Monday, May 1, 2017

classin' up the joint

Happy Monday, y'all - and happy May too! We had another busy spring weekend here, filled (per usual) with doing all the things!

charlie <3's this azalea tho. only the best for sir! 
Charlie had another lesson - probably his last before our next show - and hopefully I'll have more to share on that later (must gets my grubby paws on the media first lol).

It wasn't anything groundbreaking, but just more affirmation that Charlie's a green horse who is a little different each week. And that's meant in the best way possible - it's just hard to keep up with sometimes haha.

i never get tired of watching this guy. never.
Fortunately we were able to move our lesson earlier in the day on Saturday so Trainer P could make it to the Maryland Hunt Cup, and I could get to a friend's party to catch the end of Rolex xc. Was anyone else glued to the live stream too?

I was also SUPER jealous of all my friends and other bloggers who actually made it down to see the action live and in person - can't wait to read all the inevitable follow up posts!

this kid and pony have matching faces lol
All that Rolex-binge-watching tho was helpful in keeping me inspired to do all the things with Charlie. But ya know. We've probably got some stuff to work on before our 4* debut. Nbd. I mean, getting 4s on trot circles is totally proof positive that we're well on our way to greatness, right??? lol...

keepin it classy around here
Anyway. It hasn't all been rainbows and kittens tho. Bc it seems like with horses there always has to be some little snag or snafu. At least this time it was just my poor long suffering truck that was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

glass errywhere
So the dreaded barn mgr text was a little less scary this go 'round since it wasn't anything about Charlie whacking yet another leg - but instead was asking whether I was aware that the rear window on my truck cap was shattered....

totally shattered. ugh.
Our best guess is the mowers accidentally pinged a rock through the window. Definitely crappy, but definitely squarely within the "shit happens" category. And it least it's just an easily replaced part on the cap, and the truck is still usable in the meantime.

clean up in aisle 3!!
Tho there's pebbled glass in freakin everything I store in the cap. All the buckets, our chairs, on the sponges and towels, a few saddle pads.... Ugh. Everything. Bc yea I totally maximize my storage space back there haha.

And sure this is "safety" glass, but it's still fucking glass. It still cuts skin (so say my poor fingers all covered in microcuts) and needs to be fully cleaned out. Esp the sponges and stuff - like, can you imagine sponging off your horse but accidentally raking a shard of glass across his back in the process? Or feeding him from a bucket with little teensy pieces of glass stuck to the bottom??

So yea. Lots of clean up happening. Oh well.

new look?
Nobody likes dwelling on shattered glass tho, so let's move on to brighter subjects. And maybe more closely related to that whole "getting 4s on trot circles" in our dressage test thing. Haha.

As much as I love my pretty blue show coat, it doesn't really pop on Charlie the way it had on Isabel. So I decided to branch out color-wise to what seems to be the new trendy hue: berry. Maybe this is more of a trend in show jumping, vs eventing or dressage, but whatever. I like it on bay.

can he pull off the uber-long look? i actually think so!
Part of this new color expansion included grabbing a new bonnet off amazon. This one is specifically designed to be very long - again, I think a trend in the jumper ring. And it's not necessarily a look I would have preferred, but it seemed like it was worth a try. And actually now that it's on the horse, I think it suits him well!

the ears fit!
My plan is to go all-out-berry in our dressage outfit. It might not be super conventional, or anything. And maybe it's kinda silly to have a borderline flamboyant turnout on a horse that.... is decidedly neither fancy or particularly trained haha.

water!!
But hey, maybe with the very long bonnet the judge might be able to at least see part of it even while Charlie's nose is sky high in the air? We'll see haha. Or maybe we can go the whole 'fake it til ya make it' route, and potentially even convince a judge or two (if only for a moment) that maybe we're actually trying to be serious about our dressage?

fun with friends
Anyway. I'm excited. More pics of the whole look coming eventually lol. Tho Charlie got to try the bonnet on for size during a recent hack about with friends at OF.

We mostly just stuck to trotting and cantering around the terrain while everyone else schooled around - and I got to practice that whole "5th leg training" thing by trying to let go as much as possible while the horse navigated the ground on his own. It's honestly amazing how much better Charlie feels on his feet out there now compared to when I first got him haha. It's promising!

