Santa has graciously gifted me a gift card to Riding Warehouse and it’s burning a hole in my pocket! I need to replace/upgrade a few basic items anyway and would love to hear about some of your favorite things/tools! It can be anything at all, from your favorite grooming item to a favorite piece of tack! What could you not live without in your trunk? Thanks in advance everyone!
Scissors, small human first-aid kit, horse medicine basics (wound cream, bandaging materials, stethoscope, thermometer, meds), twitch, hoof tool kit (or at least nippers) so you can remove a sprung shoe, towels, human fresh-up kit (deodorant, baby wipes, extra socks, extra shirt, extra breeches and boots if you change at the barn), clipper lube (I keep my clippers at home), tack cleaning kit, horse bathing stuff including your own spray nozzle, small bucket (for tack, bathing horse, a million other things). I like to stack like items into their own totes to line the bottom of the tack trunk, so that a grooming tote will fit on top easily with the lid closed.
Depending on if you use the trunk at home or take it to shows - or both.
In my trunk I keep for me -
Sunscreen
Chapstick
Phone charger
Advil
Sun hat that rolls up
Riding boots
Spurs
Helmet
Hair nets
Gloves (a few pair)
Water bottle
Container of peanuts
Pens, sharpies
For the horses -
Cookies
Bag of bits
Tail conditioner (Eqyss Survivor Detangler) This is the best!!!
Magic Cushion hoof packing
Rubber gloves
Wound salve
Nose net
Extra fly masks
I bought two plastic trays from Target to keep all the small items organized in the top boxes. And I have a cork board that I put pictures of all my horses up.
I used to have more items in my trunk and a grooming tote inside but my new barn handles all that.
Thanks! Keep the suggestions coming!
Vet wrap, elasticon, standing wraps/no bows, double ended snaps, sharpie marker, tack cleaning supplies (sponges, soap, conditioner), spare clipper blades, clippers, Kool-lube, towels in 2 sizes. Basic first aid ointments- (Alushield, triple-antibiotic, Thrush Buster), grooming kit. Reading glasses (I am 50+)
This time of year I have 2 polarfleece coolers- standard neck and combo-neck and a quarter sheet.
Behind my trunk I keep my spare bell boots, leg boots and Vetrolin Shine.
My grooming bag has: brushes, small scissors, Cowboy Magic, Thrush buster, hoof pick, curry combs, pulling comb.
Great things listed above. I’ll add to the list - pliers, hammer, tack cleaner and conditioner. You wouldn’t believe how often I’ve used the hammer and pliers. The ones owned by the boarding facility always go missing.
Black duct tape, sanitary pads and a couple of disposable diapers for human wounds, animal wounds, temporary hoof boot, broken zipper on tall boots etc. Small tarp and zip ties. In a pinch you can build your own sun, wind, rain screen for a stall where overhang is not adequate. Two ended snaps are always handy.
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We only use our trunks for showing (we have lockers at home). I am lucky enough to be with a barn that brings all the horse care stuff separately from our individual trunks, so in my trunk I keep things I need for just me (sunscreen, mirror, gloves, stick, hair nets, snacks, boot shine kit, ball cap) and my horse (bridle, martingale, different bits, ear puffs, saddle pads (show and schooling), girths, scrim or cooler, rain sheet, groom box (brushes, fly spray, detangler, rub rags) and COOKIES). I also keep some small extras in there that the barn provides, but that I want one of for my own just in case (bandage scissors, rubber gloves, ace bandage for tail, seam ripper).
Beyond the obvious helmet, boots and tack, the stuff I use (or lend out) the most:
Sunscreen and advil
Pens & checkbook
Scissors, safety pins
Basic tools - screwdriver, measuring tape, pliers, hammer
Extra stock ties & pins - someone ALWAYS loses theirs before a show/hunt
Box of granola bars
Air activated hand and foot warmers
Extra pair of socks
Extra gloves, hairnets, spurs
Down vest or a hoodie
Big tub of leather conditioner
Really good shedding blade - I like the EquiGroomer
Bridle bags, boot bags, small plastic tubs to keep things clean & organized
Great suggestions. For all that stuff you may need TWO tack boxes. 
