With the holidays bearing down on us like a runaway train, we at Sauk Valley Media have a few suggestions for last-minute gifts made with loving care by local artisans.

Awfully good toffee

Here’s a weirdly wonderful combination: steel roofing, siding and English toffee.

Z-Best Enterprises in rural Amboy, purveyor of the aforementioned building materials, also makes and sells old-fashioned toffee.

It first came on the market in 1935 when Walter Fredenhagen Sr. sold it at his Prince Castle ice cream shop in Naperville. Great-grandson Jerad Zellhofer has carried on the tradition, selling the chewy treat seasonally from his metal business at 1749 Winding Road.

Zellhofer uses great-grandpa’s original recipe, featuring almonds, butter, chocolate and sugar.

Call soon: This toffee, available only Nov. 1 to March 1, flies off the warehouse shelves.

In fact, the 16-ounce crimson and gold boxes are sold out; left are the 10-ounce packages. The cost is $12.50 a box for the first 10, with discounts applied for larger orders.

Go to zbestenterprises.com, email info@zbestenterprises.com or call 815-849-5256 to place an order or for more information.

Jam session

Tim and Carolyn Keller have operated Ye Olde Cider Mill on Sterling’s west end since 1971, and their custom jams are popular holiday gifts.

They offer the traditional black and red raspberry, grape and strawberry jams, as well as a hot pepper jam and one made with their signature apple cider.

Ingredients are locally grown and jams are processed in-house in 8-ounce jars.

The jams, along with locally made honey, sorghum, berry vinegar, cornmeal, flax seed and baked goods are available at the year-round Twin City Farmers Market, 106 Ave. A in Sterling, which is open every Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon.

Carve to the beat

Cigar box guitars have had a resurgence in popularity, and it’s music to Tim Gale’s ears.

For nearly 20 years, Gale, has made four-string guitars using cigar boxes from his Walnut home, similar to what early blues and jazz musicians did to find unique sounds.

“They did not have a lot of money, and so they were making their own instruments because that’s what they could afford to do,” Gale said.

He also creates Native American-style flutes out of wood, and other “pluckable” instruments such as mandolins and dulcimers.

The wood comes from Elm City Hardwoods, a sawmill in Princeton, and also is used to make cajon drum kits that are light and portable, and ashiko drums to be played by hand. Another drum is the steel tongue drum, made from empty propane tanks.

Like the Keller family jams, Gale’s items also are sold at the Twin City Farmer’s Market every Saturday.

Gift certificates are available at the market, or call Sterling Main Street at 815-625-8610 for more information.

Lather up

Soap not only can make a body clean, but also can be fun to smell.

Lynnel Camling opened the Oregon Soap Shoppe 15 years ago at 91c Daysville Road and has expanded her variety from 156 different kinds to close to 480.

Soaps are made using a cold process system and sold on site, and many have unique stories as to how they came to being, business partner Michael Olson said.

Soaps are sorted and described on its website, oregonsoapshoppe.com, by specialties, fragrances and for certain jobs, with several scents, berries and hard-to-find aromas.

The store is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

Find it on Facebook, go to the website or call 866-411-6614 to place orders or for more information.

Woof, woof

Scents of beef, beef carrot, chicken and peanut butter can be enough for dogs to tear wrapping paper from under the Christmas tree and discover what Vicki Mandrell can bake in her rural Sterling oven.

Tuff Dog Bakery sells doggie treats, paw print and “snickerpoodle” cookies, and specially iced puppy cakes. Treats and cookies are packaged on-site and sold at various places in northern Illinois, eastern Iowa and southern Wisconsin.

Mandrell had a downtown Sterling store for 12 years, but now operates wholesale.

Find it on Facebook, go to tuffdogbakery.com, email tuffdogbakery@yahoo.com or call 815-625-5725 for more information.

Chop, chop

Ton Dvorak crafts custom cutting boards for the kitchen from local trees.

From the basement of his Dixon home, Dvorak uses all natural hardwood and local beeswax to treat the boards. He also makes serving and charcuterie boards.

They cost $30 to $150 at Pam’s Hallmark, 1331 N. Galena Avenue in Dixon, which is owned by his fiance, Britni Schultz.

Call Pam’s at 815-288-6600 for more information.

To tie it together

Catherine Pokropinski of Mount Carroll creates various forms of tatting and lacing work, such as earrings, bookmarks, ornaments and doilies, which are making a comeback in a lot of homes, she said.

Snowflake ornaments have been popular creations for Pokropinski this time of year. Much of her works have been sold at the Mount Carroll Farmers Market outdoors for the past 2 decades.

Customs can be ready after Christmas. Email mrspoko42@gmail.com for more information.