La Mundial: The good and the bad

Back in November I stopped by Equine Affair and made a really irresponsible decision to order some green tall boots. Against my better judgement, I chose to get them through La Mundial. I wanted to give them another chance since I had heard great things about how they had turned the company around. I'm all about second chances. And third sometimes... I'm slow to learn a lesson apparently.
My boots took a little longer than expected because the first pair they made had a defect in the leather and they didn't want to send them to me. Instead, they made a brand new pair and they were almost perfect! To make up for the long time waiting, they sent me both pairs of boots. I thought that was so awesome and they really didn't have to do that. They do sell unwanted boots in their store in Wellington, so they could easily have made some money back on the defective pair.

Since the boots came during my non riding season, I wore them around the house some to try and get started with breaking them in. But they really were a bit snug. The bonus pair so much so I couldn't actually get them zipped. The good pair fit pretty well, but the snap on the right boot came undone as soon as I took a step. While they were a little tight back then, I lost some weight and they're perfect now.
I figured I would bring the boots down on my next trip to Florida and have them fixed up. So on April 26th I dropped them off at La Mundial. They said they would be ready on April 29th. Perfect. April 29th I went in, and the bonus pair still didn't fit. They re-took my measurements and realized that the actual measurements around the OUTSIDE of the boots were my leg measurements. Obviously, that's not quite right. So they said to leave them and they will stretch them more. I paid to have them shipped back. They also kept the good pair, both to use as a guide and because they had replaced the wrong snap so that still needed to be fixed. (They replaced the one on the bonus pair by mistake instead of the good pair.)

I was told I would have the boots back in two weeks or less. Awesome! I offered to pay for the snaps and/or the stretching but was told just to pay the shipping. Also awesome! Thanks La Mundial! Now fast forward... I contacted them after three weeks when I still hadn't seen my boots. I was told they weren't ready yet, but they would be in another two weeks. Ok. Two more weeks go by. I get told they will ship that Friday and was even give tracking. Yay! Only, the tracking never activated. So I contacted them again. I had been conversing via text initially, but then my texts went unanswered. For several days and multiple attempts on my part. I tried the contact form on their website, also unanswered. So finally I called, and got a live person. They said the boots were not quite ready yet, but would be soon. She said she would call me in a day or two once they've shipped. This part went smoothly finally. The boots shipped and arrived yesterday. But nothing actually got done. NOTHING. My right boot still doesn't stay snapped:

The spurs kind of keep it closed, but not really. Other than that though, the good pair is actually great and fits well. I can ride in them and they're definitely useful.

The bonus pair wasn't stretched at all:

I can't even zip them. And the snap is actually missing on the right boot:

So obviously, that one doesn't stay snapped either ;)

But here's where I don't know how to proceed. I'm not comfortable returning the good boots again, because who knows if I'll get them back. Maybe I can just have a shoemaker or someone at Beval replace the snap. But the bonus pair? I mean I didn't actually pay for them, so I don't want to make a big deal/fight about them. But on the other hand, they're of no use to me. I guess I can just give them back to La Mundial when I'm in Florida and say thanks but no thanks? Or just let them sit around my house in case I lypo my legs? I just don't really know what to do.
What do you guys think? Should I try again to get them to fit me and have a snap installed? Should I just let them collect dust? Do I even bother contacting La Mundial about any of this? I don't want to be an ass. And as far as the free boots, they were free, so I don't really have much right to keep working on them. But what about the good pair with the bad snap? Ugh. I just am not sure how to proceed. What are your thoughts?

Thurday's Threads!

Outfit Day!!!! I'm pretty excited about last night's riding outfit, so let's start there today:

Notice something you haven't seen in awhile?? DO YOU?! You should. We'll start there since I'm five and can't wait.

Boots: La Mundial

They finally came back! My green boots! So this pair and the bonus pair have been at La Mundial in Wellington for the last almost two months, supposedly getting fixed. This pair needed a new snap on the right boot as it doesn't stay closed. The bonus pair needed to be stretched because they weren't actually made to my measurements. Long story short, none of that actually happened, and the bonus pair is actually missing the snap all together now. I'm going to do a separate post about that, because I need some opinions/advice. But anyway, aside from the snap issue, these fit perfectly and other than the usual hating of new boots, I do love them.

Spurs: Centaur and Color Tack
Spur Straps: Mane Jane

I had these centaur spurs coated in gold by color tack back in the winter. I have a few pairs of color tack spurs now, but I think these and the identical pair in green are my favorites. I'm still in disbelief that these Mane Jane spur straps are pretty much the exact same color as my boots. How does that even happen?! I kind of wish they had a gold princess crown option, but the silver one is pretty cute too.

Breeches: Tuffrider

Horseloverz had these Tuffrider breeches on sale for $34.00 so I grabbed these and a black pair. I really liked the zipper pockets and the contrasting piping. Plus for that price, I couldn't pass them up. They're ok breeches. Comfy to ride in, and I like the grippy knee patches.

