For women looking to explore their inner tomboy home-improvement retailer Tomboy Tools may have the answer.

Like a Tupperware party for home repair, Tomboy Tools consultants visit women in their homes, teaching home-maintenance skills and demonstrating how to use the more than 80 products the direct-sales company offers – tools made especially for women.

And no, the products are not pink.

With energy bills predicted to soar for most homeowners this winter, Tomboy Tools recently released an energy-savings tool kit that offers all the tools needed to caulk, weather-strip and seal a home for the winter, said Jo Jorgensen, owner of the Central Oregon branch of the company.

”Tomboy Tools makes well-made, serious tools that are made a little more ergonomically correct for women’s smaller hands,” Jorgensen said.

The company mission is to instill a ”can-do attitude” in women, Jorgensen said, which means learning how to fix a leaking toilet, for example, instead of calling a plumber.

”Why hire a plumber to fix a leaky toilet? Women need to know that they can do it,” Jorgensen said. ”It’s an attitude thing, not an ability thing. We have the tools, we teach them the skills and we give them the ability to do repairs by themselves. It’s a huge empowerment thing to not wait for someone else to do it for you.”

Tomboy Tools parties are free and consultants do a variety of demonstrations with products customers can buy. Parties can include everything from hanging drywall to cleaning the gutters. Most parties consist of roughly 10 women of all ages, but Jorgensen said she’s taught up to 50 people at one party.

Tomboy Tools are not only for women, however. Jorgensen said men are welcome to join the tool parties.

”We’re open to everyone, but we have to be able to teach in a way to make the women feel comfortable,” she said. ”This started as a home-party plan because we found more women were comfortable learning in small, confined places where they can ask things they consider stupid.”

How did Tomboy Tools begin?

Started in 2000, Tomboy Tools was the brainchild of Sue Wilson, Janet Rickstrew and Mary Tatum of Denver. The women were frustrated with man-sized tools because women’s hands are smaller, so it’s harder to do the home repairs they wanted to do.

There are now 300 Tomboys across the nation, which is tiny compared to Pampered Chef and Avon, but we have lots of room to grow.

There are many wonderful women who are out there working hard, swinging their own hammers.

How did you get involved with the company?

I love tools, I love woodworking and I love the idea of teaching women how to do it.

I saw a blurb in a magazine in 2000 about the founders and I told myself that I would keep an eye on them and join as soon as the business went public. When they were looking for consultants throughout the country, I applied and I was one of 30 people in the nation picked to be the first class of consultants.

To be a consultant, you need to know a little bit about tools. Anybody can learn to be a Tomboy, but you have to have the desire to teach women to use the tools.

Its incredibly gratifying to sit in front of a group of women and teach them how to fix their own toilet. I love the ah-ha moments where they say, I can do that.

We have an auto-instruction class and kit, but its very simple, like how to change a tire and check the oil. I mainly teach drywall repair, plumbing and faux-painting techniques, to name a few. You name it, we can do it.

What are the top product sellers?

The hammers, because they have a unique magnetic slot on top where you can put a nail in and do a one-handed start. If youre holding onto a ladder and hammering, you dont have to let go of the ladder.

Our kits are also good sellers because we have so many different kinds and they serve a variety of functions.

We have everything from T-shirts, hats, gloves that are very nice and fit smaller hands, safety glasses designed to fit smaller faces, gardening tools, paint brushes that are ergonomically correct, a picture-hanging tool and a 12-volt drill that is lighter and easier to handle.

In order to fall in love with our tools, you only have to handle them. They are so much more comfortable.

Would you consider this a feminist organization?

No, its not exactly feminist. Were not saying we dont need men, were not men-bashing. Its just a powerful thing to know you can do some of this. Whats amazed me is what I call happy feet: These women do a little dance where they say they love these skills and nobody has shown them how to do this before.

But it does wonders for the womens movement. Many women dont have a husband to do some of these home repair chores, so we encourage at least some small skills and basic knowledge.

We have a lot of customers who are single moms who are interested in taking care of their largest investment, which is their home, whether its in beautifying their house, wallpapering, repairing or keeping it up. It doesnt have to be a mans job anymore.

What is the future of Tomboy Tools?

Its been awesome watching this grow. Its been three years since I started my business and now Ive got customers from Madras to La Pine.

I have about 1,000 customers in Central Oregon so far and Ive become really involved in Habitat for Humanity, teaching women to use the tools on-site.

How does someone sign up for a Tomboy Tools party?

They can contact me and pick a date for the party. We can do hands-on parties, where guests take part in the demonstration, or teaching parties, where the consultant does the demonstration.

I can teach anywhere in the country if somebody wants me to.

If you are interested in being a home consultant, you can start your own business for $150.

For more information on Tomboy Tools, visit www.tomboytools.com or call Jo Jorgensen at 541-280-2818.

Anna Sowa can be reached at 541-383-0304 or at asowa@bendbulletin.com.

The basics

What: Tomboy Tools

Who: Jo Jorgensen, home consultant for Central Oregon

Where: 4900 SW Loma Linda Drive, Redmond

Telephone: 541-280-2818

Employees: 20