Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
May your day be filled with food, family, friends, and more food! Let's not forget to thank God for our many many blessings today.
More.
I may have mentioned cleaning out my tack box and selling some stuff. I thought I had everything sorted and listed. BUT ( you knew that was coming) apparently I did another "purge" a few months ago and stashed the rejects in a tub buried way back in the dark recesses of my supply cabinet. I discovered it today and let out a groan. MORE stuff to photograph, MORE ads to place, MORE emails to field. Oh joy.
Here is what I found:
->GP saddle/bridle/girth in oak bark, likely G2 TB
->GP saddle/bridle/girth in deep mahogany, pony/G2 QH
->Hunter/jumper saddle/bridle/girths (2)/breastplate, G2 something.
->Jumper set with boots/breastplate/grackle, G2 TB
->Jumper set with ridiculously detailed bridle/boots/belly guard girth, G3 warmblood
->Two western pleasure saddles, G2 QH/pony. Very very small.
->Two working western saddles of medium size. One will be thrown away immediately and will never see the light of day it's so pitiful. It's also very old.
->Unfinished jousting set with saddle, bridle, skirt thingy, and armor
->Various arabian halters, from native to showring - most with real chain
->Dr. Cook's bitless bridle for stablemates
->Black/red/silver vaulting set with lovely "jewel" accents. Live show placed, actually. 3rd or 4th at AHL. Judges comment was that it would have won with a wee bitty vaulter on the horse.
->Unfinished two-tone (black and oakbark) english saddle, G3 WB size
->Hollywood style arabian halter/collar set in purple with pretty rhinestones.
->Blue and black bareback set with bridle and breastcollar
->Black english side saddle with sandwich case, no bridle, G3 TB
->Unfinished white/red/black circus costume, Stone Chips Clydesdale size
->Pebbles scale fox lane/saddle seat saddle with girth. No stirrups/bridle
Very little of this (barring the western saddles) are actually rejects. What they are is complicated. They're from my phase of working slip buckles. Used everywhere a real buckle would have been. Very fiddly, and delicate, and uncertain. I have since learned the error of my ways (thank you, cheseri-of-blab, fount-of-all-mini-tack-knowledge) and find it insufferable to deal with; even tacking up for photos is nearly more than I can bear. This stuff will slowly be listed to MH$P/BLAB, but if you want to make an offer feel free. It's almost all LSQ, and will knock a judges socks off in a photo show as long as it's used properly.
Here is what I found:
->GP saddle/bridle/girth in oak bark, likely G2 TB
->GP saddle/bridle/girth in deep mahogany, pony/G2 QH
->Hunter/jumper saddle/bridle/girths (2)/breastplate, G2 something.
->Jumper set with boots/breastplate/grackle, G2 TB
->Jumper set with ridiculously detailed bridle/boots/belly guard girth, G3 warmblood
->Two western pleasure saddles, G2 QH/pony. Very very small.
->Two working western saddles of medium size. One will be thrown away immediately and will never see the light of day it's so pitiful. It's also very old.
->Unfinished jousting set with saddle, bridle, skirt thingy, and armor
->Various arabian halters, from native to showring - most with real chain
->Dr. Cook's bitless bridle for stablemates
->Black/red/silver vaulting set with lovely "jewel" accents. Live show placed, actually. 3rd or 4th at AHL. Judges comment was that it would have won with a wee bitty vaulter on the horse.
->Unfinished two-tone (black and oakbark) english saddle, G3 WB size
->Hollywood style arabian halter/collar set in purple with pretty rhinestones.
->Blue and black bareback set with bridle and breastcollar
->Black english side saddle with sandwich case, no bridle, G3 TB
->Unfinished white/red/black circus costume, Stone Chips Clydesdale size
->Pebbles scale fox lane/saddle seat saddle with girth. No stirrups/bridle
Very little of this (barring the western saddles) are actually rejects. What they are is complicated. They're from my phase of working slip buckles. Used everywhere a real buckle would have been. Very fiddly, and delicate, and uncertain. I have since learned the error of my ways (thank you, cheseri-of-blab, fount-of-all-mini-tack-knowledge) and find it insufferable to deal with; even tacking up for photos is nearly more than I can bear. This stuff will slowly be listed to MH$P/BLAB, but if you want to make an offer feel free. It's almost all LSQ, and will knock a judges socks off in a photo show as long as it's used properly.
Cleaning Out & Starting Over
So I'm in the long process of sorting and selling most of my personal show string of tack. Most of the pieces were made before I attended my first and last live show in 2007. I learned a lot of things that day...mostly that live showing was not my forte!
At the time, I was still making my tack with slip buckles. This made it nice and adjustable....TOO adjustable, and very much a pain in the neck. I don't even like setting that stuff up to photograph for sales anymore, it's too fiddly. So I'm passing the headache on to someone else at clearance prices. In most cases, the saddles are in awesome shape and so are the bridles...they're just a pain.
