Outfit Day! I had a request for my new boots and I'm going to share them today, but wanted to chat about them first. I haven't shared them yet because I had a problem with them, and I wanted to wait until I had a resolution or at least was working toward one before I said anything negative. As you all know, I'm a huge Celeris fan. I LOVE my boots from them and have had all good experiences for the most part. This time isn't exactly different, but there were some issues. First of all, these are the two pair of boots I ordered earlier this summer:
The first issue was with the pair on the right. They were supposed to be mint green with gold. But the mint is practically white. So I don't love them. I haven't yet ridden in them. Celeris and I talked about having some darker polish made to sort of dye them the right color, and they're game for that, but it hasn't happened just yet. I'm not especially mad about this issue because they had a lot of trouble sourcing this color for me, and things are really tricky in Europe right now with Covid restrictions. So they couldn't have the access to their leather people as they normally do. Despite the color problem, they fit PERFECTLY which I was nervous about because I used new measurements and there was a 2 cm difference from my old ones. That made me anxious because it sounds like a lot and I was afraid I messed up (despite checking ten thousand times). Fortunately, they are perfect.
Issue two was with the lilac pair on the left. First off, I love them. The rose gold leans more copper, but I think it works and I'm absolutely happy with how these turned out. They also fit perfectly which is so wonderful. I've been riding mostly in boots that are too big for awhile now, so it feels great to have boots that fit again. But the issue with this pair is that the color is coming off on my saddle.
It washes off with saddle soap, but still. I probably won't ride in them much. Celeris and I talked about seeing if they can replace the inside panel with regular black leather (which has never bled on any of my other boots, this is 100% an issue with this lilac leather, not sure yet about the mint ones), but they haven't heard back from their maker just yet. They made me a very nice offer for a future purchase to make up for these things though, so I want you all to know that Celeris is absolutely making things right in my opinion. I don't like to leave negative things about a company floating around the internet (unless it's warranted). But I do believe in being honest about issues, so that's what this is all about. I did (do) have a problem but I feel comfortable with the resolution I was offered. I will absolutely continue to do business with them. Okay. That part's done. Let's see the outfits!
Shiny and I are holding on tightly to summer even though it's over and we're freezing. So we wore pastels this week!
My hands will forever be in my lap. Just accept it.
I feel like this look is very eight year old on her first pony. I'm here for that though. Reliving my youth and all that. (Mind you, my first horse was 15.3 because my dad didn't want me to outgrow it.)
Bridle: Joseph Sterling Browband: Dark Jewel Designs
I was going to use my unicorn browband and bit with this outfit, but I just sent her unicorn bit off to get converted to leather and was too lazy to switch things around. So instead, I figured gunmetal spikes worked well enough for today.
Saddle: Custom Saddlery
Saddle Pad: FSS
Shiny doesn't have a pad that matches our outfit exactly, so I went with gray. It's the neutral of pastels after all, right? I think this saddle pad is borderline too small for this saddle. I have this one and a brown one that is the same, and I'm thinking I may want to replace them at some point. But I hate buying things I already own, so I'm making it work for now. I also kind of want to get her a lilac pad with light pink sheepskin but I'm holding out since I may not want to keep wearing these boots. #shoppingproblems Also, I really shouldn't buy any more pads! Ha!
Boots: Punk Ponies
Shiny has some cute lilac jumping boots but I decided to match to the rose gold instead today. I love this color on her, and as you know, the Punk Ponies boots fit her so well.
That's what Shiny wore, and here's my outfit:
Trying to match lilacs is the most ridiculous task... So all of this is kind of close enough.
Helmet: Charles Owen GR8
I don't wear this helmet much now that I have all those MIPS helmets, but it's still around. This is it's last year in rotation as it's just turning four. So gotta get some rides in before it retires! (Also, greenie is now five and needs to retire which makes me terribly sad. I may need to replace him. This one I probably won't.)
Jacket: Ariat
Shirt: Tailored Sportsman
I didn't really get a photo with the shirt because I figured I'd be riding with the jacket on anyway, but it was fairly warm in the sun, and I wound up just wearing the shirt by itself as seen in the photos above. KJ's Creations briefly carried TS items, but she dropped the line and had these shirts on super sale. This was a few years ago already, but I still have and wear the shirt!
Belt: Mane Jane
None of my lilac/lavender belts were the right shade at all, so I went with this more neutral one and used the rose gold buckle to tie things together.
Breeches: QHP
Early in 2020 Struck had come out with black breeches that had rose gold accents, and I wanted them so much, but like... not for the price. So I was hunting and hunting, and I found these from QHP. They have rose gold zippers on the back "pockets" (back pockets are fake) and rose gold along the pockets. I got them in black and this tan color. I really like them! They're thin like the Ovation aqua-x but I think the fit is a little better.
