See this week’s print edition of San Diego LGBT Weekly for more puppies, furries and piggies (oh my) – available at coffee houses, bookstores, CVS stores, and newsstands near you.
How many years have you been making RubberDawg hoods?
I have been doing it for about six years.
How long does it take to make one hood?
If I am making just one, it takes about seven to eight days. There is a bit of drying time, but I can make seven in one week. That is the optimum number of hoods, working constantly, coating one, while others are either waiting to “level” or drying. It takes 2 days just to put on the zipper.
How many orders do you get a month?
That’s hard to say. It changes every month. It’s getting more and more every month. As soon as I ship one out, I get another order. The most I have been backed up is 30.
What is your favorite and least favorite part about making hoods?
My favorite part is coming up with new designs. Least favorite is being overwhelmed with so many orders I feel like I’m drowning.
How and why did you decide to get into hood making?
It all started when I went to a rubber party in Palm Springs. They said that they were going to have a “Puppy Play Area.” I thought that would be fun. (I dabbled in puppy play before.) I saw what was out there, hood-wise and most of the leather hoods looked like monkeys to me. I figured I could make me one. I have been working with liquid latex and molds for years. I made one and it was OK. I still had a little time so I made another, and it was better. I still had time so I made a third. I took all three to the party and people went ballistic over them. Thorn of Instigator Magazine was there. He backed me up against the refrigerator and said “You have to sell these, I’ll help you..” Over the next few months I cleaned up the designs and made them with zippers. The first ones you just pulled over your head. It was OK putting it on, but hard to take off. My lover and I planned a trip to Europe and Thorn set up an appointment with the buyer for Mr. B’s of Amsterdam. I showed them what I had and they ordered 25. That is what really started it all. From there it has just gotten bigger and bigger. Rubberdawg is all I do. Seven days a week, 10-12 hours a day.
What does puppy play mean to you?
I have a “social” idea of why it’s getting so popular. We have lost a lot of our leather community and many of the next generation has not had the opportunity to be shown what it is to be part of the leather community and had to kind of fend for themselves.
Puppy play is filling that void, it still has the dominant and submissive aspect, but the “Rules” are not strict. There is a freedom and a true “Play” aspect to it.
What it means to me. I just enjoy it.
What was the first hood you ever made?
What breed it was, I have no idea. I look at it now and I think, “Damn, that’s horrible.” Now if you talking about just masks, I’ll have to think about that. I have made a ton of them way back in junior high. I think it was an abominable snowman.
How did you come up with the name RubberDawg?
A friend of mine came up with that, I said “Rubberdog” and he suggested “Rubberdawg”
(Maybe it’s my accent)
What is your favorite fetish event to attend and why?
Rubber! I love going up to San Francisco for Dore Alley and Folsom.
When you’re not making hoods, what hobbies do you enjoy doing?
LOL. I guess coming up with more and different items It’s all I do and what seems like all the time.
What other products do you make other than hoods?
I am working on paws (for walking on all fours), gloves (that have thumbs) and mitts (that have no thumbs). I am slowly working on paws for the feet. It takes time to work out the bugs and sizing is always the hard thing to deal with. The muzzles are new and still not on the Web site. I am hoping before the year is out to have the Web site completely redone, making it easier to add new items and new photos in the galleries.
