While my dogs motivate me to get out of bed in the morning, Shannon Ritscher's animal companions (an eight-year-old dog named Sweet Pea and two cats, Mike and Wednesday) inspire altogether grander and greener pursuits.
Working from her home in the South Beacon Hill/Upper Georgetown neighborhood, Ritscher transforms discarded belts into cat and dog collars (some with matching armbands for human companions) tricked out with scrap bling, such as bottle caps, buttons, washers and leftover leather bits.
Ritscher harvests materials from second-hand stores, family, neighbors, friends and friends of friends and cobbles the pieces together during the rare spare moments available to a part-time graphic designer and full-time, stay-at-home mom with a young son. The results are very groovy collars that she markets under the name Greenbelts.
Greenbelts collars range in price from approximately $15 for extra small to $50 for extra large (matching armbands run between about $30 and $65). They are available at Planet Poochie [1] in Kirkland, and online at Etsy [2], Trunkt [3] and Seeking Designers [4].
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