Friday, September 20, 2013

CAN'T STOP ME NOW!!!

This angle makes his face look big
So when I took C-rage to the clinic, the instructor's biggest criticism was that my bridle wasn't fitted properly for a figure 8. I'd just thrown it on in a mad rush with a loose horse galloping by, so I made a note to fix it next time we rode.

Next time just to happened to be at our group lesson, so I took my time putting it on and shortening things up. Then I led him out to the instructor to get feedback on how it was adjusted. She fiddled with it, I fiddled with it.

And the root of the problem is simply that a horse sized bridle is far too big for a wee little Courage face.






It sort of fits. Def cute.

You heard it here folks: I was told by the trainer that I needed a new bridle. YEAH YEAH YEAH!! Do you have any idea how much I love bridle shopping? SO MUCH. Gah. I love bridles. Of course, that means I own six bridles, none of which fit the only rideable horse I own.














So swanky
Cuna gets to keep his bridles--the swanky Mark Todd monocrown and the practical Nunn Finer plain cavesson. That leaves C-rage with 4--the fancy hunter bridle (too big), the no name cheapie bridle (too big), the Ovation monocrown with sparkles (can squeeze it on), and the Nunn Finer figure eight (too big).















Hunter bridle modeled by the one and only Cuna
Soo... If you want any of those, contact me. Otherwise I'll sell online or consign them or something. We'll keep the Ovation since it sort of fits. Sort of.

But that's not the important news. What's more interesting is getting Courage his very own bridle. I mean, I'll have a budget and get to pick something nice out. I love nice things. My dream bridle is (of course) like an Antares figure eight... you have to touch it to believe it. Those things are incredible. However, those are $500 new without reins.

Barring that, here are some of my favorite options:

Gotta love the detail. Stock Dover image.
1) Dover Showmark Deluxe Jumper Bridle
I hate Dover. You know that. However, this is one of their in-house brands. A friend of mine has another model from the same line, and I covet it every time I see it. I love a good padded monocrown, I love the detail stitching on the figure eight, and the fact that it isn't padded gives me a lot more leeway in adjusting it to fit. Of course, given Dover's odd and expensive shipping policies, I wouldn't order anything else to come along with it.







Very old picture. Who remembers Izzy?
2) Rambo Micklem Bridle
I used to have one of these. Yes, I did. I hated the color, loved the crownpiece, and liked the design. I sold it because I thought I had too many bridles and the mare didn't care one way or another, but I wouldn't mind having another. Besides, the one I had would have been huge on the dainty face I'm fitting now.

Plus, I can now get in havana and I think the complicated design would go well on the fancy little face I'm fitting.


 Because I'm antsy and want to BUY ALL THE THINGS, I nearly pulled the trigger yesterday. Instead, I am forcing myself to act like a grownup for now. You know, maybe sell some things before I attempt to spend more money. In the mean time, I am obsessively bridle shopping. I'm all about the single crown piece, love me some bling (rice clinchers, what what?), and am curious about alternative designs. Anything else I should be considering? What are your favorite bridles for cob-size faces?

28 comments:

  1. Emily has a gorgeous padding stubben bridle that she got at Rolex for a steal, but it fits her mares dainty face (and a handful of other horses nicely), I'll see if I can find the name of it for you. You can see a good picture of it in this blog entry: http://kisforkiki.blogspot.com/2013/07/down-internet-rabbit-hole-of-lameness.html

    ps. Why don't you just fly out here and we can go shopping together?

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  2. You know I'm going to say Micklem, but hear me out! I was just talking yesterday to my friend Mary about how much more the Micklem flatters his gently tapering head than any normal bridle I've seen. So, not only has it made him a lot lighter in the bridle and steadier in the contact, it's sexy too. Get one get one get one. :) (I also like figure 8's, but have never ridden in one)

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  3. You can just buy a smaller pieces. I've done that before. The Antares leather is amaze I'll give you that as a resident Antares ho, but if Courage's head is as small as you say it is, all that wide ass leather will eat the face up and there will be nothing left. Carlos had a dainty and bootiful face and his fine bone structure could not handle the design. Which made me sad and I returned it, opted for a older model beval with finer pieces (of which I ended up having to call Beval and exchanging certain pieces for smaller ones.)

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    1. Yeah, this is what I'm afraid of. I know a lady with an Antares bridle and it is HUGE. I love huge, but probably overkill for wee tiny faces.

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  4. I'm sure you've seen these resources, but I'm currently in a fancy monocrown phase myself... and you know, champagne taste on a beer budget.

    http://www.premiertackoutlet.com/
    http://www.justbridles.com/index.php?p=home
    http://www.tackzone.com/catalog/english-tack-snaffle-bridles-c-144_146.html

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    1. Just Bridles is awesome! I didnt buy my bridle there but they do sell it there and so I have been contemplating buyng a few different nosebands :)

      I have the Aramas Bridles. One purchased from my local tack store and one purchased at VTO. They have the awesome mono crowns, the leather is drool worthy, and they fit well. I do recommend a cob for sure though as I think they may run a bit large. Hue squeezes into a Horse!

