Items” feature. I could watch all of the newly-listed items pop up on the screen all day…it is so hypnotic. This feature also makes me realize the amount of talent on Etsy. I see so many unique and beautiful handcrafted items, some are so astounding, they just blow me away.

Is there an online tool that you use?
I am a big fan of Google Analytics. I wish I knew more about how to use Analytics, I probably use about 5% of the features. I love the map feature and being able to find out what cities my store’s visitors are from. I also like being able to find out the days and hours that I get the most traffic in my store, and checking out the search words that people use is really fun, too.

Could you recommend a fun activity near your Florida home that other members might enjoy?
I am so lucky to live in the Tampa Bay area, there is so much to do! Top on the list is our beaches and parks. My personal favorites are Clearwater Beach, beautiful white sand, there are plenty of places to shop and restaurants to eat at, it’s also a great place to relax and people watch. FYI---there is no oil from the BP spill on Pinellas County beaches, so come on over FESTers!
I also love Ft. De Soto Park. It’s a seven-mile long waterfront park in the southernmost part of Pinellas County. You can do just about everything at Ft. De Soto Park… swim, bike, hike, camp, picnic, fish, bird watch, canoe, wind surf, launch your boat, and there’s even a beachfront dog park.
Tampa also has a lot of other cool places to visit including Busch Gardens and Lowry Park Zoo. St. Petersburg is home to the Dali museum and a new permanent Dale Chihuly exhibit and center will open there in July. You can check out the Historic Sponge Docks at Tarpon Springs. Clearwater Marine Aquarium is home to “Winter” the dolphin. The folks at the aquarium took care of Winter after she became tangled in a buoy line. Winter lost her tail as a result of the accident. The staff at the aquarium raised money to have a prosthetic tail made for Winter. Now, Winter is a source of inspiration for people who are overcoming disabilities, a movie about her is in the works, and she is becoming known around the world.

What animal would you like to be for a day?
It would be fun to be a bird. You would get such a different view of everything from way up high, plus, it would be fun to be able to fly… you would never get stuck in traffic!