Belt: Mane Jane

Obviously I had to wear the belt that matches the boots and spur straps. Duh. You all know by now how great I think the Mane Jane Belts are. You should definitely get one.

Polo shirt: Hollister

I've had this one for quite awhile. We have a Hollister outlet near where I live. Generally, I don't get stuff there as it's mostly designed for prepubescent tweens, but a polo shirt is a polo shirt.

Helmet: Charles Owen

He needs no introduction! Still my favorite of the bunch.

The horses wanted in on the matchy matchy too, so I let them play along:
Jamp:

Jampy wore a pair of green open front boots from an ebay seller in England. I'm not sure of the actual brand on those. He also wore his baby pad from EC Equestrian (which is now Queensland Equestrian) and a fly bonnet from HKM. His bridle is a cheapo schooling bridle from Da Vinci.

Romey:

Romey wore some hunter green Animo combo wraps, a baby pad from Wilkers and an unbranded fly bonnet that I found when I cleaned out my tack box. His schooling bridle is the Silver Leaf collection by Toklat.

Rio:

Ok, first off, NO ONE TELL RIO HIS BONNET IS CROOKED. It's not actually but since he has no muscles on the right side of his face, it sits that way. He doesn't know, and you must not tell him. He would be very upset.
Rio wore some boots from a company that's out of business called Ascot-Pelham (or something very close to that anyway). His saddle pad and fly bonnet are both from USG and his bitless bridle is from Liberty Bridles.

Ok... Now for my work outfit. I completely forgot to grab photos at home, so these are... well.. Terrible.

See? No full shot of the outfit today! Please enjoy this selfie of me in my work chair.

Top: Vineyard Vines

I picked this up last year when I was up in Vermont for the horse show and never actually wore it. While horizontal stripes are never flattering, I do like the colors.

Jeans: Kut from the Cloth

Kut jeans are super comfy. They have a lot of stretch and seem to fit me well for length. I like the frayed hem on these. Gives them a laid back, summery feel.

Belt: Vineyard Vines

This one has been kicking around for a long while now. I think the little whale is adorable, but I hate that I have to wear this belt backwards form how I normally wear belts.

Shoes: Sperry

Distressed silver Sperry's? Yes please! You all know I love my boat shoes, so obviously shiny ones are way up there on the favorites list.

Arm Party!
Lefty:

Lefty is loaded up today entirely with a Nantucket vibe. First up is an Alex and Ani bangle that I got last year when we went for Father's Day weekend. The rest were from this years trip. There's an Alex and Ani inspired bracelet with a nantucket basket attached, one made up entirely of baskets, and then two that are sort of like scrimshaw. The first which you can't really see is the famous lighthouse, and the other is a map of Nantucket. And of course my trusty watch is there too.

Righty:

Righty is wearing some Stacie originals. The first is a pink braided leather bracelet with a horse head clasp and rhinestone slider, and the second is just a plain single wrap bracelet with the same leather.

That's what I'm wearing this outfit day! What do you have on? Any favorites from today? Do you ever match outfits with your horse? I know you eventers tend to!

What's Up Wednesday

Wanna know what's up this Wednesday?! It's Badger's Birthday! He's six today. Six going on 2... Ha. I have only ridden him once since he got up north and it's killing me. Hopefully I'll ride Sunday. Fingers crossed.

In other news, it was a fun non-horsey weekend, but before I left for Nantucket, I did get to jump Jampy around a little. You guys, I honestly think he's forgotten how to jump:

Um? What is that even? We also had one moment of slow motion twirling:

But by the end he was a little better:

He's definitely not very strong behind, so we need to work on that. Probably some gymnastics will get that front end sharper too. But so far, he's staying pretty sound! I'm going to maybe pop over some little jumps tonight, and I have a friend coming to hang out Thursday, so hopefully we can put the jumps up a little then. I'd really like to get him to a one day show in the near future and try and get my medals before it's too late.

The other boys are doing well too! I don't talk much about my failures with Romey, but I've pretty much just been walk trotting him this year. But we've been adding more canter in lately, and that's been pretty positive. He's honestly a really good boy, I just need to stop being such a chicken with him. Story of my life.

Rio is perfect as always! Monday I decided to see if he could still do lead changes with a human on him, and guess what?! Perfect changes, both directions. Le sigh. If only he could teach the other horses that come through the barn...

In semi exciting news, my gorgeous Fama Lusitano boots arrived while I was away! They're beautiful!

But alas, I really messed up the measurements. The foot is way too big, and the calf is a little big too. The good news though, the height is perfect. So at least that was better than the purple boots. (Face palm.) I just emailed the company this morning to see if there's anything to be done. If not, if anyone wears a 6 1/2 or 7, is fairly short with wide calves, I may have a deal for you!