      My friend has purchased through JustBridles and had a good experience I think. Plus then you can mix match reins and what not! As well as put the bridle together with different sizes :)

      Off my soap ;)

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  5. Um not to point out the cheaper and less ho-ish option...but can you just buy a noseband?

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  6. Poppy has a cob dainty head. I bought her the Ovation figure 8 for shows. Good quality for the price. Came with reins.

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  7. If you are looking for a nice schooling bridle I like the Courbette cob sized bridles. Prince has a tiny head so it's hard to find something that doesn't look super bulky.

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  8. SmartPak has some really nice bridles for super cheap! I got the Harwich padded crank dressage bridle for my Morgan with an itty bitty head (in cob size) and it is great, and the best part is, it won't break the bank. So you might even be able to get TWO from them for the price of one swanky one.

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  9. If you're considering the hunters, stay away from clinchers! Otherwise, happy hunting. I wish Lex had a horse sized head, I'd buy all the bridles from you.

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  10. My friend got one of the five star tack figure 8's (the one with the metal bling on the headband) for her cob-sized thoroughbred. It looks amazing on him. I have one of the other ones in horse and I love how it looks on Fiction. I highly recommend them!

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  11. Check out Red Barn too. Much lower price point and exceptional quality.

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  12. Shoppppping!!

    Oh man Izzy looks so furry in that picture!

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  13. I will say that NO figure eight fits properly anymore - they are made completely wrong. I would go with a cob Micklem...I use a horse one on Penny and it's a bit big, but she is tiny faced too. I dressed it up with a bling browband...but mine is black. You could also try a drop noseband, they fit tiny faces nicely.

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  14. I will say that NO figure eight fits properly anymore - they are made completely wrong. I would go with a cob Micklem...I use a horse one on Penny and it's a bit big, but she is tiny faced too. I dressed it up with a bling browband...but mine is black. You could also try a drop noseband, they fit tiny faces nicely.

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  15. I will say that NO figure eight fits properly anymore - they are made completely wrong. I would go with a cob Micklem...I use a horse one on Penny and it's a bit big, but she is tiny faced too. I dressed it up with a bling browband...but mine is black. You could also try a drop noseband, they fit tiny faces nicely.

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  16. I too like the Red Barn bridles, the leather is super fab. Takes a bit to break in but once it does...

    Also a huge fan of the Showmark bridles. I've been impressed with the quality for the pricepoint.

    Finally, I like the idea behind the Micklems, but from a purely aesthetic standpoint I have yet to think they ever look good. Ever. On anything.

    Can't wait to see what you pick!

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  17. I know 3 thoroughbreds that must wear cob bridles that are just at the mitts lol! Finn not being one, he has a big warmblood type head lol:) 5 star is still hands down my favorite!

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  18. A) Aww cute Izzy fuzz ball.
    B) Why do you want a figure 8 (or flash) for Courage? Just curious, since I've always ridden in regular cavesson.

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  19. First, what bridle is it that Cuna's wearing with the "flared" noseband and browband. I've been eyeing one like it and while I don't need another bridle... I want one, lol ;)

    For bridles, I haven't ever tried a Dover bridle, but I really, really love my Smartpak Wellfleet bridle and my Micklem and while I don't own one, I also like Red Barn tack.

    And both my horses are in between cob and horse size and it sucks. But the standard horse sized Micklem fits both of them perfectly since it's so adjustable.

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    Replies
    1. That's my swanky Mark Todd monocrown bridle... they aren't available in the US, haha. It's a decent price point and super nice leather, so if you're on hte fence, DO IT. They aren't for everyone, but it's an awesome look on Cuna's face.

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  20. I would love a new bridle!! but, I can't right now, darn it. I really do like the look of the Dover bridle but I've also really wanted to try a Micklem.

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  21. I wish I knew what size bridle I needed, otherwise I would be interested in the hunter bridle. I keep hearing good things of the Micklem, and it would look cute still on a smaller face.

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  22. I love the Five Star Tack bridles. I actually have a cob size one for sale... nothing too fancy but the leather is absolutely gorgeous!

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  23. I just can't get into the Micklem bridle.. I know some people swear by them, but they're just so... ugly. I know I should be more concerned about how they actually work, but I just can't get past the aesthetics. I'm such a bad person :(

    And I got a cob sized figure 8 for my thoroughbred, and it's still pretty much too big- it's on the last holes, ha! I always worry I don't have it fitted on correctly, though. What is wrong with yours exactly? Have fun bridle shopping!

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  24. Sorry I can't be of help on the bridle shopping, but I wanted to say yes I remember Izzy!! How is she? Do you talk to her new owner?

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