Horse-People Products I Love

fav t shirt

First and foremost, I am a tack ho. It is so very "me" to turn my horse out like he's about to walk into an FEI arena, then pop on in dirty breeches and a stained shirt.

Because priorities.

While I think a 3k French saddle is "reasonable" (not that I have one), the idea of spending $100+ on a pair of pants to wear in the dirt (PANTS. F****** PANTS, Y'ALL) absolutely blows my mind. The most I have EVER spent on riding pants is $120 and the norm is half that.

And then boots. Helmets. Socks. Belts. HAIRNETS??? I draw a line. No hair nets unless it's a recognized show, yo.

Anyways. Here is a list of people products that work for me that aren't blow-your-mind-expensive.

yeah i'm calling  show appropriate

1) Smartpak Piper Breeches

Retail price: $80 (with free shipping)
Smart buy: $65 during 20% off sales

Look, they're not for everyone. They fit my body type great, they have fun colors, and for a one horse ammy who does very limited barn chores, they are freaking fantastic at 20% off. They technically aren't "show" breeches inasmuch as the colors are all wrong, but I have totally shown in the wheat and taupe varieties.

you didn't even notice the boots

2) Blundstone boots

Retail Price: $160 plus shipping
Smart buy: $40 shipped on eBay (on the regular)

I am a confirmed boot murderer. I have tried pretty much every available paddock boot on the market and they all die in six months. As clarification, I am not one of those smart people who is like "I put my boots on to ride and do everything else in clogs/muck boots". No. If I go there, my boots go there. And then they die.

Someone recommended blundies to me, and OMG. I bought my first pair on eBay for $25 shipped with a note they needed to be resoled. I wore those things for TWO SOLID YEARS before the leather finally cracked through (due to me never maintaining them) and I finally threw them out.

Basically, my eBay just watches listings for these in the right size and I maybe buy a pair a year (out of many options. I just don't need a 15 boot-pair backlog). They aren't pretty, but they go fine with half chaps and they're almost as tough as I am. LOVE.

there it is

3) Ovation Helmets

Retail Price: $50
Smart buy: once I got 20% off at a going out of business sale

Look, I love me some Charles Owen and I adore how the OneK helmets look, but HOLY HELL they are expensive. Factor in that helmets are essentially a single-use product, and yeah. I am not a good enough rider to gamble $300+ that I won't fall off for a couple years. If you are, more power to you.

So while I have a Charles Owen to show in, it is not my daily driver. I wear the crap out of my brown ovation schooler. Sure, it's not the prettiest thing in the world, but it is ASTM/SEI certified. It's also vented. It's easy to let my friends ride in. And best of all, if I bust it, I'm out $50, not a car payment. #winning

technically wearing belt. refuse to tuck shirts in.

4) C4 Belts

Retail price: $30
Smart buy: They have sales. Watch social media.

This is the closest I get to trendy, and I admit, it's not very close. Regardless. I have one of these belts (thanks Alyssa!!) and I LOVE it. It comes as a long piece of plastic and a buckle. You just cut the plastic to the length you want, attach the buckle, and voila! belt.

Oh, and non-technical me was able to do it on the first try with no instructions, so it's pretty damn easy. I had to use a diagram to learn how to wear a fabric belt last year, in case you're curious. ;-)

So yes. While my horse tends to sport the latest equine fashions, I'm the budget queen of human attire. I am rather jealous of all your pretty riding shirts. Guess I'll be watching the clearance racks this fall...