I had a bunch of non horse fun while on Nantucket this past weekend. It was a really quick trip, but we managed to fit in a visit to the whaling museum:

Some wandering around town and shopping, which let us witness these guys pushing this van around:

And we got to see some baby ducks while we enjoyed ice cream:

My dad and step mom bought a house on Nantucket a few years ago. It's rented out most of the season, though my dad holds it open for Father's Day weekend so we can use it. Recently the house right next door went on the market, so they bought that one too. It will also be a rental. It's amazing to me how these homes rent out so quickly and for a pretty ridiculous amount of money per week. It's an incredible investment, in that these homes will each pay for themselves in about 10 years. Crazy. Anyway, I got to see the new house this weekend too. It was nice to have both. My brother and his family stayed in the second house so when the kids woke up at 5:30 am, we didn't all have to wake up!

First House

Second House

I wish we could have stayed another day, but it was nice to get home to the horses and my pups. Plus I had a really productive free Monday, so that was great too.

That's what's up this Wednesday! What's up with you? Any shows coming up? Or maybe non-horsey plans/trips?

Truthful Tuesday

Today I'm confessing to always being the last to know about things. My dad planned a weekend away for him, my stepmom and all of us kids. But he forgot to tell me! I had to check in and see if it was happening so I could schedule a horse sitter and the time off work. He said we were going Friday and coming back Monday. Ok, perfect! A weekend away with the family on Nantucket sounded great to me!

So we get to Nanucket and we're talking about the schedule for the weekend, when I find out we're actually coming home on Sunday. Bummer. So I was faced with a tough choice, do I go to work, or take the day off anyway? I took it anyway and got SO MUCH DONE! It's amazing how much you can do when you don't waste 8 hours at work... Got the car in to be fixed (it's still there though, sad face), got the air conditioning for my house fixed, rode all the horses (minus Badger), picked up groceries, and was relaxing by 7:30 pm. What a day!

Are you ever left out of important logistical information? Have anything you need to confess today? Let's chat in the comments!

Thursday's Threads

It's OUTFIT DAY! My favorite day! It's also my fake Friday, so I'm even more excited for that. To top it off, we're having a lunch time meeting with pizza! Not a bad Thursday my friends.
Despite it being 97 degrees out on Wednesday, it's going to top out in the low 70's today. So long sleeves were a must today.

But obviously spring colors are also a must.

Top: Odille

So... this top is 16 years old. I bought it when I was in college. Should I be ashamed of that? Should I still be wearing it? I dunno the answer to those questions, but I do know that I still think it's really pretty. It's a bit less roomy than it was 16 years ago... but it's stretchy so that helps! I really love the pink threads that are used instead of stripes. It's a really unique piece that's also still really classic.

Jeans: Hudson

I found this lone pair of pants hiding on the clearance rack when I was in Florida last. They look kind of beige in this photo, but they are actually the palest of pink. I thought they were really different, and was so excited they happened to be my size!

Belt: C Wonder

I found this years ago, I think on Rue La La. I love the stirrup buckle and the bit accents on the sides. (Obviously I had to make this outfit at least a little pony related.)

Shoes: T.U.K.

I nearly forgot how perfectly my unicorn shoes would match this outfit! Thank goodness I remembered! They really are perfect, aren't they?

Arm Party!
Lefty:

Lefty is sporting a wide, pink and gold Clic-clac bracelet along with my trusty apple watch

Righty:

Righty went with some dainty string bracelets. The first two are both from Ettika and the pretty wave bracelet is from Pura Vida.

And my riding outfit from last night:

Can you see who's featured on that tee?! Can you???

Top: Teespring

That's right, it's Amanda Chance's baby boy, Presto (of the900facebookpony fame of course)! I picked this shirt up in the second round of fundraising for the little guy. He's had a terribly rough start to life, but he's warrior and I'm proud to support his recovery.

Breeches: unbranded

I got these a couple of years ago at Equine Affair. They're unbranded, which is sad because I really love them, and would love to find more. As you can see, they're looking pretty washed out these days.

Belt: Mane Jane

You've seen it a million times. I can guarantee you'll see it a million more.

Half Chaps: Cavallo
Boots: Cavallo
Spurs: Color Tack
Spur Straps: Stacie Originals

I'm still really loving this set from Cavallo. They get even more comfy with wear! The spurs from Color Tack are the exact same shade of blue, which is kind of amazing. My homemade spur straps aren't exact, but since they have a metallic sheen, they work well with the rest of the set up.

Helmet: Charles Owen JR8

So, I gotta say it. I don't love this hat as much as the others. The JR8 has a little bit different fit and it kind of gives me a headache. I'm going to try it with a different hair net and see if that helps though. I do love how it looks!

And that's what I'm wearing today! Any favorites? What are you wearing? Have any new gear you're excited about?