So who knows, maybe he'll grow into his outfits sooner than I expect? Lol..... Or maybe we'll just be the best-over-dressed set of fools parading around intro level eventing at starter trials. I'm cool with it either way ;)

Do you like to get dressed up for shows? Or do you feel like the level of pomp and circumstance should be commensurate with your level of training? Do you like to be matchy matchy in fun colors? Or do you prefer a more conservative look? I seem to flip flop on both sides of the coin apparently, haha.

42 comments:

  1. I love that color on him! Red and orange hues on a red-based horse please me greatly for some reason.

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    1. Thanks that's my hope too- I can't wait to pull the whole outfit together tho!!

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  2. So you buy something cool and flattering off Amazon, but then don't share the link?? :P

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    1. Gah I'm a monster!! In my defense I was having connection problems and just wanted to get the thing written and published before my internet crapped out lol...

      Anyway tho here's the link- and I misspoke - the bonnet is from eBay. Lots more colors available!!

      http://m.ebay.com/itm/272641410962?_mwBanner=1

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  3. i dig the long bonnet. and the berry, obvi. you guys are gonna look awesome. next, custom stock to go with it.... <3

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    1. Oooh but the custom stock I just made is expected to work well!!! :D obvi I'll have to make that judgement when the NEW JACKET (omg) arrives but fingers crossed!!!

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    2. when is the new jacket coming? for fair hill???

      one of my proudest moments this weekend is when several people (STRANGERS??) recognized me and runkle because of my lone purple coat in a sea of blacks.

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    3. i really hope the jacket will be here in time haha - we can be matchy matchy (sorta) in our loud jackets lol

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  4. Love that color on him!! I definitely go more conservative in my turnout; my hunter roots really show. The most 'colorful' that I get in show attire is a royal blue shirt under my navy XC vest. Plus, I always feel kind of embarrassed for riders who go out there dressed to the nines and then totally biff their test or course. Kinda makes the impression that you spent more money on your clothes than on lessons! But then again.. we do this for fun. Wear what makes you happy!

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    1. ha yea... honestly? i often feel the same. like, watching folks out there with all the fancy gadgets and their fluff covered 5 point breastplates and complicated nosebands struggling through intro... it always kinda makes me wonder the same thing. except i totally get how it works both ways. and how we only ever see part of the story on show day - just one day of what was probably a long journey. so like you say - whatever works in making it that happy and fulfilling experience works for me. and sometimes that's dressin for the photos even when your best approximation of a trot circle still earns you a 4.... lol

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    2. I always think that about 5 point breastplates. i'm like dude youre jumping 2ft does your saddle really move that much??

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    3. lol seriously.... like.... c'mon folks

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  5. I like the berry on him - a splash of color without being overly bright and in your face. Right now I'm all about being conservative and trying to blend in a little better, but once I'm more confident about the while thing I plan to add splashes of color wherever I can.

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    1. haha you might rethink that "in your face" assessment when the full outfit is complete - since, well, there's gonna be a LOT more berry in the picture lol. but yea, agreed - especially when i was starting out i amassed equipment and attire that was very neutral and that could easily translate to multiple different occasions or even disciplines. versatility is your friend!! now that i've got a fairly solid base of ...stuff... haha, it's easier to branch out a little ;)

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  6. Considering I went a little nuts this weekend at Rolex and bought a fancy Annie's show coat, I guess I'm going to have to start dressing up at schooling shows? 😂 I have always been a fan of matchy matchy but before it was typically just matching my saddle pad to my polo shirt, lol.

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    1. ha yup that jacket is fantastic - i can't wait to see it in action!!

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  7. Ugh, sucks about the truck! But as you said, #shithappens

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    1. yea basically. i just wish there wasn't so much glass everywhere haha

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  8. Oooohhhh, I love the berry color on Charlie! Can't wait to see you guys all dressed up for your shows :) My colors are turquoise and black with P, so I usually have a little bit showing for dressage (like my belt), then we go all out for XC- matching C4 belts, 1 for me and 1 for P's neck strap, either a turquoise short sleeve shirt for the summer or my black OTTB long sleeve for the fall, P's turquoise saddle pad, P's turquoise/black fly bonnet, and turquoise duct tape on his black XC boots. My hunter/jumper BO just loves us. SJ I go back to boring, but keep my belt on and P's turquoise/black fly bonnet.

