By RACHEL PRIVETT

Staff Writer

The bond between man’s best friend and its owner is unlike any other.It’s a bond so strong that it can lead you to start your own business to ensure your best friend looks beautiful, no matter what the occasion. 

That is what Arlene Tomkins has done. After getting her whippet, Sabylla, in January 2009 she began Sabylla’s Sense of Style, a company where she creates custom coats, leashes and collars for dogs of all types.

“I got into collars because I purchased two out west and they were a lot of money,” says Tomkins. “Being the crafty individual that I am, I came up with the thought, ‘Hey, I can do this.’” And that she has.

Tomkins was creating collars, coats and leashes before she registered her business in December 2009. She has grown her business from selling collars online through Facebook and Kijiji to also selling them in Global Pet Foods in Niagara Falls, Ont.

“Arlene is a customer of ours [Global Pet Foods]. We made a connection because we both have whippets,” says store owner Barbara LeRoeye. LeRoeye, who also purchases collars from Tomkins, says, “When she came into the store, I had a different type of a collar on my dog.

She took a look at this collar and put her creative juices together and designed some collars and I ended up selling them in my store.” Cindy Laing, another of her customers, heard about the custom collars when her husband, Mike, was doing a refrigeration call at Tomkins’ workplace.

“He overheard her talking to a woman about her custom collars. He thought that would be something we would like to have for our chocolate lab, Bo,” says Laing. “I have purchased one every day collar, one Halloween and one Christmas collar. I am very pleased with the quality of Arlene’s work and I look forward to ordering more from her in the future,” says Laing.

The collars cost between $19 and $30 depending on the amount of sewing, ribbon choice and layers. The collars also come in a variety of widths running from three-quarter inch up to two inches.

“I don’t mass produce,” says Tomkins. “People can choose their own ribbon and their hardware.” There are also different hardware choices for customers. The hardware is solid, not welded, and it comes in nickel or brass. Tomkins is also starting a line of side-release buckles in acetyl.

The one thing Tomkins refuses to share is how she makes the collars saying it’s a “trade secret.” “I don’t want to say exactly how I make them. You don’t see Colonel Sanders giving away his recipe.” For information on purchasing one of Tomkins’ collars, check her Facebook page, Sabylla’s Sense of Style or email her at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it