One thing I keep that I didn’t notice (or missed) is a bridle rack. I just use the cheapy ones that you hang over a rail with the rotating hooks so it folds flat. That comes in handy at shows. I don’t even take that out of my trunk when I get home. It stays in there.
I am a groom and I adore Haas brushes. They may not be at Riding Warehouse though. I also love Smart Grooming products which are only available from their own website. The Polar White is life changing and the shine sprays are amazing. Best conditioner is The Healthy Hair Care Concentrate in a really good spray bottle (mine is the gray one available at tack stores). I spray it on their body after every bath or shower and in tails. I keep my bath products in mine as well and love a scrubby mesh hand mitt. I also use the Hands On curry gloves which are so easy and amazing for bringing dirt to the surface. White electrical tape is also great for labeling things. Lots of snaps too as they are great for setting up a stall. I also always have zip ties for hanging buckets and I like single hangers on the stall at shows for keeping halters neat. Safety pins are also always useful just in case (I do numbers with them on the saddle pad if they only give bridle numbers. More common in other disciplines). Pens, sharpies, and dry erase markers. I can’t clean leather with anything other than Higher Standards leather cleaner which is made by a fellow COTHer. I even bring one with me to jobs because it is so superior to other things. You also can never have enough small sponges. I put tasteful make up on horses for big shows, and they are great to cut up for that as well. Lots of towels because I rub down horses with them after baths and use hand towels for a variety of things. Duct tape and diapers for hoof wraps. And normal first aid stuff like neosporin, latex gloves, manuka honey, vaseline, magic cushion, silver spray, diaper rash cream, etc.
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Tiger Tongue! Absolutely the best grooming tool I’ve ever had, I have not used a regular brush or curry in the 6+ months I have owned this. It is awesome for sweat marks, caked on dirt, muddy feet, etc.
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Haas Brushes for sure! I just got some for Christmas and love them. The Ultimate Hoof Pick, Healthy Hair Care, microfiber towels, baby wipes, scissors, hoof oil, sweat scraper (the ones with the soft rubber sides are better IMO), braiding bands, liniment for summer baths, etc all live in my grooming tote (the Shires tote bag is so beautiful and spacious!).
I have the sterling essentials tack cleaning products sitting in my cart. The cleaner can be used with a dry sponge - just spray and wipe down with a dry sponge or towel. This makes me more likely to clean tack at the barn since I hate getting my hands wet (especially in the winter!) when I still have other things to do after putting my tack up. I also have the Back on Track bell boots in my cart.
I suggest using your gift card soon as they are running a 20% off sale until the new year.
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So many good ideas already!
My trunk is organized by “kits” to make my life easier. I have a grooming kit (full of Haas brushes!), small first aid kit (the barn has a much larger kit but this takes care of small cuts and scrapes), shoe pulling kit, stud kit, tack cleaning kit, braiding kit, as well as my clipper bag, and a small make up bag for me (hair brush, tampons, sunscreen, lip balm, stain stick, and deodorant…stuff you need to make yourself presentable if you need to go from the barn into civilization). Clean saddle pads and coolers live in there, and I keep my helmet and boots in there too. Gloves, hair nets, hair ties, and spurs live in a little basket in a sliding drawer so I can grab them right before I mount up.
I keep a clean clean set of polo wraps, standing bandages, and quilts in my bandage lid. We don’t really use boots but they could go in there if needed.
Seasonal things like shampoo and fly spray get rotated out to make room for other stuff (hand warmers and quarter sheets).
I also keep a box of Random Tack Crap - a leather punch, extra stirrup leathers, shims for my half pad that I might need some day, extra tail cords and rubber donuts for turn out blankets, needle and thread if I ever need to sew a blanket back together, that sort of stuff.
