The first saddle of 2010...

Looks a lot like the last saddle of 2009!Of course even when I use the same pattern, no two saddles are exactly the same. This one ended up with an extra nice seat section.

I promise the next saddle will be something completely different!

Brazillian tack

Welcome to the first guest blogger post of the year. This one comes from the always fascinating Global Horse Culture Blog (http://globalhorseculture.typepad.com/global_horse_culture/) and is reprinted with permission.

Do It Yourself Tack
by Ona "girasol" Kiser

This horse in rural Brazil, in a mountainous area inland from São Paulo, is wearing tack that is about ninety-percent handmade. Store-bought tack is not affordable to many rural folks, and many of them rely on horses or mules for getting around, so it is not uncommon for people to make their own tack from whatever parts and pieces they can find. Nino, the gentleman who owns this horse, made nearly everything you see himself. Like others in the area, he even does his own shoeing and doctoring (more on that later).
I thought the ornament on the saddle bags was a nice touch, and the front string girth - made from collected strands of green baling twine - was a creative solution (it has now been replaced by a US-made Western-style wool string girth, which I sent to him as thanks for showing us his horses and farm). The stirrups are also interesting. I didn't get a close-up photo, but they are originally English-style "safety stirrups" given to him by a visitor; he then used a decorative brass chain to fill in the gap where the rubber band had been.

The bridle, which you can see more closely below, combines hair-on cowhide, brass rings from old parade gear, braided rawhide and manufactured cotton rope.

Thank you so much to Ona for allowing me to reprint this post. If you enjoy learning about horses and horsemanship in all the corners of the world, be sure to check out Global Horse Culture!

2010 Hobby Goals

The kids went back to school this morning so now my Hobby New Year begins in earnest. To mark the occasion, I've put together a short list of goals for myself. Hopefully this year I will do a better job of achieving them!

1. No more backlog--seriously!
This may not look like a tremendously long list but some of those paid for orders (cough, cough, Portuguese saddle, cough, cough) date back to 2008... That's terrible! My number one goal for the new year is to get caught up and stay caught up. Eventually I would like to start taking new orders, but that's still a few months off at best. I really cannot allow myself to add to this list until Dagmar has her saddle in hand.

That said, I will continue to offer occasional sales items here. There is a very good chance there will be at least a huntseat saddle and classic sidesaddle in the near future, plus lots of sports medicine boots.

2. Greater productivity through better organization.
I am not going to waste hours upon hours looking for things this year. I am going to keep my studio clean and organized. 'Nuff said.

3. Making time for fun.

I have a tendency to get so bogged down with orders that I forget this hobby is supposed to be fun. I'd really like to not do that this year. Instead I want to take the time to enjoy all the positive aspects of the hobby. In particular, I want to attend lots of shows, hopefully even one or two outside of Colorado. Anyone looking for a good performance judge? Perhaps we can work something out!

4. Blogging, blogging, blogging.

I think it's fair to say that I did a really good job of keeping this blog updated in 2009. I want to continue with that in 2010. I have all sorts of good things in the works--more tutorials, more guest blogger posts and more pictures from real horse shows. Speaking of which, does anyone want to accompany me to the Mexican Rodeo at the National Western Stock Show this weekend?

So, that's it. Those are my 2010 goals. Be sure to check this space this time next year to see how I do!

Picking nits

I have spent the last two afternoons working on my sports medicine boot pattern. I'm in the refinement stage now. That is, the basic design and construction methods have been worked out. All that's left is the nit-picking.

Here is a look at my second prototype pair before I tried them on the model.
They looked pretty nifty on the desk, but I'm not delighted with the fit. The area of greatest concern is the bottom edge which looks bulky and is sitting too low on the front of Balthazar's pasterns.

So it's back to the drawing board--literally. I've trimmed the bottom edge, concentrating on the area directly below the logo. This time I really thought I'd nailed it...

But once again, I'm disappointed when I try them on the model!

And so it goes. There really is no secret to patterning other than a keen eye for detail and infinite patience. Take your time, take notes and don't get too discouraged if your first, second and third attempts fall short of your expectations. If you keep at it, you'll get there eventually--at least that's what I keep telling myself!

Saddle fit?

I dunno, I think it might be a little on the small side...(Not my picture, but so cute I had to share!)

Comfy New Year

I like New Year's Day. I like fresh starts and new beginnings, and I am filled with optimism about 2010. I really do believe this will be a better year for me.

And here's something I am sure of--it will be a more comfortable year. I just couldn't spend all that time revamping my studio without upgrading the chair. That old unpadded, wooden, kitchen chair just wasn't working for me anymore.

So, today the boys and I celebrated the New Year by going to Office Depot and buying a brand new, padded chair with wheels and armrests. Oh, the luxury!
Of course it wasn't assembled, but that is not a problem when you have an enterprising seven year old in the house. James asked if he could put it together all by himself. The directions looked fairly uncomplicated so I told him to go for it...

He did!

Ta da--it's finished! Since James did all the work he got to sit in it first. Make no mistake, though. That's my comfy chair.

The kids go back to school Monday and then my New Year will start in earnest. I can not wait to log some serious studio hours in my brand new chair!

2009 Model Year in Review

I'm going to borrow a phrase from solitairemare and say that I am ambivalent about 2009. It wasn't a great year and it wasn't a terrible year. There were a few days that were absolutely wonderful and a whole month or two I'd like to forget. Perhaps the best words to describe the year are eventful and never boring.

I am also ambivalent about whether or not I achieved my hobby goals for the year. Here is a passage I posted to this blog a year ago today:

My number one hobby goal for the year ... is to step outside of my comfort zone. I do not want to make 34 English saddles in 2009. I want to make at least one Western saddle and a sidesaddle of some sort and a Mexican saddle and a Portuguese saddle and... Well, you get the picture!

I did make a Western saddle...
and a sidesaddle. Unfortunately, however, that was about it for new and interesting. Mostly I made lots of English saddles. Again. In case anyone is interested, the official breakdown goes like this:

• Thirteen huntseat saddles, eight traditional, one classic, four pebbles


• Three dressage saddles, all traditional


• One saddleseat saddle, traditional


• Three racing saddles, all traditional


• One sidesaddle, traditional


• One Western saddle, traditional


• Two endurance saddles, both traditional


• Two packsaddle sets, both traditional

As far as showring success goes, 2009 was a very good year.Although I didn't make the trip to Portland in June, Braymere Custom Saddlery was well represented at NAN. As best as I could tell, my tack was part of five Championship entries, two Reserves and at least six Top Tens. On the home front, this 2009 was... not my best year ever. It wasn't the worst, though, so I guess I can't complain too much. Here's a look back at one of the happy moments:

Here's hoping that we all have a great 2010 filled with tiny saddles and plastic ponies. Happy New Year, everyone!