Dressing my mare

[Ambitious_Kate]

I agree. What a great choice and job done. I wonder if you and she would look well with a deeply dark navy coat and silver grey breeches. Black or charcoal boots. And a canary lining inside the coat, similar to your noseband color. Dark navy saddle pad with the pale yellow piping.

Oh, edited to add, what about a navy coat with cream breeches? Ivory? There is another thread about cream breeches here. Too. And the possibility of dying your breeches to be just the right cream. With cream leather gloves. Oh. Yum!

[netg]

That is really lovely on her beautiful head!

One tip: run the noseband strap under the cheek / crown pieces in the browband so you don’t have that bulk of pieces crossing over.

[eightpondfarm]

Thanks netg! yeah, it does look too complex, but i do it inside out because i’d rather her not have the poll icky-ness. She is neurological and i’ve never ruled out the idea that her neurological episode wasn’t related to the two separate times she’s pulled back while tied and broke her halter at her poll. I feel, deep-down that something happened up there in her poll. This painted bridle is a test-run. I have a nice anatomical one that i’m waiting to convert IF this leather paint stands up to use. anyhooooooo…long story short, i have the noseband strap overtop of the wider poll strap in an attempt to reduce pressure…well, not reduce, but rather dissipate.

[eightpondfarm]

Since she’s not a typical color herself, typically colored tack just is a bit…off the mark. How gorgeous the right shade of brown can look on a chestnut. or how absolutely perfect black can look on a bay, that perfection is something i couldn’t achieve without a stretch of the imagination. Gray is a conservative enough color that i thought it might just be a win/win. I could have her looking good and still stay within the unwritten rules(written do not state a bridle must be black or brown, just that they be leather or leather-like… So, theoretically, a person could ride a chestnut in a green bridle…just sayin lol)

[eightpondfarm]

in blues…i think she wears lapis blue the very best. And you’re right about bringing in a bit of color. Hadn’t thought about that…been on this gray creme quest for so long i didn’t even think how boring it might become. I have gray breeches in several tones of gray, gray saddlepads up the wazoo…

I have yet to buy tall boots, but i do have a WHOLE bunch of knee high and a couple over-the-knee steve madden leather boots and plan on experimenting around with them. I have an idea or two… LOL

[BatCoach]

wow that really turned out nice! I would be terrified to dye anything (I’m like the least crafty person ever) but this is a gorgeous color on her. I hope it holds up to regular use, maybe you will start a new trend!

[eightpondfarm]

Thanks BatCoach It has been a very fun project.

Wish i had a chestnut mare…oh the things i would do!! (well, i do have a chestnut mare, a Morgan, but she’s old and has cushings)

My next horse is a bay, and black is his tack, so not much crafty fun there. Then a buckskin, western dressage, and we’re going earthtones/black and turquoise. I imagine i’ll be painting a little bit for that guy. The fun one comes after those two…a big varnish appaloosa mustang with true burgundy undertones beneath his whitewash. Rather than paint, i’ll probably just strip and stain his leather tack.

[Lunabear1988]

Looks gorgeous!

[Jenerationx]

Wow. That looks fabulous on her.

[Ambitious_Kate]

On some bays I think black and scarlet red look fab. I always wanted a scarlet red wool rug for the barn, with black piping. Never had The moola for that but for a blood Bay, black with red accents can be wondrous.

[eightpondfarm]

my bay gelding is a blood bay, but he is so gentle and so sweet…red seems to be too big a color for him. Though i do have a pony dressage prospect…Mustang gelded very late in life. Compact on the outside, BIG on the inside. Name is Warlock, and i was thinking black and purple with crimson here and there. The boy’s got some moves too… He is next in line for gentling. Still need to finish with my big drafty appaloosa who is almost ‘there’ and will be moving onto saddling next.

[Gesaffelstein]

@eightpondfarm

big drafty appaloosa

Pics please . Drafty appy’s are my fav.

[eightpondfarm]

Politics…He left the herd and set up his exile about 50 acres away (in a 123 acre pasture). I visit every day and give him one days’ worth of water and feed him a flake of alfalfa from my lap. Sitting in a chair, my dog beside, in this little old shed that had a giant limb crush part of it/s roof. Our driveway goes through the woods where this shed is, and when i drive by he comes out the shed, hoping for a visit. He is very big… From Warm Springs HMA. He’s 14. was a stud til 12 …out there in the high desert. I can touch him all over and lift his front feet (only front feet so far). He yields to gentle palm pressure just about anywhere on his body. Kindly. Leading on a lead rope is eminent. Horseflies are really voracious and taking him around outside for lead lessons is too unpleasant for the joyful work i want learning how to lead to be. So, waiting for the weather to change. Supposed to get down into the 40s one night this week and that should do them in! (YAY!) His name is Ajax. here he is the day i put a halter on for the first time.

[Gesaffelstein]

Wow he quite majestic……great color build and that tail!!! What a hunk. Team Ajax right here.

[eightpondfarm]

awww thanks! we are falling in love with one another, i think it will be a good match, emotionally. He’s naturally a fairly balanced mover, not sure we’ll get anywhere in dressage, he is of an age…i mean, 14 and never had a saddle on him. We shall see…

[eightpondfarm]

Just ordered a mega-bling browband from equiture. Alternating cream and bronze pearls, with crystal honey interior row of crystals and velvet crystals on the outside row. *for my pale palomino mare

[eightpondfarm]

New attire:
a nice throw blanket to cool her out after lesson before blanketing loading and trailering back home.
Inside her palomino creme color is an underlying pinkish tone…
(i know this because to match her color when painting i had to add a tint of red)

[Scribbler]

Yes, palomino is a creme dilute of chestnut so there is some red there.

Though my chestnut Paint is not really as red as I thought. I went to Home Depot once to find paint chips to match her, and my first handful were way off base. Way too bright. The closest ones turned out to have a lot of yellow in them. I think a really nice bright bay is actually redder than a chestnut.

[eightpondfarm]

oh gosh you’re so right about that. Bays are really quite red. Chestnuts way more yellow…
you need to dress a chestnut toward green to get that yellow in there and match them up right…
Bays can go straight blue.

I’ve found palominos more difficult to get-right than buckskins btw.

[eightpondfarm]

I boarded a chestnut mare at a place where we were allowed to paint our stalls. I had a helluvatime getting the paint right to compliment her. And when she passed and i moved in a dark bay, i had to change it. Entirely different color palate. (same temperament though-which is a component of a horse’s true colors)