Cowgirl Chocolates
NEWSLETTER Volume 3, Number 7, July 2006
Imagine the combination… rich chocolate, exotic spices, and horses! For those of us who consider chocolate to be one of the major food groups, who believe cayenne to be the “spice of life,” and who cannot imagine living a life devoid of horses, Cowgirl Chocolates provide the perfect accompaniment to a trail ride or a pick-me-up during a break at a show. I confess that I have enjoyed eating Cowgirl Chocolates for years (and have personally sampled just about every flavor that they make), but it is only recently that I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know the owner of the company that makes these delicious products.
When she was a teenager, Marilyn worked in Daffin’s Candies, a chocolate shop in her hometown of Sharon, Pennsylvania. After graduating from Ohio Northern University with a major in Art Education, Marilyn’s first sculptural commission was to make a giant chocolate rabbit for display in the shop window of Daffin’s Candies. It was supposed to be four feet high, but Marilyn made a mistake and Daffin’s got an eight-foot high chocolate rabbit to grace its window. Customers loved it so much that Marilyn was asked to make the rabbit a mate. Two of the consistent threads of Marilyn’s life had come together art and chocolate.
Today, Marilyn is an internationally known artist featured in numerous books and magazines on ceramics, and her work has been shown at galleries and exhibitions around the world. Locally, however, she is branded as the “Cowgirl Artist” because Marilyn is the owner and founder (with husband Ross Coates) of Cowgirl Chocolates. Rather than fight this label, marilyn embraced it and now the Cowgirl Chocolates store in Moscow, Idaho features artwork by Marilyn and other local artists, and the chocolates themselves are packaged in a wonderful retro cowgirl theme. Their website www.cowgirlchocolates.com also features this great retro western style as well as features such as “Cowgirl of the Month.”
Cowgirl Chocolates is an award winning candy company with a great product and fabulous marketing, but clearly something was missing, a cowgirl needs a mount and Cowgirl Chocolates needed a signature horse. So last year Marilyn contacted her friend Ann Warrington and Ann’s horse “Curly” became the equine icon for Cowgirl Chocolates. “Curly” is an American Bashkir Curly who will be five on his birthday this month the 4th of July. Fittingly, Curlies are a breed whose exact origins are surrounded by mystery, and who have some unique qualities not least of which is a distinctive curly coat (especially in winter) and for many people normally allergic to horse hair, the Curlies’ coat tends to be hypoallergenic. Moreover, Ann describes her Curly as “the quintessential paint pony.” (For more pictures of Curly and links to information on American Bashkir Curlies see Ann’s website: www.firstrides.com
First Marilyn and Ann set up a photoshoot with photographer Jim Trivelpiece. (Jim took the great photo of Marilyn and Curly you can see on this month’s newsletter, and you can see more of his work at www.geographyghost.com). Marilyn and Curly bonded and now everytime she needs a horse for a photoshoot or TV feature, she and Curly are a pair Cowgirl Chocolates have recently appeared on CNBCs “On the Money” and the Food Network’s “Unwrapped” and “Extreme Cuisine” - and when she gets the time, Marilyn plans to ride the Palouse hills on her newfound friend.
“You have to have an adventurous spirit to try a Cowgirl Chocolate,” says Marilyn. She’s right, they are spicy! (although they also offer a selection called “Colts and Fillies” which are milder chocolates). Happy trails!
Anna Banks, Editor womentalkhorses.com
editor@womentalkhorses.com
Moon Hill Ranch, Idaho