The best thing about stock ties is they’re a great way to showcase a beautiful pin!
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You need better quality / custom made ones. I have had the strangling feeling with off-the-shelf cheaper ones. Then I got a lovely custom made pre-tied stock (with bling!) and it fits well so I don’t even notice it.
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these arent recent changes… and I doubt USEF can influence FEI… They pretty much run the show (so to speak) and if anything EF follows them.
In fact, shirts with those “built in” ruffles etc are permitted in place of a stock tie.
PLEASE lead me to cream colored breeches!!! (that fit a woman with thighs, and the breech is suitable for a tailcoat - not “low rise”…)
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“All the cool riders are doing it!!” I’m imagining the weird After School Specials of my youth. 
Seriously, though. I think people are too hard on themselves. When I managed the lingerie section of a dept store, women would try on bra styles that were dramatically different than what they came in wearing. And they would come out of the dressing room looking AMAZING. (As in, their mom would gasp in delight & tear up.) Inevitably, it was “No, no. I look xyz in this bra!” And they would walk out in their 5 year old bra with the lycra that was completely shot that offered no support & made them look 30 lbs heavier.
I’ve never stared at anyone wearing white breeches & thought “Damn, cellulite for DAYS!” I think everyone here looks lovely in the pics they post. I wish more women especially could see the beauty & grace of the incredible machine that is the human body. 
I’m all for dark breeches. For myself, though, I like a dark color on top as light colored jackets tend to look wrinkled no matter how expensive they are. Even Eton students in their uniforms & UK royalty in morning suits. So, I stick to light colors on the bottom to avoid looking like Zorro in all black. (I suppose it could work if I finally got that PRE 
) I hope the changes pass. Being happy & comfortable in your clothes makes most everyone feel good.
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Have you tried these, Lorilu?
Horze Active Silicone Grip Full Seat Breeches (smartpakequine.com)
I have not and don’t know if they would have a sufficient rise, but cheap enough to investigate!
I can see that Spanx “smooth everything out”, but do they actually make your thighs skinnier? I think I need to buy some and shave a few years off my life and a few “visual” pounds off my thighs.
I suppose they could in the same way that a minimizer bra makes you look slimmer by holding things up & in.
Thanks, I do like most Horze things… Love their Grand Prix breeches. But I think they are too dark. Looking for real eggshell, not tan… too “huntery”
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If I could wear black breeches with a black jacket I might be convinced to show again someday lol.
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I don’t know who needs to hear this but…
I have scribed, I have stewarded, I have competed and I have seen people of all shapes and sizes in their “dressage whites” at all levels of show. You ALL look good. Big, small, fat, thin.
The only thing I have ever seen that was universally unflattering was when people wore coats or clothes that were too big. (So if you are thinking of hiding behind your coat because you feel fat, don’t. Get a coat that is the right size, even if you are a bigger person.)
So whatever the rule changes are, that’s fine. Just remember, even before the change- you all looked great.
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Thanks for this.
I have respect for both
- women who work to achieve their ideal weight, even when it gets difficult, and look beautifully elegant, and
- women who say to themselves (and non verbally to the world) that while they may not be their preferred, ideal weight, they are not going to let a perception of less than ideal weight, esthetically, deter them from riding and competing.
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RUST! The magic color that can take the dirt/sweat/blood/grease of a show day and still look good. That weird green kaki could do it too (plus grass stains), but it started out such an ugly color that not looking worse wasn’t really much of a trick.
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Some of the stand up collars look really nice with ruffles, better than stock ties!
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This. Given the amount of money I’ve spent on show clothes that I haven’t even gotten the chance to wear yet because of this freakin’ virus running rampant across the globe, I don’t really care how much they loosen up the rules. I’m going to wear my show outfit until it either doesn’t fit me anymore or until it falls apart.
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No one will tell you not to wear your expensive show clothes. At the same time, not having the extra scratch to buy expensive show clothes would no longer keep some riders from showing. Seems like a fair bargain.
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I certainly wouldn’t recognize an expensive brand from a cheap one. To me, i’d see apparel that fits well, coordinates nicely and is basically flattering to the whole picture. Logos, signature stitching…all that… completely lost on me.
While i’m here…i’ve been wondering for the longest time what the appeal of full-seat breeches is? What do they do to help a rider? I’m totally perplexed…
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Some will tell you it’s to help the rider “stick” in the saddle, hence the fad of silicone on the seat. I, for one, do not want to be stuck in the saddle, and prefer deerskin seats.
The original reason for full seats is that dressage riders’ bums are in and against the saddle so much, and the double layer of fabric, especially leather, keeps the seat from wearing out.
I certainly wouldn’t recognize an expensive brand from a cheap one
Well, most “show” clothes can be pretty expensive.
.
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They help you stick to the saddle! I cant stand the slippery sliding around feeling of non-full seat breeches, especially in sitting trot on a big moving warmblood.
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