Boots: Celeris UK
I love these so much other than the bleeding problem. They fit like a glove! And I think they're so pretty. Even if I wind up not riding in them, I'll probably still wear them with (thin) jeans and a sweater.
So that's what I have for this week. Kind of a long post, so if you got this far, thanks for sticking with me! Anything special you want to see for next week? Have any questions?
It was a pretty quiet week around here with Eros on the DL. Shiny had both her jump schools. The first one, on Wednesday went really well. There was a threat of rain, so Pivo shot from the barn aisle and photos/media were kind of far away. So not too much to share. Just this one really:
Jump day number 2 was on Saturday. I rode a little later in the day than normal and the shadows were a little funny on the outside line. Shiny is not a spooky pony. But she does get weird about shadows on or under jumps. She doesn't say no, but she wiggles and twists and stares:
We jumped that a few more times and eventually it mostly smoothed out. Pivo was having a hard time with the shadows too, so I didn't really get any useful video. Did manage a few cute screen shots though:
I got to have my Thursday lesson with B too! He had a free lunge in the morning so he was nice and quiet which was nice. He can be a little bit of a bully but the free lunge made him much more willing. We did some bending lines and roll backs that I thought were pretty tricky. Did we do them perfectly? Uh... no. Definitely not. But we did them!
I ride him in his custom saddle that was made for him and my step mom. Guys. My position is awful in it. I know so many people love CWD's, but, man. I hate them with all of my being. Look at my leg! And that's the best photo!
As for Eros... I threw him on the lunge line Friday as instructed by my vet. He looked quite a bit better than he had the week before. But he was still not quite right. I sent the video to my vet but haven't heard back yet. He's usually quick to respond so not sure what's going on there. In the mean time, we're sticking with hand walking and regular turn out for right now.
I'm on vacation. Do not disturb. -Eros
Pammon is also hanging out, enjoying his extended vacation. Here's a cute shot of him and his buddy:
That's all I have to share today. Things are quiet around these parts at the moment, which is nice in its own way I guess. I really hope I can get Eros back to work soon. Fingers crossed guys!
Today's confession is that I'm writing this super late in the day because I had no idea what to confess today. I have a few things in the works, but nothing that's ready to really mention yet. I managed to not embarrass myself today, but probably just because it was a rainy day and mostly I was just here at the farm by myself. Pia doesn't judge! Ha!
But not only did I have a case of writer's block today, I also am not really sure what I want to wear for outfit day this week. Maybe you guys can help? Do you have something you want to see? Something you know I own but haven't worn? A particular color? Maybe a certain theme? Help a blogger out!
Anyway, that's today's confession. I'm feeling a little uninspired. Not in a bad way. Just neutral. Anything you need to confess today?
Outfit day again! I didn't really have a theme this time, but did go with barn colors. Here's what Shiny and I wore:
It was raining on and off so Pivo had to watch from the barn. End result: less crisp photos.
Shiny's outfit is probably feeling a little redundant to you all, but what can I say? We like what we like. Here's what she had on:
Bridle: Joseph Sterling Browband: Dark Jewel Designs
She's been a little.... opinionated of late, so I figured spikes were appropriate.
Saddle: Custom Saddlery
Pad: Mattes
This pad is tied with my Hangry Mare pad for favorite Shiny saddle pad. So obviously, you see it a lot.
Boots: Punk Ponies
These are our go-to boots when I don't have a specific outfit in mind. They really do fit her the best.
And here is what I wore:
My barn colors are super appropriate for the start of Autumn.
Helmet: One K MIPS CCS
I went with the green and rose gold options for today's ride. I really wish they would make a hunter green shell... What's a girl gotta do to make that happen?
Shirt: It's a Haggerty's
I had been hunting for a nice brown shirt that didn't just look like poop for awhile now. Earlier in the summer when It's a Haggerty's had their sale, I found this one in the sale bin and grabbed it. It's a size bigger than I usually wear, but I don't think it looks too bad.
Belt: Pony Locks
This is Jampy's belt. it was a perfect match to today's outfit with that green piping.
Breeches: Horze Grand Prix
I love these breeches. Highly recommed them. But do size down. These are 28's but they fit more like 30's. I haven't seen them in the size down in this color, so I'm making do with them because the color is perfect!
Boots: Horka
It's been awhile since I've worn these, and I forgot how comfortable they are! I'm glad they still fit.
Well guys, it was a week last week. I already mentioned having my well pump replaced, but I did not mention that I'm still dealing with rust in the water. This is normal and can take awhile, but it just feels horrible seeing my horses' water buckets like this:
It's 100% safe but man. It seems like I don't take care of these animals if you see these buckets. Please don't call the authorities. Fortunately, it's not this bad anymore, and hopefully will be all clear soon.