Now for the starting over...I'm really wanting to get back into photoshowing, for a variety of reasons. I have a competitive streak in me that loves to win, and online shows are a good way to get my fix. I also love photography, and really enjoy setting up scenes. I think it's got something to do with childhood and playing with my breyers for hours on end. Then, of course, there's the business principle: getting my tack out there and showing is advertising! I'm updating my IMEHA show string, and I was looking into joining MEPSA until I realized that it was all snail mail. I don't know about you, but I really don't think I can afford to print out the pictures and pay for postage and show fees. I wish I could, it's an awesome organization.
For now, though, I'm working on updating my show string of tack. I've got a western pleasure saddle done and a brand new working set done too. I've just finished a gorgeous english set on commission, and I want to recreate it for myself. I actually traced the pieces this time, so hopefully I can make that happen! I need a jumping set and a dressage set, but I've also got to decide who I want them on. Dressage has always been a tough one for me...I have no horses truly suited to upper level work. I know that a good lower level photo can win, but all things equal it seems that upper level work usually beats out a schooling show entry any day.
For now, I'm selling two english and two western sets. I have some other little bits and pieces I'd like to see gone as well, but I feel like I'm making progress. Here are some older show photos of the pieces I'll be selling on MH$P:
At the time, I was still making my tack with slip buckles. This made it nice and adjustable....TOO adjustable, and very much a pain in the neck. I don't even like setting that stuff up to photograph for sales anymore, it's too fiddly. So I'm passing the headache on to someone else at clearance prices. In most cases, the saddles are in awesome shape and so are the bridles...they're just a pain.
Now for the starting over...I'm really wanting to get back into photoshowing, for a variety of reasons. I have a competitive streak in me that loves to win, and online shows are a good way to get my fix. I also love photography, and really enjoy setting up scenes. I think it's got something to do with childhood and playing with my breyers for hours on end. Then, of course, there's the business principle: getting my tack out there and showing is advertising! I'm updating my IMEHA show string, and I was looking into joining MEPSA until I realized that it was all snail mail. I don't know about you, but I really don't think I can afford to print out the pictures and pay for postage and show fees. I wish I could, it's an awesome organization.
For now, though, I'm working on updating my show string of tack. I've got a western pleasure saddle done and a brand new working set done too. I've just finished a gorgeous english set on commission, and I want to recreate it for myself. I actually traced the pieces this time, so hopefully I can make that happen! I need a jumping set and a dressage set, but I've also got to decide who I want them on. Dressage has always been a tough one for me...I have no horses truly suited to upper level work. I know that a good lower level photo can win, but all things equal it seems that upper level work usually beats out a schooling show entry any day.
For now, I'm selling two english and two western sets. I have some other little bits and pieces I'd like to see gone as well, but I feel like I'm making progress. Here are some older show photos of the pieces I'll be selling on MH$P:
Almost Done
I've got two tack sets nearly done, and it feels so nice to have them near the final stages!
They're both for the same gal, and the western style endurance set was one I'd never tried before, even though I had it listed on my website.
So far so good, but just how the curb strap is going to work is something I haven't quite decided on yet.
The english saddle is probably my best so far. The shape of the flaps is just beautiful, and the seat has a really nice shape to it. I'm excited about it, and I really wish it were a personal set!
I also tried something new with the bridle. Typically, I do 'german' hackamores which are basically a covered wire with shanks and a chin strap/chain. Usually quite strong. This time I attempted and english hackamore, which seem to be more common for jumping and eventing. I think it turned out nicely, but it was rather fiddly. Added to that, the fact that the horse these sets will eventually be shown on is a G2 Warmblood with a slightly customized nose, and it was kind of hard to keep everything straight. You still can't see much of the running martingale because of the tucked head, but my customer's model has had his head raised in addition to the nose job, so I think it will all turn out nicely.
They're both for the same gal, and the western style endurance set was one I'd never tried before, even though I had it listed on my website.
So far so good, but just how the curb strap is going to work is something I haven't quite decided on yet.
The english saddle is probably my best so far. The shape of the flaps is just beautiful, and the seat has a really nice shape to it. I'm excited about it, and I really wish it were a personal set!
I also tried something new with the bridle. Typically, I do 'german' hackamores which are basically a covered wire with shanks and a chin strap/chain. Usually quite strong. This time I attempted and english hackamore, which seem to be more common for jumping and eventing. I think it turned out nicely, but it was rather fiddly. Added to that, the fact that the horse these sets will eventually be shown on is a G2 Warmblood with a slightly customized nose, and it was kind of hard to keep everything straight. You still can't see much of the running martingale because of the tucked head, but my customer's model has had his head raised in addition to the nose job, so I think it will all turn out nicely.
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