New stuff to work with

The other day I got a Breyer Hickstead in a trade, and a spool of black 'roo lace from Australia arrived in the mail. (NICE stuff with a smooth, tight grain, I'm ordering from these guys from now on)

The Hickstead, a special run produced on the Big Ben mold, was a necessary addition. I'd gotten a custom order for tack for this mold, and I didn't own one. The woman trading with me offered me several different Big Bens, and I'm glad I picked this fellow. So handsome in his glossy, just slightly metallic golden bay with gorgeous tri-eyes! I've named him"Meandering", after a character in one of my favorite webcomics.

For this custom order I would also need some metal accents that my usual sources did not supply, so the next day, armed with a fistful 40% percent off coupons, I went craft store hunting. I had read Jennifer Buxton/Braymere's blog post on embossing metal (thank you Jennifer! :) ), and it sounded like something I could work with. The first stop, Hobby Lobby, only turned up this product in silver and copper, and I needed gold. So it was off to JoAnne's next. Bingo! They had super thin (40 gauge!) embossing aluminum in many colors, including a bright yellow-gold. Excellent.

I wanted to experiment first, though, see how it cut, which glues were best, and seeing as all these new toys had come together in such a timely manner, Meandering was picked to wear a black snaffle bridle with gold accents, using the new 'roo lace and the metal for browband and noseband accents.

The best way I've found to cut a straight, narrow strip is to use scissors, not an Exacto blade. Somehow I just couldn't get it aligned properly, and it came out jagged. Fortunately I have an old pair of sewing scissors that was otherwise being retired in favor of a sharper pair.

It was also a chance to practice splitting the browband to go around BB's rather inconvenient forelock. (I love Kathleen's Breyers, but sometimes they can be aggravating to work with...)

The metal helps the split browband keep its shape, too (it still needs sticky wax to hold it in place). The only drawback is that the top color can be rubbed and scratched if it's handled too roughly. But I think it doesn't require any more careful handling than most small tack pieces. Don't get glue or sticky wax on it!

I'm also working on getting fancier reins on my bridles as well as my harnesses, instead of just gluing a foldover. So buckles were installed (rein hooks are still too frustrating for me), as were rein stops. I loved the smooth grain of the lace so much that I didn't lace these reins as I usually do. And I made the bit hangers adjustable on the bit end as well.

I like how it came out, but I think I will go back for the classic gold shade I saw on the shelf. It matches Rio Rondo's gold hardware better. And perhaps I'll pick up some other colors. Peter Stone's new "Ringo" Saddlebred looks like he could use a nice Weymouth bridle with a nice, metallic red or blue browband. (anyone want to trade? :) )

Until next time, when hopefully I'll have some in-progress photos of my custom order (it's a doozie, bigger than I've ever done before. Eep!).

(and before I sign off, this bridle is for sale on MH$P)