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    1. lol i kinda get sad sometimes that my stadium and xc outfits are the same since at our one-day HTs you go straight from one to the next. and since i'm usually alone at the ring, i can't even get anyone to hold my vest or anything like that so i wear it for the whole shebang. oh well. two outfits is still fun!

      and yea my h/j barn things i'm pretty nuts too haha

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  9. Ooh, yes, I can't wait to see the whole berry outfit! I've been trying to bedazzle my old black bonnet for the past week now, but I can't seem to remember to bring it home with me until I'm already home. Damn it.

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    1. damn it girl you gotta get on that! tho of course i forgot this new bonnet at the barn too when i should have brought it home bc it might also get a little gussied up. alas. anyway tho hurry up and get yours blinged and bedazzled so i can sees it!

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  10. Ugh poor truck window, glad it didn't happen while you were out at an event or on the road at least. Loving the darker red on Charlie, I think it's a keeper!

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    1. yea the window sucks. so now i just drive around with no window...

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  11. Umm..does this mean you're getting the Horseware Comp Coat in Berry?? Please, please say yes. I want to live vicariously through someone with a bay who can pull it off.

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    1. why as a matter of fact, that very same coat may or may not be in the mail as we speak!!! :D

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  12. Ugh sucks about the glass. I actually missed all of Rolex this weekend #ultrabusygirlprobs I'm so so so glad though I am decidedly not busy this week, I need to catch up on TV and uhm the Derby this weekend

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    1. so busy lately!! glad you're gettin a break!

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  13. I'm trying to blend in right now, but I LIVE for the day I can POP in the dressage court. Hopefully with my horse drawing attention in a good way to go with it.

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    1. yea... there's definitely something to be said for blending in. that was my game plan with izzy for a long time, esp for the the time "BC" (aka, "before dressage trainer C"). once i learned how to unlock izzy's inner fancy and show her off to the judges tho, it was ON. so... maybe i'm kinda putting the cart in front of the charlie now but oh well haha

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  14. Oh no truck! Glass is the fucking worst, too. Just recently stepped on a piece in my kitchen I'm pretty sure is from a tragedy about a year ago. Ugh.

    Berry and hunter were my XC colors a long, long, long time ago. I <3 it! (Just not on a chestnut, lol. Though, I tried.)

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    1. it's a surprisingly tricky color, i've found out. we'll see how it all works tho! and yea, glass is the freakin worst. ugh.

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  15. Berry is made for bays!!!!! You guys will be rocking it :)

    My greatest find to date is a set of open front and fetlock boots in pretty Kelly green. Chimi looks quite dashing in them and I feel like we stand out a bit without being "that" person. But if I could I would wear bright colors and sparkles for everything I would!!!!!

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    1. oooooh those boots sound very pretty indeed! also that's a nice subtle way to add color without being totally garish about it. i'm hoping that charlie is substantial enough in size to offset all my berry, but we shall see!

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  16. Sucks about the truck. At least you can clean it out. I have the berry show coat from Horseware and would recommend it for your new color scheme. I need a bonnet to match, but I don't think Levi can pull off the long look. Probably have to make my own.

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    1. oooooh i totally should have written in the post, but you were absolutely my inspiration for trying out this color. it looked so sharp on Nilla at your last show! here's hoping it'll look as nice on charlie too!

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  17. Ugh, the same thing happened to my truck window last summer, except I was the perpetrator on the lawn mower :/ Love that berry colour on Charlie. :)

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  18. I've got a friend events her bay mare in all berry coloured gear and it looks amazing!

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  19. Ugh, I'm sorry about your truck window :( Can't wait to see him all decked out in berry!

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  20. Being too matchy-matchy makes my eye twitch. I love other people who are all done up in one color but when I do it I feel like I'm shouting 'LOOK AT ME! I'M CRAZY OBSSESSED WITH THIS COLOR!' Lol

    Sorry about the truck window. That seems like more a pain to clean up than to fix.

    I like that berry color. I was looking at if for a saddle pad for a certain gray hippo. Her halter is berry. :)

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  21. ALL THE BERRY and dressing up is key

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