Eros had THE BEST jump school on Wednesday. I had changed the course Monday, and he just clocked right around like nothing was new. AND all but one of the jumps was set at 2'9". He felt amazing. And took some adorable screen shots:
Shiny, however, was a train wreck and a half! I made the mistake of forgetting to put my spurs back on. Lesson learned there. NEVER try to jump Shiny without spurs. Sheesh. I could not get that lil' nugget up in front of my leg for the life of me. And she was acting like she had never seen any of these jumps before in her life. Oddly enough, the jumps she jumped well, she jumped really cute.
But the ones she didn't...
Monsters under this one.
Yep, had that rail down
Kids. I can't say she was a bad pony. She wasn't at all. She never said no to anything and she doesn't try anything dirty. But it was just like she had lost her confidence. She would kind of stutter in front of everything the first time and stare down at them. But once she'd jumped everything she went out pretty well and we called it a day.
Thursday was flat day for both of them, and they were good. Nothing out of the ordinary. It was a relatively easy day as it was kind of raining off and on, so we just tried to get it done in between the weather.
The rain did stop in the afternoon for my lesson with Lil'B! We did all kinds of hard things like figure eights over bending lines.
We made it through pretty nicely the first time, but then I proceeded to mess it up most of the other times. Oh well. Finally, the trainer stood in the middle to make me bend around her and it all worked out nicely. Sometimes you just need a landmark!
Friday is where things took a disappointing turn. I got on Eros and all seemed fine while we were walking around. But when I picked up the trot he was lame. Like really lame. Shit. The only good news was that it was Friday and most Fridays my lameness vet is in the area. So I sent a text and he said he'd try to fit me in that afternoon. I rode Shiny in between and thankfully, she was just fine.
The vet arrived around 4, and had me lunge Eros so he could see what I saw. Yep. Lame. We were all hoping abscess but he was negative to the testers. So on to blocking. He did block nearly sound with the first set so we narrowed it down quickly to foot, maybe lower pastern area. Which is good and bad. It's his leg with the weird tendon so that's not ideal. Since we blocked, we couldn't ultra sound, but since we were leaning toward foot, doc shot some x-rays to see if we could see anything.
They looked great which is good (and bad). So ultimately, we don't really know what's wrong. Hypothesis is that he somehow jammed that weird tendon of his. We decided to inject the coffin and give him this entire week off, then see what I have on Friday. If he's sound, we'll make a plan for riding, and if he's not, we'll have to do more diagnostics. Cross your fingers for us friends!
As for what happened, we aren't really sure. I'm feeling incredibly guilty, that maybe it's because I put the jumps up a hole. But he was sound the day after our last jumps school, so I'm not sure that's rational. Doc thinks he should have tolerated the slightly bigger jumps just fine. He could have just hurt himself stomping at flies (he's very aggressive about that...) or maybe in turnout. Who knows. For now he's getting his regular turnout in the mornings and hand walking in the afternoon. Hopefully he'll look good on Friday.
Shiny got to have her second jump day on Saturday. I made a point to flat her longer before we started jumping. I worked a lot on getting her to move forward and come back at the canter in the hopes it would translate to being adjustable once we were jumping. For the most part it was successful and she was so much better than earlier in the week. She was super ridable and seemed to be enjoying herself. Oddly enough, she didn't jump as cute, but I think when she's relaxed, she just doesn't try as hard.
I'll take relaxed and rideable over a pretty jump any day though.
I had a nice flat ride on Bellino Sunday and then Sunday Funday with Shiny. But she kind of ruined it. I don't ride B with spurs so I didn't have them on. I figured for a ten minute bareback ride I wouldn't need them for Shiny. But alas... She knew I was unarmed. No spurs, no stick... Little hussy wouldn't canter! WOULD. NOT. I was pony kicking like a really strong child to no avail. So I got off, got Mr. Tappy, and got back on. She smartened right up thankfully, and we had a pretty lovely ride. Despite being in the sidepull, she brought that hind end up under herself, and gave me a lovely shape. My legs were toast after 20 minutes, and we were both happy to wander out in the yard and eat grass after that. Well, she ate the grass. I sat on her and scrolled Insta.
This week has been uneventful so far (knock on something please...). Eros is hand walking and Shiny is so far being fine. Looking forward to Friday when hopefully Eros will surprise me with a lovely, sound trot!
Did you all have a good week? Horses trying to drive you insane? It is what they do best afterall...
Early in 2020 Struck had come out with black breeches that had rose gold accents, and I wanted them so much, but like... not for the price. So I was hunting and hunting, and I found these from QHP. They have rose gold zippers on the back "pockets" (back pockets are fake) and rose gold along the pockets. I got them in black and this tan color. I really like them! They're thin like the Ovation aqua-x but I think the fit is a little better. 
I love these so much other than the bleeding problem. They fit like a glove! And I think they're so pretty. Even if I wind up not riding in them, I'll probably still wear them with (thin) jeans and a sweater. 
